What is Autism? That is hard to say. It cannot be empirically diagnosed. There is no conclusive test. Often it can be seen as a behavior disorder, hand flapping, loss of eye contact, a type of sensory integration disorder or some other developmental delay. It could be stated that it is a central nervous system anomaly.
What causes Autism? Like the rest of the America, I can say I don’t know. But I have had several parents of children with autism say it started shortly after a scheduled vaccine. The medical community summarily dismisses this as a coincidence.
In the 1960’s there were some children with autism. It has been reported as approximately 1 in 10,000. At that time, the doctors said it was caused by frigid mothers.
Now it is reported as 1 in 166 or 1 in 90, depending on which report you read. Why this tremendous increase, and when?
The when question can be ascertained by the records. The best presentation of the records I have seen is by Dr. Mark Geier. He has presented information he received from the CDC/Kaiser Permanante database for 25 million patients. His report is that the increase shot up significantly in 1990, in parallel with the increase in the vaccine schedule in 1988. He also proposes that he was removed from the database after he discerned this information. His information can also be questioned because he subsequently came forth with a patented “cure” for autism.
But I have heard no one else come forward with a confirmation, or even a further dissection of those records. If that record exists, why is there no further research?
What is the cost of Autism?
That can be summed up in one word, HUGE. I have seen the parents of these children spend hundreds of thousands of dollars per year on the progress and recovery of their children. Multiply $100,000 by the number of children with autism, which is reported on statemaster.com as 163,000 and you come up with 16 billion. Per year. I have seen late teens and post-teenagers with this condition who cannot be left unsupervised, and it can be assumed this would continue throughout their adult lives. It’s no wonder the cause is so hard to ascertain, or why the obfuscation is so diligent.
The National Institute of Health, Center for Disease Control and the American Academy of Pediatrics have all campaigned for and supported the vaccine schedule, so if any of them changed the policy at this point, they could be seen as culpable. Not withstanding the pharmaceutical lobby. And, of course, the pharmaceutical companies say there is no known link between vaccines and autism. I learned in elementary school math that you cannot prove a negative or the non-existence of something.
If one in a hundred children were suddenly coming down with a strange, life-threatening illness, I think we’d all be running around with masks, like we saw on the news from Mexico City last year in the Swine Flu breakout. I don’t know what actually constitutes an epidemic, but if you were faced with that possibility, I would recommend caution. Ask parents of children with Autism. Is their life different than their friends with “neuro-typical” children?
Genetic Research
As stated previously, there was an incidence of autism in the mid 20th century, estimated at one in 10,000. Now there is genetic research to discover the root cause. I wholeheartedly support this research. It could come up with the key genetic component. But I ask this question. Ask your doctor. Ask your scientist. What changed in human genetics in the nineties?
What can we do?
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor. I do not dispense medical advice. Before you do anything, ask your doctor. I recommend you use common sense. (Why do they call it “common”?) See www.generationrescue.org. See the patterns and try not to repeat them. Take back control. I am not anti-vaccine. But most of the children I grew up with had childhood diseases and got through them with no adverse effects. The week I spent with the measles was no fun. But the children I see with Spectrum disorders don’t recover in a week.
From England’s Sunday Times, April 3, 2006 - The teenager is Britain’s first measles fatality in 14 years.
From the WHO website - More than 95% of measles deaths occur in low-income countries with weak health infrastructures.
How many children will we lose to autism? As above, Britain lost one child to measles in 14 years.
Central Nervous System Anomaly
Thimerisol? MMR? Vaccine overdose? Who’s to say? Probably not the doctors or the pharmaceutical companies. Ask yourself (and your doctor!) these questions. Does this one year-old baby have a neurologically complete central nervous system? Well, let’s see. He’s not walking or talking and still in diapers. How developed is the baby’s blood/brain barrier? Then use your common sense. You could come up with, in light of the neurological anomalies seen in our society maybe we should wait just a little bit before we invade it. And maybe not give it the full onslaught test.
