Autism Activist Mama

Denis Learythe REAL moron!!

2008-10-15T11:09:00.000-07:00

Denis Leary Slams Autism As A Joke

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/10/15/denis-leary-slams-autism_n_134749.html

DENIS Leary should brace himself for hate mail from the parents of kids diagnosed with autism.

In his new book, "Why We Suck: A Feel-Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid," the joke-slinging "Rescue Me" star writes about the brain disorder:

"There is a huge boom in autism right now because inattentive mothers and competitive dads want an explanation for why their dumb-ass kids can't compete academically, so they throw money into the happy laps of shrinks . . . to get back diagnoses that help explain away the deficiencies of their junior morons. I don't give a what these crackerjack whack jobs tell you - yer kid is NOT autistic. He's just stupid. Or lazy. Or both."

The Autism Society of America responded: "For Mr. Leary to suggest that families or doctors conspire to falsely diagnose autism is ridiculous . . . remarks reflect the same misconceptions of autism being caused by bad or unemotional parenting that were held over 50 years ago."

Keep reading

-plus-

In November's Vanity Fair, in a Q&A, Leary calls it his "favorite chapter":

CDC Misses Target With Flawed MMR/Autism Study

2008-09-03T21:42:00.000-07:00

PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release:
September 3, 2008Contact:
Rita Shreffler, NAA (Nixa, MO) 401-632-6452
Wendy Fournier, NAA (Portsmouth, RI) 401-835-5828

CDC Misses Target With Flawed MMR/Autism Study
NAA says: Wrong Question Asked. Wrong Children Studied. Wrong Conclusions Reached.

Nixa, MO – A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study released today claims there is no link between the MMR vaccine and autism. The National Autism Association (NAA) says this study does nothing to dispel the growing public concern over a vaccine-autism connection and raises several questions concerning design and methodology.

For years, parents have claimed that MMR triggered their child’s subsequent GI (gastrointestinal) disease and autism. In a 2002 paper where the majority of autistic children were found to have measles in their intestines, the children examined showed a clear temporal link between MMR exposure and regression. The CDC’s attempt to replicate the 2002 study fell far short of proving the safety of the MMR vaccine.

The CDC study was designed to detect persistent measles virus in autistic children with GI problems. The assumption being if there is no measles virus at the long delayed time of biopsy, there is no link between autism and MMR. But NAA says this underlying assumption is wrong. The questions should have been: Do normally developing children meeting all milestones have an MMR shot, develop GI problems and then regress into autism? Do they have evidence of measles and disease in their colons compared to non-vaccinated age and sex matched controls?

In the current CDC study, only a small subgroup of children was the correct phenotype to study. From page 7, “Only 5 of 25 subjects (20%) had received MMR before the onset of GI complaints and had also had onset of GI episodes before the onset of AUT (P=0.03).” The other 20 autistic children in the study had GI problems but the pathology developed before the MMR vaccine. Additionally, the controls all received the MMR vaccine and had gastrointestinal symptoms. The controls should have been free of exposure to vaccine measles in order to make a comparison relevant for purposes of causation.

Inflammatory bowel disease in the absence of MMR RNA does not mean that MMR shot didn't precipitate the GI disease and didn't precipitate autism. A similar example would be rheumatic fever where the infection is cleared quickly but damage to the heart and/or brain last a lifetime.
Public confidence in the safety of vaccines is at risk until safety studies are performed that are required by law, ethics, and science. NAA calls for a vaccinated vs. non-vaccinated study comparing all health outcomes including autism.

The CDC is in charge of vaccine safety, owns patents to vaccines (according to a UPI Investigative Report from 2003) and is in charge of promoting vaccines. The public should demand that vaccine safety be taken away from an agency with such conflicts and support HR#1973, the Vaccine Safety and Public Confidence Assurance Act.”

For more information, visit www.nationalautism.org

No Child By Two .....

2008-08-12T06:21:00.000-07:00

BY Dan Olmsted

I've got an idea: Let's not vaccinate kids until they turn two, at the earliest. Of course, I'm not a zealot like the industry-funded Every Child By Two folks who made themselves look like paranoid idiots in New York City last week. I'm just someone who has heard enough from parents and read enough simple science to know that, for starters, some children are vulnerable in ways we don't understand to neurological problems after vaccination; some vaccines given too early can trigger asthma; some vaccines -- HepB and chickenpox, to name two -- are unnecessary; and the whole kit-and-kaboodle has never been studied in toto on human infants, but when it was tested on primates, those little monkeys got really sick and developed features that resemble autism.

As I say, I'm not a zealot: If a mother has HepB, by all means vaccinate the child; if polio pops up in Peoria (unlikely), by all means vaccinate infants; if rotovirus starts to strike down American infants the way it does in developing countries (for which it is really intended -- getting it approved here is just good precedent for the manufacturers to inoculate kids in Africa and Asia by the tens of millions), then get Paul Offit, stat!

I first heard the No Child By Two idea -- though he didn't call it that -- from a doctor who treats the Amish. His own infant daughter had a vaccine reaction from hell -- she actually GOT the disease the vaccine was designed to protect against and spent several precarious days in the hospital's intensive care unit. That gave the doctor a taste of his own medicine, so to speak, and ever since he has urged his patients -- many of whom are non-Amish and show up expecting to follow the CDC immunization schedule -- to wait till the child is two. That way, he reasons, their neurological and immune systems will be better able to withstand the effects of the current vaccine load -- I forget, is it 14, or 36, or 10,000, or 100,000? Whatever, it's too many too soon, and too many are unnecessary, and they are by no means Green with the mercury, aluminum and such that's still in there (yes, I know, it's only flu shots, blah blah blah).

No Child By Two makes things much simpler. I always get asked what I would suggest a parent do if they are concerned about vaccines. After saying I have no kids and no medical expertise, I have to start talking about the lunacy of HepB at birth, why the MMR should be unbundled and given later and NEVER on the same day as the chickenpox shot, which isn't really necessary, and by the way is there any history of autoimmune disorders in your family?, because then you might want to rethink the whole thing …

Frankly, that kind of piecemeal advice doesn't work very well, in my limited experience. I've already described my friends who I convinced not to get their newborn vaccinated with HepB at birth, but then they went ahead with the two-month shots and ended up with their baby screaming for three hours straight after waking up from a dead "sleep." "Don't worry," the pediatrician said, "it's just 'screaming baby syndrome.'" If they had known about the risk of this apparently benign and predictable "screaming baby syndrome," they would have waited, I assure you.

