We don't know enough about childhood vaccines

Baltimore Sun, July 11, 2011

The topics of vaccines and vaccine safety spark emotional outbursts at scientific meetings and family dinner tables alike. But many of these debates are remarkably fact-free. Surprisingly few people — not just concerned parents but also doctors, policymakers and even immunization experts — can answer this seemingly simple question: How many immunizations does the federal government recommend for every child during the first two years of life?

A new Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health study reports that the higher the proportion of infants and toddlers receiving recommended vaccines, the higher the state's rate of children diagnosed with autism or speech-language problems just a few years later. This analysis is sure to rekindle the debate about vaccine safety.

In all, the federal government recommends 36 doses of vaccine, addressing 14 different diseases, for every U.S. child under age 2. An on-schedule child will receive a dose of vaccine for hepatitis B at birth, eight doses of various vaccines at 2 months, seven additional doses at 4 months, and four to seven more doses at 6 months.

The federally recommended doses of vaccine for every child during the first two years of life are: three doses each for hepatitis B, polio, flu, and HIB (12 doses in all); two doses each for hepatitis A and rotavirus; four doses for pneumococcal infections; one dose for chicken pox; three doses through the combination MMR vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella; and 12 doses through four separate administrations of the combination DTaP vaccine for diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (whooping cough).

In addition to the number of doses, vaccine ingredients can be problematic, especially for susceptible subgroups. First are adjuvants, substances added to boost effectiveness and allow smaller doses of vaccine antigen to be used. The most common adjuvant is aluminum, which is found in vaccines for hepatitis and diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus.

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Related: Vaccines and autism: a new scientific review ("Documented causes of autism include genetic mutations and/or deletions, viral infections, and encephalitis [brain damage] following vaccination. Therefore, autism is the result of genetic defects and/or inflammation of the brain.")

Taking Liberties: Forced Vaccinations?

Fox News, May 26, 2011

In 1999, Madison’s older sister developed autism just months after receiving her state-required immunizations for measles, mumps and rubella.

And so two years ago when it came time for Madison to receive her immunizations, Workman said no. Her elementary school in Lenore responded by barring Madison from attending class. And thus began a two year legal struggle with the State of West Virginia that may very well determine the limits of parental rights in America in regard to vaccines.

Workman says she was shocked when the principal told her Madison had to receive the shots. “Helpless,” she said. “I mean there is no other word for it. I am helpless. I feel forced."

Workman’s attorney Patricia Finn is an expert in forced vaccination cases and she is outraged. “This is a basic human right,” she said. “To be able to decide what is injected in our bodies, in our children’s bodies, is everything.

Unfortunately, last December, the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed, and Finn now is vowing to take the case to the Supreme Court if necessary.

“This is a First Amendment issue. This is a 9th Amendment issue. This is about basic freedom,” she said.

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Chicken pox vaccine now required for enrollment at ETSU

TriCities.com News, May 19, 2011

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. -- Incoming students who will begin full-time classes at East Tennessee State University starting this summer and beyond will be required to show proof of having the Varicella (chicken pox) vaccine or proof of immunity to this disease.

This policy is part of a new state law that applies to incoming new full-time students at all Tennessee colleges and universities, including those in undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs.

New students must receive two doses of the Varicella vaccination, which are given at least 28 days apart. ETSU will allow students to register for full-time courses for one semester if they have had only the first of the two vaccinations; however, the second vaccination must be administered before they can register for the following semester.

In addition to Varicella, ETSU students must show proof of having at least the first of two doses of the MMR (mumps, measles, and rubella) vaccine. As with the case of the Varicella vaccine, the second MMR dose must be administered before the student can register for the following semester.

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Documents emerge proving Dr Andrew Wakefield innocent; BMJ and Brian Deer caught misrepresenting the facts

Natural News, Feb. 11, 2011

New documents have emerged that clear Dr Andrew Wakefield of the allegations of fraud recently made by the British Medical Journal and its reporter Brian Deer. This new evidence "completely negates the allegations that I committed scientific fraud. Brian Deer and Dr. Godlee of the British Medical Journal (BMJ) knew or should have known about the facts set out below before publishing their false allegations," says Dr Andrew Wakefield...

Remember, Dr Wakefield has been accused of completely fabricating his findings about these same children in his 1998 paper, but these documents reveal that fourteen months before Dr Wakefield's paper was published, two other researchers -- Professor Walker-Smith and Dr Amar Dhillon -- independently documented the same problems in these children, including symptoms of autism.

