Autism, mercury and cover up???

rpggyr · Jul 20, 2005

Thank you Mercyteapot. Like I said it depends on what scientific data you want to believe. The flawed epidemiology studies or the ones that are the real studies being done in the labs.

Peggy

Mercury research at major universities: I'm going to post this working under the assumption that we can all agree the University of Washington, UC Davis, Johns Hopkins and Columbia are all "credible sources" of information. I hardly think they're buying into some conspiracy theory.
University Of Washington / National Institutes Of Environmental Health
Sciences - Published In Environmental Health Perspectives
In primates, ethylmercury from vaccines (in the form of thimerosal),
once it enters the brain, converts to inorganic mercury at two to three
times the rate of methylmercury, which is found in fish. Inorganic mercury
lacks a natural transport system out of the brain, where it remains for long
periods of time, perhaps indefinitely. A previous study by the same team
found that inorganic mercury was the main cause of serious changes in brain
tissue, including a major expansion of microglial cells (white matter),
which is consistent with the finding of "big brains" in autistic children.
University Of California - M.I.N.D. Institute - Presented At The 2005
Interational Meeting For Autism Research
Children with autism have a markedly different immune profile from
normal kids. They are found to have increased autoimmunity, extremely high
levels of certain immune cells and cytokines, and an imbalance of immune
cells to antibodies (TH1 vs. TH2 response). ALL of these abnormal conditions
appear in the literature on mercury toxicity.
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School Of Public Health - Published In The Journal
Pediatrics
The rate of increase in new cases of autism among children born every
year in the United States was relatively stable until 1987, when the rate
suddenly began to spike, and then continued to rise among children born in
each subsequent birth cohort. A second spike in the rate of increase was
noted in 1992, a few years after which, the rate began to level off. (It is
interesting to note that, between 1987 and 1992, with the introduction of
new thimerosal containing vaccines, total mercury exposure from infant
immunization went from 75 to nearly 240 micrograms). Meanwhile, the reported
incidence of mental retardation and other childhood disorders remained
constant, meaning that "diagnostic substitution" was not an explanation for
the rise in autism cases.
Columbia University - Published In Molecular Psychology
Mice with a genetic predisposition to autoimmunity showed horrific
reactions to thimerosal containing vaccines, compared to mice without the
autoimmunity. Sensitive mice showed repetitive and self-injurious behavior,
including grooming themselves or their cage mates incessantly, sometimes to
the point of death. They also were found to have increased brain size
compared to the typical (control) mice exposed to the same vaccine schedule.
Columbia University - Published In Molecular Psychology
Mice with a genetic predisposition to autoimmunity showed horrific
reactions to thimerosal containing vaccines, compared to mice without the
autoimmunity. Sensitive mice showed repetitive and self-injurious behavior,
including grooming themselves or their cage mates incessantly, sometimes to
the point of death. They also were found to have increased brain size
compared to the typical (control) mice exposed to the same vaccine schedule.
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/-AuTeach/message/2586

chicagrl72 · Jul 20, 2005

Thank you Mercyteapot. Like I said it depends on what scientific data you want to believe. The flawed epidemiology studies or the ones that are the real studies being done in the labs.
Peggy

i am struggling with this issue .. i have a 2 1/2 yr old with only two vaccinations. I told our dr that i would like to wait ..he is cool with that ..it is under public health care ...we see a dr at a public health care facility

meanwhile i did have insurance for a bit and that dr told me as well "it is cool to wait ...most vaccination laws are in effect for purposes of getting to people who are low income and won't vaccinate again..get em while you have em " etc ...so we have waited ...now i have to get the certain ones for school etc...i am still stalling ..not sure what to do

on the other hand i have to have a million vax on my record even to volunteer

i have most but right now i have no health care ...so i am not sure how to obtain the rest ..to get me up to date ...

LydiaNN · Jul 20, 2005

i am struggling with this issue .. i have a 2 1/2 yr old with only two vaccinations. I told our dr that i would like to wait ..he is cool with that ..it is under public health care ...we see a dr at a public health care facility
meanwhile i did have insurance for a bit and that dr told me as well "it is cool to wait ...most vaccination laws are in effect for purposes of getting to people who are low income and won't vaccinate again..get em while you have em " etc ...so we have waited ...now i have to get the certain ones for school etc...i am still stalling ..not sure what to do
on the other hand i have to have a million vax on my record even to volunteer
i have most but right now i have no health care ...so i am not sure how to obtain the rest ..to get me up to date ...