Too many parents know that on this issue, they simply can't trust their pediatricians. I had a conversation recently at a party with an ob-gyn who knew my work. "What about the Danish studies?" that exonerate mercury as a cause of autism, she asked.

I responded. "I don't find them very convincing. Do you?"

"Yes," she said, "I do."

"What about the part where they included outpatient autism cases just at the point where the rate might have dropped if thimerosal was implicated?"

"They did?" she said, obviously surprised. She either hadn't read it, or hadn't read it carefully, or took the AAP/CDC summary hook, line and sinker. Anyway, good luck having that conversation with most baby doctors as you try to argue shot by shot for deferring, de-bundling or dropping the ones that are clearly ridiculous.

No, this is much simpler, and it has the advantage of rubbing the Every Child by Two crowd's collective noses in their own slogan. Some readers, even those who agree with me, are going to cite the practical issues -- pressure from hospitals and pediatricians and day care and so on. My only answer is, so what? Get a new pediatrician, don't send the kid to daycare -- whatever it takes. Regressive autism by and large begins to manifest itself between ages one and two, and if it were me I'd do whatever it takes to shield a child from that risk (and the risk of asthma that Mark Blaxill outlined in a recent column, and ADD, ADHD, etcetera etcetera etcetera). As I understand it, the really nasty battles kick in when a child shows up for public school, and as my Amish-community doctor said, there's plenty of time to start vaccines at age two, space them out decently and still have a child arrive for the first day of kindergarten fully immunized.

What even a lot of people concerned about the CDC immunization schedule tend to forget is that vaccines were not always aimed at infants (or in the case of flu shots, fetesus). There's a 1990 book by Harris Coulter -- one of the unsung elders of the sane vaccination movement -- titled Vaccination, Social Violence and Criminality, which I commend to everyone.

The introduction is titled "The Most Immunized Child in History!" Here are the first few paragraphs:

"The twentieth century is the age of vaccination. Edward Jenner's 1798 discovery that cowpox inoculation prevents later infection with smallpox was the start of a new science. … Most [vaccines] have been beneficial, especially those against the great epidemic diseases which once ravaged Africa, Asia, and Latin America -- bubonic plague, yellow fever, cholera, typhus, and poliomyletis. … These triumphs of immunology are undisputed, and no criticism is made of them in the following pages. …
"However, as so often happens in human affairs, success led to excess. After taming these ancestral scourges, physicians sought new challenges and, in due course, directed their attention to common diseases of childhood.
"The first such vaccine was for whooping cough (pertussis) in 1925. A vaccine for measles followed in 1960, for German measles (rubella) in 1966, and for mumps in 1967. A vaccine against chicken-pox is under preparation today.
"Researchers and physicians, however, gave insufficient thought to the difference between the fully grown adult and the newborn baby. Even in the former, the injection of toxic proteins carries a measure of risk. Injecting the same material into small babies is far more dangerous. The adult immune system has been toughened and can withstand the stress of vaccination. The two-month-old baby is inconceivably more vulnerable. But that is when immunization commences in the United States."

In a footnote, he add, "The rule that vaccination should start at two months -- earlier in the United States than in any other country -- is designed mainly for the convenience of pediatricians."

Talk about an early warning -- this wise counsel from 1990 seems almost quaint from the perspective of 2008, what with HepB at birth, rotovirus, etcetera etcetera etcetera. But Coulter was ahead of his time in many ways: The first chapter is titled Autism, and it may be the earliest full-length discussion of the possible connection to vaccines.

So … who's anti-vaccine? Not me, and certainly not Harris Coulter. We're not against, we're FOR -- for a rational public policy discussion and an urgent science-based evaluation of the current CDC immunization schedule. That's it. And that's a position shared by the two presidential contenders, the former head of the NIH and many other people with "standing" who increasingly are on our side, not Paul Offit's and the frozen-in-amber Rosalynn Carter's. Such a study shouldn't take long -- two years should be sufficient, wouldn't you think? Until we get it, I say No Child By Two.
--
Dan Olmsted is Editor of Age of Autism.

Autism Insurance Legislation

2008-05-09T13:42:00.002-07:00

Autism Speaks Applauds Florida Governor Charlie Crist and State Legislators for Passing Autism Insurance Legislation
Florida's Senate Bill 2654 Important Step in Requiring Coverage of Necessary Autism Therapies

NEW YORK, NY (May 5, 2008) Autism Speaks today joined Florida families in applauding Governor Charlie Crist and the state's legislators for passing Senate Bill 2654, which will ultimately require insurance carriers to provide coverage of evidence-based, medically necessary autism therapies. Governor Crist is expected to sign the bill into law in the coming weeks. In many states, insurers explicitly exclude coverage of these therapies from policies, which places a significant financial burden on families seeking to provide their children with necessary services. Autism Speaks has launched a multi-state initiative to address this discrimination.

Senate Bill 2654 – passed by the House in the very last minutes of the legislative session -- requires that insurance companies cover up to $36,000 a year for Applied Behavior Analysis and other therapies for children under age eighteen, with a lifetime limit for treatments of $200,000. The legislation gives insurance companies until April 2009 to negotiate a compact with the State Office of Insurance Regulation to develop autism coverage plans before the mandate takes effect.

“This new Florida law represents crucial progress in the national effort to secure autism insurance coverage and end discrimination again families facing autism,” said Elizabeth Emken, Autism Speaks vice president of government relations and a member of the Florida Taskforce on Autism Spectrum Disorders. “This bill mandates significant insurance benefits for the medically necessary interventions that are critical to the quality of life of children with autism. It also provides a voluntary compliance process through which the insurance industry can avoid the statutory mandate by agreeing to provide appropriate benefits for autism.”

Autism Speaks intends to remain involved in the insurance compact process created by SB2654, working with Governor Crist -- a strong supporter and champion of this cause – to ensure that the compact negotiations produce appropriate benefits for the deserving children of Florida.

In addition to Governor Crist, Autism Speaks hailed Senator Steven Geller, for whom the insurance section of SB2654 is named, and Representative Ari Porth and Senate President Kenneth Pruitt for their unwavering leadership in support of this landmark legislation. The organization also thanked Speaker Marco Rubio and his wife Jeanette, and Representative Andy Gardiner for their efforts.

