Autism

The very heated debate of whether vaccines can cause autism in newborns is ongoing. Millions of dollars have been spent testing this theory and it has almost always been shot down. Why do people, mainly mothers of autistic children, still believe that these vaccines are to blame? The main reason is that up until 2001, most MMR (measles-mumps-rubella) vaccines contained mercury. The mercury was located in an additive called thimerosal which has now been removed from all vaccines. Even though the mercury has been removed from the vaccine, parents are still concerned about the vaccinations. The main reason being is that most autism cases are diagnosed when an infant is around 18 months of age which is also around the time that an infant receives a large amount of their vaccines. Over and over studies have shown that there is no linkage between the two.

I think the main reason parents are so attached to the fact that the vaccines could be harming their children is because it is all they have to hold onto. If it isn’t vaccines that are causing autism, then why does one in every 91 children have some form of autism in the United States? Parents are desperate to find the answers and they don’t have anything else to go off of. One other possible cause, which we studied in my biology class, was that it is being caused by deficiencies in vitamin D. A striking number of children in the United States have been found to have deficiencies in vitamin D. Vitamin D is what allows calcium to be absorbed in the bones. It is found in many milk products and most importantly in the sun. The only problem is that sunscreen blocks the absorption of vitamin D. Each day, children and adults need a mere 10 minutes out in the sun without sunscreen. This is not long enough to damage the skin and yet all that is needed for a healthy child. The next question asked is, why do scientists link vitamin D deficiency and autism? Although research is still being conducted, so far it is shown that babies who are in the womb mostly during the summer time are less likely to develop autism. This is because their mothers are outside and soaking up the sun. In contrast, babies who are mostly in the womb during the winter time have more of a chance of developing autism. Mothers are most likely to get less amounts of vitamin D during this time period because of the lack of sun. At the time babies are in the womb, it is such a critical growing time for their brains that a deficiency in a vitamin this important can have devastating effects.

Here is a website that talks about research and the links between autism and vitamin D deficiency.