I'm sorry, I'm not quite clear if you mean you are struggling with the idea of having your son vaccinated or worried about the vaccines you need. If you're struggling with the idea of being vaccinated yourself, IMHO, you don't need to be. These vaccines don't seem to cause the trouble for adults that they do for children, as it is a smaller amount of mercury entering our system relative to body weight, and our immune systems are better able to handle the onslaught of multiple vaccines. OTOH, as regards your son, I am not of the thinking that children shouldn't be vaccinated (although I certainly understand the inclination of those parents that are). My sister developed encephalitis as a result of the measles when we were young, and she was never the same child. She died at age 22, of lifestyle choices that I believe were probably influenced by the neurological damage that resulted. If I had it all to do again with my son, though, I would insist on separate vaccines, and on spreading them out. By the time he was dxed, he had already had the majority of his vaccines.

chicagrl72 · Jul 20, 2005

I'm sorry, I'm not quite clear if you mean you are struggling with the idea of having your son vaccinated or worried about the vaccines you need. If you're struggling with the idea of being vaccinated yourself, IMHO, you don't need to be. These vaccines don't seem to cause the trouble for adults that they do for children, as it is a smaller amount of mercury entering our system relative to body weight, and our immune systems are better able to handle the onslaught of multiple vaccines. OTOH, as regards your son, I am not of the thinking that children shouldn't be vaccinated (although I certainly understand the inclination of those parents that are). My sister developed encephalitis as a result of the measles when we were young, and she was never the same child. She died at age 22, of lifestyle choices that I believe were probably influenced by the neurological damage that resulted. If I had it all to do again with my son, though, I would insist on separate vaccines, and on spreading them out. By the time he was dxed, he had already had the majority of his vaccines.

well i do worry about stickin myself but i know i have a good immune system and i was not subjected to SO MANY as a young child ..the chicken pox really annoys me as well as the hep b

with my child ..i feel like i can handle them but now how do i "catch him up .eewwww" the US requires so many more vaxes than say the UK or Aus ....i am so bummed by this

not sure what to do

rpggyr · Jul 20, 2005

I'm not sure what state you live in but most allow you a medical exemtion, almost all offer a religious exemption, and some offer philosophical exemption.

Peggy

QUOTE=chicagrl72]i am struggling with this issue .. i have a 2 1/2 yr old with only two vaccinations. I told our dr that i would like to wait ..he is cool with that ..it is under public health care ...we see a dr at a public health care facility

meanwhile i did have insurance for a bit and that dr told me as well "it is cool to wait ...most vaccination laws are in effect for purposes of getting to people who are low income and won't vaccinate again..get em while you have em " etc ...so we have waited ...now i have to get the certain ones for school etc...i am still stalling ..not sure what to do

on the other hand i have to have a million vax on my record even to volunteer

i have most but right now i have no health care ...so i am not sure how to obtain the rest ..to get me up to date ...

Nurse Ratched, RN · Jul 21, 2005

Jon Stewart interviewed Patrick Kennedy on the Daily Show last night. Will re-run this evening and late tonight if anyone is interested (the show from July 20th, which they identify at the beginning of the program.)

rpggyr · Jul 21, 2005

I have never heard of this show. Can it be viewed if you live in the Boston area?

Peggy

Jon Stewart interviewed Patrick Kenn?edy on the Daily Show last night. Will re-run this evening and late tonight if anyone is interested (the show from July 20th, which they identify at the beginning of the program.)

LydiaNN · Jul 21, 2005

Peggy,

Jon Stewart is on the Comedy Central channel. It is called "The Daily Show".

Mercy

Nurse Ratched, RN · Jul 21, 2005

It was a serious and respectful discussion of the issue, however (a lot of parody on unrelated current news issues leading up to it, just as an FYI if you aren't familiar with it.)

michelle95 · Jul 23, 2005

Trying this again (I cut off the last post).

I can't believe I almost missed this thread. This is a passion of mine.

Here's my story.

My youngest son was born in Dec 1999. The pregnancy, labor and birth were pretty much uneventful. My son had a little hypoglycemia at birth but since he was 10 lbs 1 oz...that's not unusual (you think that's something, my oldest was 11 lbs 4 oz and no I am not diabetic). :rotfl:

His development was pretty normal until Sept 2001. He was a little slow for his speech but since he was walking at 8 months and his older brother was a "slow talker", I wasn't too worried. Besides, he did talk a little. He also had a "little temper" but nothing too big and nothing I thought unusual. Then came sept 2001.

My child was then about 20 months and he changed. He no longer said the few words he could say, he severly and I do mean SEVERELY tantrumed. He would bang his head on the wall and the screaming hardly stopped from sunup to sundown. I don't remember him really playing with toys but what he did become fascinated with was plastic coke bottle caps. That's all he wanted to "play" with. He would just carry them around. And, don't let me be in a store and him see someone else's top. He would scream bloody murder for it.

At first, I thought "well, he's just starting to go into the terrible two's and it's going to be worse that my older child" but as time went on I became concerned. He did not want to wear clothes, he was absolutely terrified of the sound of the toilet and he would rub his head on the ground. He also sucked on washclothes and clothes. He acted like he couldn't hear me at times even though I knew he could hear. And, I remember him "blank staring" a lot.

A couple of months into it I took him to the doctor and expressed my concern over his delayed speech. I thought that if he could talk, his tantrums might decrease. The doctor referred me to the Auburn University Speech and Hearing Clinic (we lived in Auburn, AL). I took him and he could hear fine. But, the speech therapist was a little concerned over his speech. So, she referred me to early intervention. We started going and the spring of 2002 was when I first heard the term PDD. Now, my son was not dx'd with that but some people thought he might fit it somewhat. At early intervention, it was obvious that he wanted nothing to do with the people or the kids there. Add that to his "quirks".