About Autism Speaks

Autism Speaks is dedicated to increasing awareness of autism spectrum disorders, to funding research into the causes, prevention and treatments for autism, and to advocating for the needs of individuals with autism and their families. It was founded in February 2005 by Suzanne and Bob Wright, the grandparents of a child with autism. Bob Wright served as chairman and chief executive officer of NBC Universal for more than twenty years. To learn more about Autism Speaks, please visit www.autismspeaks.org.

Ga. girl helps link autism to childhood vaccines

2008-03-06T12:26:00.000-08:00

By ALISON YOUNG
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/06/08

In a move autism family advocates call unprecedented, federal health officials have concluded that childhood vaccines contributed to symptoms of the disorder in a 9-year-old Georgia girl.

[Post comments below.]

John Spink/AJC

(ENLARGE)

Hannah Poling requires one-on-one care at all times. Her family is trying to get details of her case opened for public review.

John Spink/AJC

(ENLARGE)

Jon and Terry Poling with 9 year-old daughter, Hannah. They couple says the symptoms of autism began in Hannah after shots she received during a doctor visit when she was 19 months old.

RELATED LINKS:
• Autism Q&A
• Jenny McCarthy calls for rally at CDC
• More health news
• More metro and state news

While government officials continue to maintain that vaccines don't cause autism, advocates say the recent settlement of the girl's injury case in a secretive federal vaccine court shows otherwise.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has concluded the family of Hannah Poling of Athens is entitled to compensation from a federal vaccine injury fund, according to the text of a court document in the case. The amount of the family's award is still being determined.

The language in the document does not establish a clear-cut vaccine-autism link. But it does say the government concluded that vaccines aggravated a rare underlying metabolic condition that resulted in a brain disorder "with features of autism spectrum disorder."

In an interview Wednesday with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Hannah's parents, Jon and Terry Poling, said the government's concession in the case will help pay for the numerous therapists and other medical experts their autistic child needs — now and for the rest of her life.

"At least we have some commitment from the government to take care of Hannah when we're gone," said Dr. Jon Poling, a neurologist.

But the case also thrusts the family into a national spotlight in the controversial public debate over whether vaccines have played some role in the growing number of U.S. children diagnosed with autism. Of particular concern to some families is the mercury-based preservative thimerosal, not used in child vaccines (except for some flu shots) since 2001.

Hannah's case was one of three vaccine-court test cases alleging that thimerosal caused the children's autism. The other cases go to trial in May.

Suspicion of vaccines is fueled in part by vocal advocates — including radio shock jock Don Imus and actress Jenny McCarthy — speaking out on radio and TV shows such as "Oprah" and "Larry King Live."

Even Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain said on the campaign trail that "there's strong evidence" that a preservative in vaccines is fueling the dramatic rise in autism cases across the country.

As many as 1 in 150 children in some communities have autism disorders, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"We need to recognize this is a national crisis," Jon Poling said.

Autism is a lifelong neurological disorder that causes problems with communication and the ability to have normal social interactions. Autism and related autism spectrum disorders cover a range of symptoms that can vary from mild to severe. The cause is unknown, but scientists believe genes may play a role.

Pediatricians and public health officials worry that this case may cause fear among some parents and prompt them to refuse to vaccinate their children, and put them in real danger from measles, whooping cough and other diseases.

"The risks of diseases are real risks," said Dr. Melinda Wharton, deputy director of CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. Numerous large studies don't support a relationship between vaccines and autism, according to the CDC and the Institutes of Medicine.

The Georgia girl's case – and its implications in the vaccine-autism debate – raise more questions than it answers, experts say.

Some medical experts say it's difficult to fully assess the case because the federal vaccine-court documents are sealed from public view.

"It raised a lot of questions for us," said Dr. David Tayloe Jr., president-elect of the American Academy of Pediatrics. The national medical group's leadership has been seeking more information about Hannah's vaccine-court case since last week when a sealed vaccine-court document detailing the government's settlement was posted on the Internet by an autism book author, then circulated widely among autism groups.

The pediatrics association has been trying to get access to official documents in the case so medical experts can delve into the science, assess whether there are implications for other children and answer questions from doctors and families.

"Our responsibility is to make sure the public is given good information and make sure the hype doesn't distract from public health," Tayloe said. "I still would not think that we're going to have evidence showing a role of vaccines actually causing autism."

According to the leaked document posted online, the government's Division of Vaccine Injury Compensation concluded that five shots Hannah received in July 2000, when she was 19 months old, "significantly aggravated an underlying mitochondrial disorder" and resulted in a brain disorder "with features of autism spectrum disorder."

Sallie Bernard, executive director of the national autism advocacy group SafeMinds, called the case "unprecedented" in that a link between vaccines and autism is being made public. Federal health officials "have insisted there is no link at all between vaccines and vaccine components and autism. And apparently that is not true," she said.

The case also is significant because other autistic children have mitochondrial disorders, Bernard said. "The question is: What is the proportion?"

Robert Krakow, a New York attorney representing other autistic children in vaccine court, said the significance of the case is "potentially explosive." He said he has several clients with similar histories.

Hannah requires one-on-one care at all times, said her mother, Terry Poling, a nurse and lawyer. The Polings described how Hannah was a normal, verbal toddler until she received several vaccines during a well-baby visit. Within 48 hours of the shots, she developed a high fever and inconsolable crying and refused to walk. She stopped sleeping through the night. Within three months after receiving the vaccine, she began showing signs of autism, including spinning and staring at lights and fans. For a while, she lost her ability to speak.

Then, within six months after the shots, as the family came to grips with the likelihood that she was autistic, they turned to leading experts in neurology. "I had to know. My daughter didn't just suddenly develop autism for no reason," Terry Poling said.

Hannah's father co-authored an article about her case, which was published in the Journal of Child Neurology in 2006.

Hannah, who has two older brothers, continues to have mild to moderate symptoms of autism. The family says early and ongoing intensive therapy has been critical for her.

"The biggest question right now for the public is: How unique is Hannah's case?" said Jon Poling. Poling said he suspects there are other children like Hannah.

Cliff Shoemaker, the Polings' attorney, said the family has filed a petition with the vaccine court to unseal all of Hannah's records and allow both the family and the government to fully discuss the case.

