Thimrosal-Autism-Childhood Vaccinations

Nurses General Nursing

Published

I am in the middle of cross training and in a few weeks, I may be going to pediatrics for two weeks. I discovered a few months ago that my son's half-brother has autism. His father told me that he believes that this developed due to childhood vaccinations received at 6 months of age-stated that his son was developing normally until he received his vaccine series, came home and had seizures.

Of course, he is asking me questions and I am quite sure I will encounter them again. What is the deal about the relationship between thimrosal (sorry if I spelled it wrong) and autism? I am reading, but the information is complicated to me. I would like resources that I can share with parents making this decision and to be proficient enough to at least be able to explain if asked. Thanks!

Hi, I don't think it's just Thimerosal. It's the aluminum and the amount of vaccines given. I haven't found any studies done on all vaccines, the only ones I have found were done with just a few vaccines. I believe that only one aluminum containing vaccine should be given at a time. Heavy metal poisoning is very similar to autism. Check out Stephanie Cave, M.D. and Robert Sears, M.D. Dr. Cave works with children who fall within the autism spectrum. Once she puts them on a heavy metal detox, they improve tremendously. I also have a friend who has been struggling with her daughter who has selective mutism. Just a couple of months ago, she put her daughter on a heavy metal detox and she has fully recovered... 100%. Just weeks prior, she was starting to pull away from her own father, now she is the life of the party and center of attention. It's not just one ingredient, it's several. I give my kids one vaccine at a time and my ped. is totally supportive. He agrees with me that too many vaccines are given. Infants and toddlers cannot metabolize the ingredients fast enough because there is just to much... this slowly poisons them.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I got this from a physician...and father (paraphrased):

MMR has never had thimersol and you can get vacinations today which are 100% free of thimersol. But, let's say thimersol was in every vaccine. If every vaccine had 25mcg/0.5ml of ethylmercury (in thimersol) that would be approx 25 vaccinations by age 5. 25 x 25mcg is 625 mcg.

Now compare that with the amount of ethylmercury in fish:

Tuna 380 mcg in 2.2 pounds

Snapper 170 mcg

Lobster 170 mcg

Tile Fish 1145 mcg

Now if a child ate 8 ounces of Tuna per week from age 3 to 5, that would be about 90 mcg per week or 4680 mcg per year of a total of 9320mcg over the 2 year period.

So, it is very clear that eating fish causes autism. Oh wait a minute, the body is more than capable of handling it.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Med Surg, LTC, Home Health.
If it were truly an issue, why didn't rates of autism drop when thimerosal was removed from vaccines?

I do not disagree with your findings, which is why i can only direct you to my second post in this thread:

My research is several years old, and comes only from memory. I condemned Thimerosal then, but today would only suggest listening to the parents who noticed changes in their infants behavior after immunizations. There are THOUSANDS of them. If Thimerosal is not the culprit, perhaps the numerous number of vaccines are. In any case, when i have a child, he/she will neither receive so many immunizations so close together nor Thimerosal.

However, i will say that the science behind this controversy is divided.

On April 19, 2007, Dr. Larry L. Needham, Chief, Organic Analytical Toxicology Branch, CDC, announced to the US National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine that Thimerosal was among the "Chemicals Linked to ASD."

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/69427.php

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care.
This is a very controversial topic.

http://www.immunize.org

Not from a scientific viewpoint, it isn't.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care.
I believe there is certainly a link between the mercury preservative Thimerosal and autism. Thimerosal began it's widespread use in 1978, and 80% of autism cases were born after 1980. The thousands of parents that have claimed behavior changes in their children shortly after immunizations is enough evidence to warrant caution. Of course there will never be an admission to this link, though they have phased out the use of Thimerosal. If there were truly no issue, why then would they halt it's use?

Conversely, if thimerosal were a factor, why is the rate of autism steady after its phasing out?

1980 correlates with many things. For instance, that's about the time all the baby boomers had their children. Cable television, HFCS instead of sugar, all sorts of drastic lifestyle changes at that time combined with better and more popular diagnostics.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

The connection is doubtful. here's an excerpt from a recent posting that has some background links.

