Childhood Vaccination Part 3: Vaccines and autism

Having a child develop autism is a difficult prospect for parents to cope with, and it is frightening that mainstream medicine has absolutely no explanations for the cause of the dramatic rise of autism in recent years. Whereas 1980 autism rates were around one in ten thousand, the rate doubled between 2003 and 2009, with the current rate at an astonishing one in ninety one children3, 8. Approximately ninety percent of people with autism are male, so the rate for boys is around one in twenty to thirty3, 8. These skyrocketing rates lead to a lot of questions, and the one relevant to this discussion is whether vaccines could play a role. As we enter into this discussion, let us keep in mind that mainstream medicine has pronounced no cause of autism.
Let’s look at one potential theory for how vaccines (and other sources of neurotoxins) might cause autism. Renowned author and nutritionist Carol Simontacchi’s theory goes like this. As the brain of a fetus and burgeoning child develops, it goes through a number of important stages that have lasting impacts on that child’s future19. One stage might involve the development of motor coordination, or visual understanding, or the ability to speak19. That’s how brain development works: it is not a linear process; there are various stages of development going on at any one time19.
When substances known to impact the brain enter into the body, they can have an impact on the stage of development the brain is in19. For example, if the brain is developing the ability to recognize faces when a neurotoxin is presented, this neuronal system may be damaged and the child might have difficulty recognizing faces in the future19. Some experts suggest that the communication systems of the brain are especially prone to show damage in the autistic12. The toxin could be mercury (or other vaccines adjuvants: squalene, formaldehyde, aluminum, neomycin, streptomycin, etc), aspartame, hormone disrupting chemicals, or a number of other toxins19.
According to Simontacchi, numerous clients and others have found kids who went downhill overnight after vaccination19. Some of these stories will be shared later in the essay.

Some of the research and data on autism
The research of Mark and David Geier found in June of 2009 that Thimerosal and other heavy metals caused “mitochondrial damage, reduced oxidative-reduction activity, cellular degeneration, and cell death” consistent with autism18.
The Thimerosal containing measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine was connected to autism in numerous reports. One report found that autistic children had increased levels of MMR antibodies6. The National Vaccine Information Center “has noted a strong association between the MMR vaccine and autistic features”6. The Encephalitis Support Group in England found that post-MMR autism cases were trigged in as little as thirty days6.
A preliminary study from the University of California San Diego and San Diego State University discovered that MMR vaccines combined with the subsequent use of acetaminophen is associated with autism44.
A study in Pediatrics found several neurodevelopmental disorders, including encephalitis, aseptic meningitis, and autism developed within three months of vaccination45.
A further study found that some infants are completely unable to eliminate mercury; trace amounts can cause serious health problems6. In fact, most autistic children have been shown to have serious methylation (heavy metal detoxification disorders)19.

Vaccine additives
Several of the adjuvants in vaccines may be toxic to the brain, notably mercury and aluminum.
Mercury is a neurotoxin (is toxic to the brain) and accumulates in the brains of primates, including the brains of fetuses of pregnant mothers3, 6, 24. Thimerosol contains 25 micrograms, or 50,000 parts per billion (ppb) of mercury (ethyl mercury). 200 ppb is enough for the EPA to classify something as hazardous waste, and 2 ppb is the maximum amount allowed for drinking water in the United States.
This is alarming because infants and young children do not have fully developed immune systems. There is absolutely nothing preventing toxins like mercury from entering directly into the brain.

The Thimerosal cover up scandal
An important and confidential topic is the 2000 Simpsonwood Conference, as documented in a major article published by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in 2005. The private conference was hosted by the CDC in Georgia amongst fifty-two attendees—high level officials from the CDC, the FDA, the WHO, and every major vaccine producer24. The information to be discussed was strictly confidential, but we have access to the transcripts from the conference thanks to a Freedom of Information Act request24.
The information, in fact, came from CDC epidemiologist Tom Verstraeten, whose survey of 100,000 medical records found a statistically significant correlation between Thimerosal and autism, speech delays, ADD, and ADHD24. Verstraeten said, “I was actually stunned by what I saw”24.
Kennedy highlights a few quotes from the conference:
Even for scientists and doctors accustomed to confronting issues of life and death, the findings were frightening. “You can play with this all you want,” Dr. Bill Weil, a consultant for the American Academy of Pediatrics, told the group. The results “are statistically significant.” Dr. Richard Johnston, an immunologist and pediatrician from the University of Colorado whose grandson had been born early on the morning of the meeting’s first day, was even more alarmed. “My gut feeling?” he said. “Forgive this personal comment — I do not want my grandson to get a thimerosal-containing vaccine until we know better what is going on”24.
These quotes were paired with others expressing concern that, to give one example, “[The pharmaceutical industry is] in a bad position from the standpoint of defending any lawsuits”24. Dr. John Clements of the WHO said, “perhaps this study should not have been done at all;” he also said “the research results have to be handled”24.
As Republican representative Dan Burton’s three year congressional investigation on Thimerosal concluded, “Thimerosal used as a preservative in vaccines is directly related to the autism epidemic”24.
The phasing out of Thimerosal had already begun, and it was expedited by the US government buying the old vaccines24. Still, millions received Thimerosal containing vaccines during the year of the conference took place because the group refused to publicly announce the findings24. Thimerosal is still in some vaccines, such as the recent swine flu vaccine, because it allows for the use of multi-dose containers that allow for the vaccination of larger numbers of people24.
America is way behind the curve. Russia banned Thimerosal in the eighties, and they were followed by numerous countries including Austria, Japan, the United Kingdom, all Scandinavian countries, and others24. The findings of a 1977 Russian study indicate that “adults exposed to much lower concentrations of ethylmercury than those given to American children still suffered brain damage years later,” and other research found that ethylmercury is in fact more dangerous than methylmercury24.
The Verstraeten data was never taken seriously. Instead, it was “reworked to reduce the link between thimerosal and autism” and published in the journal Pediatrics24. “The new study included children too young to have been diagnosed with autism and overlooked others who showed signs of the disease”24.

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