Despite this, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Justice, which reprersents the government in court cases, would not grant interviews or explain to the AJC why it isn't releasing the records. HHS officials, who administer the vaccine compensation fund, also declined to be interviewed, citing the court's confidentiality requirements.

Shoemaker said the government's November concession in the case is public, but the government's reasons aren't. "I'm not aware of any other conceded autism cases," he said.

Congress created the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program in 1988 after widespread lawsuits against manufacturers and health-care providers stemming from reports of side-effects of a version of the diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccine used in the 1980s.

With companies getting out of the vaccine business for liability reasons, Congress established the program and a trust fund to serve as a no-fault alternative for resolving certain vaccine injury claims.

The average injury compensation to an individual in vaccine court has been about $1 million. In fiscal year 2007, more than $91 million was awarded

to people harmed by vaccines.

Are you informed???

2008-02-19T05:18:00.000-08:00

I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE everyone to make the time in your schedule to watch this video. The life of your child could ultimately depend on how much you know and how aware you are of the following information!

PLEASE, PLEASE ... I BEG YOU WATCH THE VIDEO!!

ABC - Eli Stone - Autism - Vaccines

2008-02-01T10:12:00.000-08:00

He basically said everything I was thinking ...

_______________________________________________

Pediatricians, ABC and Censorship: Facts Are Scarier Than Fiction

David Kirby Posted January 27, 2008 | 04:19 PM (EST)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-kirby/pediatricians-abc-and-ce_b_83472.html

On Monday, the American Academy of Pediatrics will release the contents of a foreboding letter sent last week to ABC/Disney executives, demanding they cancel the January 31 premiere of a new legal drama series, "Eli Stone," because it features a family attorney who successfully argues in court that mercury-containing flu vaccine caused autism in one child.

Comment

The letter, signed by AAP President Renee Jenkins, borders on near-hysteria over a fictional television entertainment. It ominously warns that ABC "will bear responsibility for the needless suffering and potential deaths of children from parents' decisions not to immunize based on the content of the episode."

Dr. Jenkins calls on ABC to cancel the episode but, anticipating a refusal, urges executives to run a disclaimer that "no scientific link exists between vaccines and autism," if the offending network "persists" in airing the show.

I share the AAP's concern that parents should not be driven away from protecting their children from dangerous, even deadly diseases. But parents are far too smart to base such an important decision as immunization on the "content of the episode" of a single drama on broadcast television.

In fact, if I were Dr. Jenkins, I would be far more concerned about real news happening in the real world - events that not only suggest the possibility of some sort of link between mercury, vaccines and autism, but might alarm parents more than any fictional account written for ratings-grabbing mass entertainment.

If I were Dr. Jenkins, instead of fretting over a fake family engaged in a mock trial held in a make-believe court on some LA soundstage, I would be up at night wondering why the Federal Government recently conceded a real vaccine-autism lawsuit in a real court and will soon pay a real (taxpayer-funded) settlement to a real American family and a very real child with autism.

I would want to know why the Department of Justice agreed that mercury-containing vaccines "severely aggravated" the autism symptoms in at least one child, and I would wonder if research into what triggered that severe aggravation might provide at least some clues into the perpetual mysteries of the disorder and its causes.

And, if I were Dr. Jenkins, rather than wringing my hands and trying to censor a TV-show verdict, I would truly worry about what will happen when parents realize that the Federal Government has sealed the facts of that vaccine-autism case - preventing the public (and future plaintiffs) from viewing what could only be described as "evidence of harm." I would be nervous that this secretive action in an actual court (itself reminiscent of science fiction) might drive parents away from vaccination far more effectively than any scripted drama.

Furthermore, if I were the top pediatrician in America, I would not be asking television networks to make sweeping statements such as, "No scientific link exists" between autism and mercury or vaccines, when highly respected publications continue to publish new (and very real) data that roundly debunk what has now become, frankly, a tired piece of misinformation.

If I were the AAP, or ABC for that matter, I would feel downright silly stating that "no scientific link exists," so soon after the Journal of Child Neurology published a study titled, "Blood Levels of Mercury Are Related to Diagnosis of Autism: A Reanalysis of an Important Data Set." I would also worry about parental reaction to learning that researchers had done due diligence and reanalyzed data from a prior, hugely influential study that (erroneously) found zero connection between mercu! ry levels and autism.

Instead of trying to silence the fictional words of "Eli Stone" co-creators Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim, I would pay closer attention to the real words of Journal authors M. Catherine DeSoto and Robert Hitlan, who found a major flaw in the original study that found no link. In fact, they concluded, "a significant relation does exist between the blood levels of mercury and diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder," and that "hair sample analysis results offer some support for the idea that persons with autism may be less efficient ... at eliminating mercury from the blood," something that proponents of the mercury-autism hypothesis have long contended.

And, I would heed this rather wise warning from the authors: "If there is any link between autism and mercury, it is absolutely crucial that the first reports of the question are not falsely stating that no link occurs."

Another study, freshly out of Harvard, likewise shows a potential link between mercury and the autopsied brains of young people with autism. The American Journal of Biochemistry and Biotechnology reports that a marker for oxidative stress was 68.9% higher in autistic brain issue than controls (a statistically significant result), while mercury levels were 68.2% higher.

And though the mercury results did not quite reach statistical significance (probably due to the small number of autistic brains studied: 9), the authors cautioned that, "However, there was a positive correlation between (oxidative stress and mercury levels)," meaning the two might be associated.

Finally, if part of my AAP job description was to ensure that every American child is vaccinated as early and often as possible, I would be hugely apprehensive, not about a new courtroom drama, but rather about a dramatic new study soon to appear in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
.
In her article, "Delay in DPT vaccination is associated with a reduced risk of childhood asthma," Anita Kozyrskyj, an asthma researcher at the University of Manitoba, combed the medical records of 14,000 children born in Manitoba in 1995 (when many Canadian shots still contained mercury, by the way).

Kozyrskyj found that children who received the DPT (diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus) vaccine at two months of age were 2.63 times more likely to develop asthma (at a rate of 13.9%) than children who were not given the shot until after four months of age (5.9%). "We're thinking that maybe if you delay this allergic response until a bit later, the child's immune system is more developed and maybe you're not seeing this effect," Kozyrskyj told the Winnipeg Free Press, which just broke the story.