"The guy who pushed the idea is a crackpot who was paid £400,000 to do the research by a group of lawyers who wanted to sue vaccine companies. Takedowns are everywhere in the science community: his research cannot be replicated and a review of his notes shows that he simply made up data from time to time. Here are a couple of good posts to get you started:"

This continues with links at:

http://leisureguy.wordpress.com/2009/02/08/crazy-ideas-vaccines-cause-autism/

Tom

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Mercury is still in certain vaccines. Check out the CDC website, it's still listed as one of the ingredients.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care.
Mercury is still in certain vaccines. Check out the CDC website, it's still listed as one of the ingredients.

Here's a table:

http://www.vaccinesafety.edu/thi-table.htm

No vaccine contains more than 25 mcg / 0.5 mL of mercury, and most of those are various tetorifice preparations not typically used in pediatrics or in multi-dose flu vials (single dosing is far more common these days).

For context, typical tuna can contain up to and over 1 ppm of mercury, which is 1 mg per Kg, a fair bit higher than 25 mcg.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

According to the CDC site....these are the vaccines that contain mercury: DTaP, DTaP/Hib combo, DT, Td, Hep B, Hib, flu, and a couple others that aren't routinely given, like rabies, etc. It doesn't matter how much toxin is in each vaccine.....they're toxins, there is no safe amount. It's not only the mercury either, there's other toxins as well that are in vaccines. Also, some of these vaccines are given 2-3 and sometimes 4-5 shots at a time.....that's a lot for a little body to handle. Another issue of mine is the fact that there's aborted fetal tissue in some and other animal products! I wish they would make vaccines safer and healthier.....but until they do, I'll continue refusing certain vaccines for my kids.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Gyn/STD clinic tech.

i think we also need to take a few other ideas into consideration. in the early 1900's there was not enough info about autism, and many of these children were labeled 'retarded' and sent into group homes and 'looney bins'.

i believe that if we look back we will see that numerous adults actually have an autism spectrum disorder, something that was not properly dianosed until fairly recently.

autism is also genetic. there are families that refuse to vaccinate their other children based on an older siblings autism, yet these younger children will get autism without ever being vaccinated. we know that there is a genetic link, we do need more research though.

autism is such a complex disorder..

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care.
According to the CDC site....these are the vaccines that contain mercury: DTaP, DTaP/Hib combo, DT, Td, Hep B, Hib, flu, and a couple others that aren't routinely given, like rabies, etc.

Citation needed. You make the claim, back it up. My source lists otherwise.

It doesn't matter how much toxin is in each vaccine.....they're toxins, there is no safe amount.

WRONG! The dose makes the poison. This is true for every single chemical you put in your body (anything you eat or drink). And toxin has a very specific meaning in medicine-- mercury does not qualify as such. Any other use of the word toxin is as a nebulously vague buzzword. You might as well give up eating, drinking, and even breathing if you wish to avoid any and all contaminants measured in parts per millions or billions that have no biologic effect.

It's not only the mercury either, there's other toxins as well that are in vaccines.

Citation needed. I detect a shifting of the goalposts.

Also, some of these vaccines are given 2-3 and sometimes 4-5 shots at a time.....that's a lot for a little body to handle.

We've already established, per my link, that very few to none of routine childhood vaccinations contain mercury. This said, all research on this issue shows it is not "a lot for a little body to handle". I assure you measles, mumps, rubella, polio, diptheria, whooping cough, et al are "a lot for a little body to handle", in comparison.

Another issue of mine is the fact that there's aborted fetal tissue in some and other animal products! I wish they would make vaccines safer and healthier.....but until they do, I'll continue refusing certain vaccines for my kids.

The use of diploid cell lines is not a health and safety issue. It's a moral issue. That's an entirely different can of worms.

Here's a primer I hope will further your understanding of why and how: http://www.apologia.com/vaccines/vac_abortion.html

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment