Statement on Autism and Vaccines from Dr. Wilma J. Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., San Diego County Public Health Officer
Recent events in the news have once again raised concerns about the unproven assertion that vaccines somehow cause autism in children. Citizens of San Diego County can be reassured that vaccines approved for use in the U.S. are extensively tested for safety and effectiveness.
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one of the agencies which is responsible for monitoring the safety and efficacy of vaccines in the U.S., had this to say about this subject:
“The weight of currently available scientific evidence does not support the hypothesis that vaccines cause autism. We recognize there is considerable public interest in this issue, and therefore support additional research regarding this hypothesis. CDC is committed to maintaining the safest, most effective vaccine supply in history.” 1
The supposed link between thimerosal, a preservative which had been used in some vaccines (and which contains extremely small amounts of mercury) and autism is not supported by current available scientific evidence. However, even if there were a link, one would expect that autism rates would decline, rather than increase, because thimerosal has been eliminated from almost all vaccines and this has been the situation for the past several years. This was done as part of efforts by various federal agencies to decrease human exposure to mercury from various sources, as a prudent precaution, not because of any scientific evidence that thimerosal itself was harmful. 1, 2
The federal Food and Drug Administration, the agency which is responsible for licensing vaccine for use in this country, has said: “Since 2001, all vaccines manufactured for the U.S. market and routinely recommended for children ≤6 years of age have contained no thimerosal or only trace amounts (≤1 microgram of mercury per dose remaining from the manufacturing process), with the exception of inactivated influenza vaccine. In addition, all of the routinely recommended vaccines that had been previously manufactured with thimerosal as a preservative (some formulations of DTaP, Haemophilus influenzae b conjugate (Hib), and hepatitis B vaccines) had reached the end of their shelf life by January 2003.” 2
Again, vaccines approved for use in the U.S. are safe and effective, and play a vital role in the dramatic reduction of communicable diseases like measles, polio and chickenpox in this country. In fact, the CDC has noted that immunizations are one of the great success stories of public health, and indeed are one of the top 10 accomplishments of the 20th Century. Untold suffering and death have been prevented by timely immunization. It would be tragic to abandon the progress achieved so far in response to misinformation and fear. Citizens of San Diego County are urged to keep these facts in mind whenever they hear assertions about a link between vaccines and autism.
For reliable and scientifically sound information about vaccines, vaccine safety, and autism, please visit the following websites (and please note that many of these websites contain links to numerous other good sources of information about these subjects):
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Vaccine Safety http://www.cdc.gov/od/science/iso/ http://www.cdc.gov/od/science/iso/concerns/mmr_autism.htm
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Vaccines general information
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/default.htm
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Autism information
http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/index.htm
Food and Drug Administration - Thimerosal FAQs http://www.fda.gov/cber/vaccine/thimfaq.htm
Immunization Action Coalition - Autism and Vaccines http://www.vaccineinformation.org/autism.asp
American Academy of Pediatrics - Vaccines general information http://www.cispimmunize.org/aap/aap_main.html
National Institutes of Health - Autism and the MMR vaccine http://www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/pubs/autism/mmr/index.cfm
Thank you,
Wilma J. Wooten, M.D., M.P.H.
San Diego County Public Health Officer
Notes on sources:
- Source:
http://www.cdc.gov/od/science/iso/concerns/mmr_autism.htm
- Source:
http://www.fda.gov/cber/vaccine/thimfaq.htm#q6
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