No one wants infant children to go unprotected from whooping cough (or pertussis, the "P" in DPT). But what if delaying that vaccine could have prevented more than half of the asthma cases in the United States? With millions of children currently suffering from the disease, at the cost of billions of dollars a year, would waiting another two months improve the risk-benefit ratio for society (save for the companies that market those asthma medications)?

Even more importantly, if too-early vaccination causes asthma in some kids, could the practice cause other disorders? There is absolutely nothing to link this vaccine study to autism, of course. But consider the following:

1) Many asthma cases have been linked to autoimmunity. The same with autism.

2) Childhood asthma has been dramatically increasing for two decades. The same with autism.

3) Most of the children with asthma in the vaccine study were boys. The same with autism.

Any way you look at it, this study is hardly reassuring news to parents who are about to vaccinate their kids (though think how comforting it would be to allow them to delay this shot by two months). Medicine and the media constantly tell us that all vaccines are safe for all children. When parents try to jive that information with studies that imply the opposite, their faith and trust in public health and the immunization program begin to take a nosedive, along with vaccination rates.

It's not just the broadcast of fiction out of ABC that might drive parents away from immunization. It is the negation of fact out of the AAP as well. And if unvaccinated children get sick, will the esteemed Academy also "bear responsibility," or just heap it all upon the network?

ABC executives could cave in and cancel the broadcast, but I don't think they will. And even if America's pediatricians manage to successfully censor fiction and crush artistic freedom, they will never be able to stifle the facts.

Sueing a 14 yo?????

2008-01-23T12:25:00.000-08:00

Oddly enough, the other day a post appeared on the popular discussion board "Aspies for Freedom" (http://www.aspiesforfreedom.com/showthread.php?tid=11704) that was just too interesting to NOT share. The post reads like this:

"NTSPEAKS SUED!!!!

Today i received a legal document signed by 30 lawers global saying they are suing me for $90,000 reasons:
Copyright infringement
Funds Lost
And -1million Worth of Supporters Decline (cant be i got 1 hit per day on that site)
So the semi-popular site http://ntspeaks.org has been closed.

They also said any other websites to use the Autism Speaks Logo's, Phrases, And All Trade Marked Material Against Them Will Receive A Lawsuit As Well."

Say it ain't so!!! Can it be true? Autism Speaks is threatening to sue someone with Asperger Syndrome over a parody of their website?? Because she feels that she doesn't need anyone to speak for her? That she can speak for herself? Is this the definition of irony or what?

We've been watching the thread for quite some time, biting our lip for fear of being sued as well, but..... since it made fark.com (http://www.fark.com/), well I guess the cat's out of the bag. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Fark, it's one of the most popular sites on the internet. It receives literally MILLIONS of hits per day. It contains the most interesting, ridiculous, asinine, amusing and downright silly news from around ! the globe. And well, since the story has been Farked, lots of people are now on the aspie blog commenting about it. And it's fair game to share now.

Fark headline: Autism Speaks, a charity that claims to speak for autistic people sues 14-year-old autistic kid when she starts a parody website about autistic people being able to speak for themselves. K-Mart sucks

Even the Age of Autism (Kim Stagliano) has a hilarious piece on the debacle called, AUTISM SPEAKS IN AMER-REE-CAH! (Think West Side Story). Go to http://www.ageofautism.com/2008/01/autism-speaks-m.html to check it out.

What self-respecting organization would attempt to sue someone with the disorder for which they are supposedly supporting? Follow the thread and read it through the end, and you'll find the most amusing part of the story -- the person they're trying to sue is a teenager. A minor. ! An aspie teen!!!

I hope t hey're not wasting donated dollars on all of these Park Avenue legal fees. Hrm....

I don't know who's doing the public relations work at Autism Speaks, but I'm starting to suspect it's Britney Spears or Paris Hilton? Lindsay Lohan? Maybe they've consulted O.J. Simpson on how to win friends and influence people?

I'm just stunned. Amused. But sadly, not surprised. The saga continues.....

Cindy Waeltermann
AutismLink

Katie Wright speaks out again!

2008-01-11T09:38:00.000-08:00

HALLELUJAH!!!!
It is about time!!! Thank you Katie!!
___________________________________________________

KATIE WRIGHT ON AUTISM SPEAKS' GRANTS

By Katie Wright

People frequently ask me what I think of Autism Speaks and are surprised by my answer. I believe the creative team, the administrative staff, the incredibly hard working special event and Walk staffers are amazing. They all could be pursuing more lucrative careers elsewhere but truly want to help autistic kids and their families.

My parents, Bob and Suzanne Wright, are also tireless in their efforts to bring attention to the needs of our families. At a time when it seems as if the whole world, especially in the Middle East, is angry with the United States, my Mom has successfully engaged in a wonderful collaboration with the Sheika of Qatar in order to have the United Nations declare a World Autism Day. This is only the third time the U.N. has recognized a disease in such a way. Autism Speaks has, undoubtedly, lifted the shame and isolation so many families felt by forcing autism into many public forums in the media and government. Their work on insuranc! e re-imbursement is also extremely important to all our cash strapped families.

It is Autism Speaks’ scientific advisors that I find myself at great pains to understand.

It appears as if they are wedded to the past and are non-responsive to what parents want and the immediate needs of our children. By any measure, autism is worse than ever and traditional research has yielded few breakthroughs for children living today. So many ASD children are living with horrible GI disease, seizures, serious immune deficiencies, pain induced self-abusive behavior…

Meanwhile AS has funded eye gazing research on fruit flies, a study on the olfactory senses in worms, endless gene research, yet nothing relevant to the pain my child lives with on a daily basis. Parents have waited for three years in hopes of seeing real biomedical research. Of course there is a place for gene and brain research in autism, but not at the expense of toxicology, immunology, regression, gastrointestinal and vaccine safety research. Preservatives in children’s vaccines such as: aluminum, ammonia, formaldehyde, mercury and human embryos ! have never been adequately researched or proven to be safe, nor has the CDC’s extremely aggressive vaccination schedule. Everyday infants are injected with these preservatives, combination vaccines and live viruses. There is no more time to waste. We are in the midst of a catastrophe and must be unafraid in pursuit of answers.

