Is thimersol in vaccinations linked to autism?

Answer 1

There is a popular theory circulating the internet that thimersol in vaccinations has contributed to the increase in Autism levels in the US. There is absolutely no scientific evidence that there is any link between the two. When reading material on the internet about this subject, keep in mind the source of the information. Often the information is only opinion, and not researched scientific data. Vaccinations are vital for the health of all people, and have very few side effects, mostly limited to soreness at the injection site and mild fever. Please read the information provided by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) website for more general information about vaccines and vaccine safety, and from the Vaccine Information Center, which provides scientific evidence for the safety and efficacy of vaccines. Both are provided below in "Related Links" Can autism be caused by Thiomersal from vaccines? Technically the jury is still out... but not for long. And parents armed with their children's lab tests have made up their own minds. Since 2002 the U.S. Federal Omnibus Autism Proceeding has investigated whether Thiomersal (Thimerosal) causes autism. Nearly 5,000 children have cases filed in this area of the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, and the verdicts may be announced early in 2009. (Link to website below.)

Thimerosal is 49.6% ethylmercury by weight, and mercury in any form is a neurotoxin. Manufacturers Safety Data Sheets for Thimerosal state that the compound is a mutagen (mutates genes) and a teratogen (causes cancer). Research indicates Thimerosal causes damage at nanomolar levels: * 0.5 parts per billion ( ppb) mercury = Kills human neuroblastoma cells (Parran et al., Toxicol Sci 2005; 86: 132-140). * 2 ppb mercury = U.S. EPA limit for drinking water. * 20 ppb mercury = Neurite membrane structure destroyed (Leong et al., Neuroreport * 200 ppb mercury = level in liquid the EPA classifies as hazardous waste. * 600 ppb mercury = Level in a currently licensed Hepatitis B, multi-dose vaccine vial, labeled as trace. This is administered at birth. * 25,000 ppb mercury = Level in 94% of injectable influenza vaccines, 2007-2008. 2001; 12: 733-37). Many scientists and physicians worldwide believe that Thimerosal causes neurological and immunological damage, resulting in behaviors rather erroneously given the psychological label of autism spectrum disorder. Some examples: * Boyd E. Haley, PhD of the University of Kentucky, its former chemistry chair, has done extensive research on mercury toxicity from Thimerosal. * Thomas Burbacher, PhD of the University of Washington worked on a 2005 primate study that found ethylmercury bound to brain tissue more quickly than methylmercury. * Washington state chemist Andrew Hall Cutler, PhD, PE, a former NASA employee, treated himself for mercury poisoning. Cutler advises a large Yahoo listserv on biomedical treatments such as chelation, called "Autism-Mercury," and is the author of "Hair Test Interpretation: Finding Hidden Toxicities." Members of Congress who believe Thimerosal is linked to autism include Rep. Dan Burton (D-IN), Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), and former Rep. Dave Weldon, M.D. (R-FL). In May 2008 U.S. News & World Report medical editor Dr. Bernadine Healy was interviewed by CBS investigative reporter Sharyl Attkisson. Dr. Healy, a former director of NIH and former head of the American Red Cross, stated, "I think the government or certain public health officials within the government have been too quick to dismiss the concerns of these families without studying the population that got sick." She also said, "I think public health officials have been too quick to dismiss the hypothesis [vaccines can trigger autism] as irrational without sufficient studies of causation." The U.S. Centers for Disease Control has relied on epidemiological studies to defend its vaccine administration politics, rather than seek biological samples from children on the autism spectrum. Other Thimerosal/autism resources: * 2005 book "Evidence of Harm" by investigative journalist David Kirby * The Coalition for SafeMinds (Sensible Action For Ending Mercury-Induced Neurological Disorders) * No Mercury * Jenny McCarthy's Autism Organization - Generation Rescue * PutChildrenFirst.org === === The information on limits on mercury levels and mercury toxicity is based on studies of a different form of mercury (methylmercury), not thiomersal (ethylmercury). They might not have the same toxicity effects at the same amounts. There is a study that has been looking at the differences between both types, published in Environmental Health Perspectives.

Andrew Wakefield, the researcher who controlled the well-known study that claimed a link between autism and vaccinations had falsified the results to show that vaccinations caused autism. In fact, several of his subjects showed signs of autism before the vaccinations. The medical and hospital records of the children were obtained in early 2009, and those show very different results from the ones that Andrew Wakefield claimed. He is defending himself against charges of professional misconduct for his ethical conduct regarding the study. In addition to falsifying the results, he also had accepted funding prior to begining the study to prove that the MMR vaccine was harmful, so it was a conflict of interest when he did this study. The link for "The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia: A Look at What Causes, and Doesn't Cause, Autism" comments on Wakefield's two studies. Also related to autism and thiomersal (U.S.: thimerosal), a review in Clinical Infectious Diseases (February 2009) of the various studies of vaccines and autism show that there is no difference in autism rates between children vaccinated with thiomersal-containing vaccines and children vaccinated with thiomersal-free vaccines.

Answer 2

No, there is absolutely no link between vaccines and autism.

Autism is a neurological difference, it is a result of genetics and is formed when the brain is formed during the second trimester of pregnancy. Vaccines cannot time-travel to changes the genes of a persons parent or change their brain development within the womb. The idea of vaccines being linked to autism is nonsense only believed by ableist anti-vaxxers.