I took him to a child psychologist and after several weeks of observations...she knew something was wrong with him but all she would officially "label" him with was expressive aphasia. Well, no s*** shirlock. I knew he couldn't talk. I didn't take him for that, I took him for his tantrums.

We got my son into a program called project AIM at AU after he was no longer eligible for EA. And, during this time, he finally started to really communicate. Although his tantrums did not decrease. I started to become worried then. I had always held onto the hope that his tantrums were caused by his inability to speak.

I started to remember that he changed in 9/01 and I wondered why at that time.

The fall of 2002 I was invited to a meeting in which a DAN! (defeat autism now) doctor was speaking in Montgomery. I went because I was curious. I had started to read up on autism and it seemed to fit my son...or at least PDD did anyway. Dr. Jean Corbier spoke of the autism-thimerasol connection and by the end I was crying. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Worse, I vaguely remembered my son not getting his 18 month vaccinations on time and could not remember exactly when he got them. So when I got back to Auburn that night, I immediately drove to the doctor's office (they stayed open late) and asked to see his shot record. Yep. Right there in black and white, he received his 18 month shots during 9/01.

Imagine my guilt. Imagine my sadness. Imagine my frustration. Imagine my anger. I went through them all. I couldn't help but to wonder what my family's life would be like if he had not received those shots. For almost a year, we had been going through hell. For almost a year a 2 year old had been running the show. Through this year I had many people tell me "oh, it's terrible two's" I had already decided that if one more person told me that I was shoving my fist in their face. I had almost been to the point of putting my son in foster care. I resented him, I hated myself because I did not feel that I had the patience and love to deal with him. Oh yeah. It was bad.

We moved and for the next 2 years, we "dealt with it". I moved down to p'cola to finish my RN and it was only after he bloodied his own nose from banging his face...not his head but his face...into the wall that I knew something had to be done. He had started to spit on me, bite me....he had already been hitting me for 3 years but more was coming. I couldn't imagine how life would be when he is 6'4" and 250 pounds. I took him back to the doctor and he started risperdal. Yeah, risperdal has changed things...but now doc doesn't know what's wrong with him. He says my son fits the criteria for asperger's, adhd, and bipolar. No one wants to dx while he is so young...but, they have no problem putting him on an antipsychotic. :rolleyes:

I have no choice. He must be on risperdal. it's the only way that he will have a good childhood and we will have a good life. But, I can't help but wonder what the risperdal is going to do to him long term. So far as I know there are no long term studies on risperdal. If any of you all know, lemme know.

So yeah...all of you that say vaccinate, vaccinate. you're quick to do it because you've never been through what some of us have gone through. You don't have to worry if you child is going to go off meds when he is older and totally ruin his life. You don't have to worry what the meds will do long term. You have normal children that will more-than-likely lead normal lives. Some of us don't.

Did I still get his 5 year old shots? Yes. But I had them separated. One of the clerks at the local health dept actually told me that I couldn't do that. Ok whatever. I got it done. Did I check the label myself? No, I trusted the dept head when she said there was no thimerasol in the bottle. I wish I would have now. But, he has had no "changes" since those shots, so I think we are ok.

My advice is to use a little common sense and not automatically think the gov't or any gov't agency has our best interest in mind.

And to the person that asks why aren't all kids getting it? Just like one other poster said not everyone that smokes gets cancer. All people are different. And, for some reason some children are more predisposed to this than others. A family hx of mental illness also predisposes.

personally, I am not satisfied with the answers. I want more. That's why I'm working on my biochemistry degree asap, leaving nursing, and studying the brain. I want to know why this is happening to our kids...and what we can do about it.

Sorry this is so long...but if it just helps one person...it's worth it.

Peggy, I'm sending you a PM. :)

michelle95 · Jul 23, 2005

I forgot to add that I don't think it is just thimerasol....but also the chemicals in our foods (fertilizers, antibiotics, hormones, additives, preservatives). They have GOT to be doing something. Processed food is atrocious.

For my son, I have introduced more organic and all-natural foods into his diet. I don't have the money to do everything but I buy as much as I can. I, also, know that he is not going to be able to avoid bad foods, and life would be dull without them, but, I make him limit them.

Organic milk tastes really good. My hubby says it tastes like the milk he got from the dairy farms in Maine when he was a boy. Try it. Wal-Mart sells Horizon brand.

LydiaNN · Jul 23, 2005

michelle, I'm happy for you and your child that the speech therapist was on the ball and recommended early intervention. You wouldn't believe how many families we see that have never been referred for EI. It's maddening, particularly for me, since we were one of those families ten years ago, and I surely would've liked to see an improvement in the number of referrals made since then. :/

Editing to add, I debated where to post this and in the end, decided to forgo the broad response this topic probably would've pulled from the general nursing forum to target the nurses and families that work with the children most directly affected. I'm glad you found it. It is a passion of mine, too!