It appears as if AS grants are selected less as a result of the significance of a research proposal but more as a consequence of the financial resources of academic institutions to put forth in producing most professional and conservative grant applications. Instead of funding impactful, breakthrough science, millions of dollars are spent on researching the same safe subjects over and over again. Numerous exciting, innovative and progressive biomedical grants on GI disease, methylation pathways and toxicity, vaccinated and unvaccinated siblings have been repeatedly rejected due to ignorance and fear. It is past time for the scientific advisory boards to think outside the box and pursue the bold research parents want and our children desperately need.

Donald Trump’s recent comments are wonderfully illustrative of how out of touch with reality the AS’ SAC is. Mr. Trump is the parent of a young boy and is horrified by the recent explosion of autism. Mr. Trump stated that he believes the “massive” increase in vaccines for infants could account for autism’s rising numbers. Mrs. Melania Trump has spoken openly about how she spaces out Barron’s vaccinations. So while some SAC scientists still debate whether or not autism is actually increasing, why it one in 90 American boys in the spectrum does not equal an epidemic and pursue their lonely quest to find the “autism genes,” parents have moved on.

Regarding the most recent grants for young investigators, I question the wisdom in investing such great financial resources in researchers new to the field while the grants of experienced DAN! physicians who work to recover kids every day are continually ignored. AS needs to invest in doctors who have been treating and recovering so many autistic children, not just in academics with the best team of professional grant writers. Hopefully, Autism Speaks’ summertime clinical grants will reflect a broader, more biomedical and relevant approach to helping our children. In the meantime, I encourage parents to educate themselves about biomedical interventions via other websites, such as: NAA, SafeMinds, ARI, TACA, Generation Rescue, FAIR Media and Thoughtful House.

I know that Autism Speaks is trying to change. There are some truly courageous voices on the SAC, but they are too few. I am, however, optimistic that Dr. David Baskin’s new environmental committee will green light some exciting research. I am also hopeful that Dr. Geraldine Dawson, AS’ new Chief Scientific Officer, will be more proactive than her predecessor and champion the innovative environmental research families want to see funded.

On another subject I want to thank Deirdre Imus for her wonderful essay in the Huffington Post about the New Jersey vaccine mandate. I feel heartbroken for the New Jersey parents who must choose between day care, school and more vaccines for their toddlers and school age children. Why mercury has not been removed from every flu vaccine simply defies comprehension. One would think that New Jersey, possibly the autism capital in the country, would approach vaccine mandates with great caution. One in 60 New Jerse! y boys is on the autistic spectrum and the vast majority of parents believe that vaccines played a role in triggering the disorder in their children.

It is astounding that the American Academy of Pediatrics yet again, ignores parents’ concerns and testifies, again, in favor of the adding even more vaccines to the overcrowded schedule. Exemptions will be almost impossible to procure. Parents with one ASD child are now placed in the horrible position of having to over-vaccinate younger siblings, despite their well-founded concerns about the impact of so many live viruses, dangerous preservatives and combination vaccines on a developing brain.

It is time for the researchers, politicians and the AAP to stop listening only to each other and start listening to the families of autistic kids.

Katie Wright has two young boys. Her oldest son, Christian, is severely affected by autism. He developed normally; smiling, talking, walking; only to lose every skill and every word by the age of 2 and a half. Upon the advice of medical professionals Katie and her husband were advised to pursue only high quality behavioral therapy, speech and OT for Christian. It had no meaningful impact on Christian until his parents sought help from DAN! doctors who treated the underlying causes of Christian's descent into autism. Christian has improved but still has far to go. He has Inflammatory Bowel Disease, the measles virus in his gut and an immune system akin to a late stage AIDS patient. Christian does not have a psychiatric disorder. Before autism, Katie Wright was the Clinical Director of Sexual Assault Crisis Center in Stamford Connecticut. Katie is proud to serve on the Boards of NAA and SafeMinds.

●○● Mandatory Immunizations in MD

2007-12-20T07:23:00.000-08:00

Mrs Waelterman sent a wonderful letter that I'd like to share below:

Enough of Big Brother

Sitting in my living room watching the news is usually a relaxing thing for me. I catch up with what's going on in the world, have a cup of coffee and relax for a few minutes before I start a hectic day. Today, however, has proven to be kind of irritating. I'm watching as thousands of parents in Prince George's County, MD are being forced to comply with a new school district policy that requires immunization. Luckily they do offer the option of signing a waiver to NOT immunize, but are being forced to either vaccinate or sign a waiver. They have no choice, they must comply or face fines of up to $50 a day and 10 days in jail. If this isn't a scene of Orwellian proportion, I don't know what is.

The Government seems to w! ant to butt into everything in our every day lives. What to eat, what medicines to take, what's safe, what's not safe, what we can own, what we can do. Every day I hear of something else that the Government wants to regulate, ad nauseum, but this one takes the cake.

They tell us when to immunize, they tell us its safe, then its not safe, then, wait, we're not sure if it's safe. We're investigating. We're researching. Hrm. I don't know about you, but I don't like being told what to do, when to do it, how to do it, why to do it, etc. etc., particularly by people who don't seem to have a bloody idea of what they're doing.

I certainly hope that the residents of Prince George's County, MD who have children with autism opt to go to jail. I know I would. It's not that I believe mercury causes autism. It's that I'm not sure, I suspect that maybe it! does, and I'm not willing to take that chance. I don't trust wh at they say, and when it comes to my children, I'd rather err on the side of caution. And who, exactly, is the Government, to tell us that we have to?

Unless Circuit Court Judge Philip Nichols (who, incidentally, is lecturing parents on the necessity of vaccinations) spent time in the labor room giving birth to your child, he has no say in whether you choose to immunize. Who is HE, or anyone else for that matter, to tell you how to raise your child?

I received a letter from my our school district just the other day telling me that I have to prove that my sons have been to the dentist, by state law. I politely wrote on the form that it's none of their business. It's not that they haven't been to the dentist. They have. Several times. It's the audacity of the State to require me to prove that I've been a good little parent that gets my goat. Who are YOU to ask? Who are YOU to tell me what t! o do with my child?

And something as important as immunization? I hope those of you in Prince George's County, MD stand up for your rights. I hope you tell them to buzz off and stop impeding our rights to make decisions as parents. I wish I were there to help you tell Big Brother to go find something else to do. I have a few suggestions:

#1 -- Make sure the districts are following Federal IDEA laws.
#2 -- Find out what's causing autism.
#3 -- Stop spending $500 for hammers.

