Vaccine Phobia Becomes a Public-Health Threat

Hello world! My name is Sidney Chi, I am a junior at Mills. I think that science is a very useful subject to learn in school because it explains how everything in the world works.

I found an interesting article in Discover magazine (January/February 2010, page 19) about the theory that vaccines cause autism in children and adults. 1-1.5 million children and adults have been diagnosed with autism in the United States alone but there is no clear explanation to the cause of the social disease. Researchers have concluded that vaccines are not to blame for the rise in autism diagnoses.

People and organizations who advocate anti-vaccine movements appear all over the Internet in blogs, forums, etc. and on talk shows telling their view on how vaccinations are harming children causing them to have autism. All that does is confuse the public on what they should believe: good science with evidence to back up that vaccinations are crucial for keeping society healthy or conspiracy theorists who are a threat to public health. Some researchers who are against vaccinations are trying to prove that the symptoms of autism start at 18 months for children, which is the age that they receive many of their vaccinations.

Parents are now unsure about whether or not to get their children vaccinated but children who are not immune to deadly diseases such as measles or rubella can spread the disease unknowingly. Children who are sent to school or daycare without being fully vaccinated put the welfare of everyone else around them at risk by spreading the virus.

No one has figured out whether or not vaccines directly cause autism but credible researchers are assure the public that vaccinations are crucial to give to children to stay healthy. Autism may be a predisposed disease that is passed on genetically.

A positive side to the media exposure of the autism issue is that research for autism is finally getting more attention. The public has become more educated about the disease and more financial commitment is being given to organizations to increase research on autism.