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BREAKING NEWS: Statement From Dr. Andrew Wakefield: No Fraud. No Hoax. No Profit Motive.

AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/— Dr. Andrew Wakefield issued the following statement on the recent British Medical Journal articles:

“The British Medical Journal and reporter Brian Deer recently alleged that my 1998 research paper was ‘a hoax’ and ‘an elaborate fraud’ and that my motivation was profit.

“I want to make one thing crystal clear for the record – my research and the serious medical problems found in those children were not a hoax and there was no fraud whatsoever. Nor did I seek to profit from our findings.

“I stand by the Lancet paper’s methodology and the results which call for more research into whether environmental triggers cause gastrointestinal disease and developmental regression in children. In fact, despite media reports to the contrary, the results of my research have been duplicated in five other countries (to see citations to studies, visit http://tinyurl.com/4hrdt5y.)

“It is not unexpected to see poor reporting and misinformation coming from Brian Deer, the lead reporter of the recent BMJ coverage. But to see coverage in other media that cites Deer’s shoddy journalism in the BMJ as a final justification to claim there is no link between vaccines and autism is ludicrous. The MMR is only one vaccine of the eleven vaccinations on the pediatric schedule that has been studied for causing developmental problems such as autism. That is fact, not opinion. Any medical professional, government official or journalist who states that the case is closed on whether vaccines cause autism is jumping to conclusions without the research to back it up.

“I continue to fully support more independent research to determine if environmental triggers, including vaccines, are causing autism and other developmental problems. The current rate of autism is 1 in 110 children in the United States and 1 in 64 children in the U.K. My goal has always been and will remain the health and safety of children. Since the Lancet paper, I have lost my job, my career and my country. To claim that my motivation was profit is patently untrue. I will not be deterred – this issue is far too important.”

Related stories:
Amy Wallace & Yellow Journalism, Sept. 10, 2010..."I felt a knot in the pit of my stomach as I read the unsubstantiated, unchallenged slur made by Offit against me. And in those two words “SHE LIES,” I knew that the propaganda tactic of character assassination was being used to attack the credibility of my nearly 30 years of work as a vaccine safety consumer advocate."
Bill Gates: Vaccine-autism link 'an absolute lie', CNNHealth, Feb. 4, 2011..More propaganda from vaccine shill Bill Gates. -Ed.

The Beetlejuice World of Brian Deer

A question more media outlets reporting on autism and vaccines should be asking: Who is this Brian Deer character, anyway?

Age of Autism, Jan. 28, 2011

When asked about why autism is rising or what is causing autism. Deer responds, “I don’t know, I am not a doctor.” Fair enough. Yet why did the British medical authorities hire this squirrelly “free-lance” journalist to “investigate” and evaluate the complex medical records of sick children with autism? Insane. Why doesn’t our government hire Jane Brody, who writes a health column for the NYT, to investigate brain surgery frauds and report back to the NIH? Why hasn’t the Surgeon General hired Emily Smith (a good detective!) of “Page Six” to investigate hoax heart valve surgeries? Anyone is free to “investigate” and report anything they want but our government doesn’t commission wacky reporters off the streets to evaluate children’s confidential and complex medical histories. Can you even imagine how many personal injury lawyers would retire for life if they worked on this case here in the U.S.?

The saddest part in all this is seeing how Deer’s warped medical “evaluations” of these childrens’ records were taken seriously by any authority at all...

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Scientists fear MMR link to autism

Daily Mail, Jan.24, 2011

New American research shows that there could be a link between the controversial MMR triple vaccine and autism and bowel disease in children.

The study appears to confirm the findings of British doctor Andrew Wakefield, who caused a storm in 1998 by suggesting a possible link.

Now a team from the Wake Forest University School of Medicine in North Carolina are examining 275 children with regressive autism and bowel disease - and of the 82 tested so far, 70 prove positive for the measles virus.

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Was Vaccine Safety Conference The Target Of Wakefield Media Blitz?

From Hell to Veins, Jan. 21, 2011

The International Vaccine Safety conference was held the very week of the heaviest media blitz against Dr. Wakefield. Was this ‘world wide’ media blitz meant to send a ‘chilling effect’ to all the professionals who attended this vaccine safety conference? Was the message to the attendees...don’t question vaccine safety or else!!

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Related: DR. ANDREW WAKEFIELD AND THE MMR CONTROVERSY