I could go on, but my political beliefs are not of interest to you, I'm sure. Big Brother needs to go find someone else to pick on, because I think they bit off more than they can chew with parents of children with autism. We're not very nice when we're angry.

Cindy Waeltermann
Director, AutismLink

LOL, You GO Cindy!!! AMEN!!!

●○● Vaccines Ingredients and group.

2007-12-12T09:41:00.000-08:00

Below is a list of several Vaccine's & their ingredients.

About Autism, Mercury Poisoning and Everything in between

This group was created out of pure desperation. Autism is now affecting 1 in 94 boys and 1 in 150 kids. All topics are welcome and free speech is encouraged. Please join me in trying to figure all of this out...

You can always find this group with the following URL:
www.cafemom.com/group/freespeech

Acel-Immune
DTaP
Diphtheria and Tetanus Toxoids and Acellular Pertussis Vaccine Adsorbed
Lederle Laboratories
1-800-934-5556
produced using formaldehyde, thimerosal, aluminum hydroxide, aluminumphosphate, polysorbate 80, gelatin

Act HIB
Haemophilus Influenzae Type B (Hib) Tetanus Toxoid Conjugate
Connaught Laboratories
1-800-822-2463
produced using ammonium sulfate, formalin, sucrose, thimerosal
medium: semi-synthetic

Attenuvax
Measles Virus Vaccine Live
Merck & Co, Inc.
1-800-672-6372
produced using neomycin, sorbitol, hydrolized gelatin
medium: chick embryo

DPT
Diphtheria and Tetanus Toxoids and Pertussis Vaccine Adsorbed
SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals
1-800-366-8900 ext. 5231
produced using aluminum phosphate, formaldehyde, ammonium sulfate, washed sheep red blood cells, glycerol, sodium chloride, thimerosal
medium: porcine (pig) pancreatic hydrolysate of casein

Energix-B
Hepatitis B
SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals
1-800-633-8900 ext. 5231
produced using aluminum hydroxide, thimerosal
medium: yeast (possibly 5% residual)

Havrix
Hepatitis A
SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals
1-800-633-8900 ext. 5231
produced using formalin, aluminum hydroxide, phenoxyethanol (antifreeze),polysorbate 20, residual MRC5 proteins (from medium)
medium: human diploid cells (originating from human aborted fetal tissue)

Biavax
Rubella and Mumps Virus Vaccine Live
Merck & Co, Inc.
1-800-672-6372
produced using neomycin, sorbitol, hydrolized gelatin
medium: human diploid cells (originating from human aborted fetal tissue)

HibTiter
Haemophilus Influenzae Type B (Hib)
Lederle Laboratories
1-800-934-5556
produced using polyribosylribitol, ammonium sulfate, thimerosal
medium: chemically defined, yeast based

Fluvirin
Influenza Virus Vaccine
Medeva Pharmaceuticals
1-888-MEDEVA
(716)274-5300
produced using embryonic fluid (chicken egg), neomycin, polymyxin, thimerosal, betapropiolactone
medium: embryonic fluid (chicken egg)

FluShield
Influenza Virus Vaccine, Trivalent, Types A&B
Wyeth-Ayerst
1-800-934-5556
produced using gentamicin sulfate, formaldehyde, polysorbate 80, tri(n)butylphosphate, thimerosal
medium: chick embryos

IPOL
Inactivated Polio Vaccine
Connaught Laboratories
1-800-822-2463
produced using 3 types of polio virus, formaldehyde, phenoxyethanol (antifreeze),neomycin, streptomycin, polymyxin B
medium: VERO cells, a continuous line of monkey kidney cells

MMR
Measles Mumps Rubella Live Virus Vaccine
Merck & Co., Inc.
1-800-672-6372
produced using sorbitol, neomycin, hydrolyzed gelatin
mediums: M&M - chick embryo
Rubella - human diploid cells (originating from human aborted fetal tissue)

M-R-Vax
Measles and Rubella Virus Vaccine Live
Merck & Co., Inc.
1-800-672-6372
produced using neomycin, sorbitol, hydrolyzed gelatin
mediums: M - chick embryo
R - human diploid cells (originating from human aborted fetal tissue)

Menomune
Meningococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine
Connaught Laboratories
1-800-822-2463
produced using thimerosal, lactose
medium: freeze dried polysaccharride antigens from Neisseria Meningitidis

Meruvax II
Rubella Virus Vaccine Live
Merck & Co., Inc.
1-800-672-6372
produced using neomycin, sorbitol, hydrolyzed gelatin
medium: human diploid cells (originating from human aborted fetal tissue)

Mumpsvax
Mumps Virus Vaccine Live
Merck & Co., Inc.
1-800-672-6372
produced using neomycin, sorbitol, hydrolyzed gelatin
medium: human diploid cells (originating from human aborted fetal tissue)

Orimune
Poliovirus Vaccine Live Oral Trivalent
Lederle Laboratories
1-800-934-5556
produced using 3 types of attenuated polioviruses, streptomycin, neomycin, calf serum, sorbitol
medium: monkey kidney cell culture

Pneumovax
Pneumococcal Vaccine Polyvalent
Merck & Co., Inc.
1-800-672-6372
produced using phenol and capsular polysaccharides from the 23most prevalent pneumococcal types

Prevnar
Pneumococcal 7-valent Conjugate Vaccine
Lederle Laboratories
1-800-934-5556
produced using Diphtheria CRM197 Protein, capsular antigens of Sreptococcus pneumoniae serotypes 4, 6B, 9V, 14, 18C, 19F, and 23F individually conjugated to Diphtheria CRM197 Protein, soy peptone broth, ammonium sulfate, aluminum phosphate
medium: yeast extract based

Imovax

Rabies Vaccine Adsorbed
Connaught Laboratories
1-800-822-2463
produced using human albumin, neomycin sulfate, phenol red indicator
medium: human diploid cells (originating from human aborted fetal tissue)

Rabies Vaccine Adsorbed
SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals
1-800-366-8900 ext. 5231
produced using betapropiolactone, aluminum phosphate, sodium ethylmercurithiosalicylate (thimerosal), phenol red
medium: fetal rhesus monkey lung cells

Recombivax
Hepatitis B Vaccine Recombinant
Merck & Co., Inc.
1-800-672-6372
produced using thimerosal, aluminum hydroxide
medium: yeast (residual <>

RotaShield
Rotavirus Vaccine, Live, Oral, Tetravalent
Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories
1-800-934-5556
produced using 1 rhesus monkey rotavirus, 3 rhesus-human reassortant viruses, sucrose, monosodium glutamate (MSG), potassium monophosphate, potassium diphosphate, fetal bovine serum, neomycin sulfate, amphotericin B
medium: fetal rhesus diploid cell line

Varivax
Varicella Virus Vaccine Live
Merck & Co., Inc.
1-800-672-6372
produced using sucrose, phosphate, monosodium glutamate, processed gelatin
medium: human diploid cells (originating from human aborted fetal tissue)

According to IVAC, (Illinois Vaccine Awareness Coalition 708-848-0116) all vaccines contain monosodium glutamate even if not listed in product insert.

According to numerous sources, all vaccines contain thimerosal (mercury). Manufacturers have declared that it is not possible to produce any vaccine without these two components.

Chemical Profiles and Definitions
Sources: EDF (Environmental Defense Fund) & MME (Mosby's Medical Encyclopdia)

Ammonium Sulfate: EDF Suspected - gastrointestinal or liver toxicant
neurotoxicant
respiratory toxicant

Amphotericin B: MME definintion - "a drug used to treat fungus infections. Known allergy to this drug prohibits use. Side effects include blood clots, blood defects, kidney problems, nausea and fever. When used on the skin, allergic reactions can occur."

Aluminum: EDF Suspected - cardiovascular or blood toxicant neurotoxicant respiratory toxicant
More hazardous than most chemicals in 2 out of 6 ranking systems
On at least 2 federal regulatory lists

Beta-Propiolactone: EDF Recognized - carcinogen
EDF Suspected - gastrointestinal or liver toxicant
respiratory toxicant
skin or sense organ toxicant
More hazardous than most chemicals in 3 out of 3 ranking systems
On at least 5 federal regulatory lists
Ranked as one of the most hazardous compounds (worst 10%)to humans

Formaldehyde: EDF Recognized - carcinogen
Suspected - gastrointestinal or liver toxicant
immunotoxicant
neurotoxicant
reproductive toxicant
respiratory toxicant
skin or sense organ toxicant
More hazardous than most chemicals in 5 out of 12 ranking systems
On at least 8 federal regulatory lists
Ranked as one of the most hazardous compounds (worst 10%) to ecosystems and human health

Gentamicin Sulfate: an antibiotic

Hydrolyzed Gelatin: obtained from selected pieces of calf and cattle skins, de-mineralized cattle bones (ossein) and porkskin

Monosodium Glutamate: Normally used as a flavor enhancer in a variety of foods, however, due to concerns expressed by the American Academy of Pediatrics, MSG was removed from all products intended for use in infants under the age of one. Injections of glutamate into laboratory animals have resulted in damage to nerve cells in the brain.

Neomycin: an antibiotic

Phenol : EDF Suspected - cardiovascular or blood toxicant aka Carbolic Acid
developmental toxicant
gastrointestinal or liver toxicant
kidney toxicant
neurotoxicant
respiratory toxicant
skin or sense organ toxicant
More hazardous than most chemicals in 3 out of 10 ranking systems
On at least 8 federal regulatory lists

Phenoxyethanol: EDF Suspected - developmental toxicant aka Antifreeze
reproductive toxicant
Less hazardous than most chemicals in 3 ranking systems

Polyribosylribitol: a component of the Hib bacterium

Polymyxin: an antibiotic

Polysorbate: EDF Suspected - skin or sense organ toxicant

Sorbitol: EDF Suspected - gastrointestinal or liver toxicant
Less hazardous than most chemicals in 1 ranking system

Streptomycin: an antibiotic

Sucrose: refined sugar

Thimerosal: EDF Recognized - development toxicant
Suspected - skin or sense organ toxicant

Tri(n)butylphosphate: EDF Suspected - kidney toxicant
neurotoxicant

More hazardous than most chemicals in 2 out of 3 ranking systems
On at least 1 federal regulatory list

Also, there have been several vaccine's added since this list!!!!

●○● State to require annual flu shots for all students

2007-12-11T06:25:00.001-08:00

State to require annual flu shots for all students

Health council ignores parents fearful of vaccine side effects

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

BY CAROL ANN CAMPBELL AND SUSAN K. LIVIO

Star-Ledger Staff

Children as young as 6 months will need annual flu shots to attend preschool or day care under a plan to make New Jersey the first state to mandate influenza vaccines.

The Public Health Council, an advisory group, passed the new rules despite objections from parents fearful of side effects. The rules require yearly flu shots for children ages 6 months to 59 months (4 years and 11 months) as well as three other vaccines, including two for sixth-graders.

The new rules will not be finalized until state Health Commissioner Fred Jacobs signs the measure, though he has expressed vigorous support for the new vaccination requirements and is expected to act soon. The requirements are expected to take effect in the 2008-09 school year.

Public health officials said the measure will save children's lives and reduce the spread of potentially deadly disease. The rules will affect about 250,000 New Jersey children.

"The flu is one of the respiratory diseases we can prevent," said Eddy Bresnitz, the state epidemiologist.

Bresnitz cited a rash of 154 pediatric flu deaths nationwide in the 2003-04 flu season. He also pointed to an analysis by the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia that reported 745 children hospitalized with flu from 2000 to 2004, more than three-quarters under the age of 5.

"I thought, 'Why aren't we protecting our children?'" he said, adding that children frequently spread the disease to family members and others in the community.

Yesterday's vote was five in favor, two opposed and one abstention, and followed protests from those skeptical of vaccine safety as well as government encroachment on parental autonomy.

"I'm gravely concerned about what's happening here today," said Assemblywoman Charlotte Vandervalk (R-Bergen), a sponsor of a bill (A165) that would allow parents to opt out of the vaccine mandates by filing a "conscientious exemption" form with the local health department.

"With New Jersey reporting the highest incidence of autism and a cause yet to be identified, we don't know what will happen," she said. "What happened to our freedom?"

Sue Collins, co-founder of the New Jersey Alliance for Informed Choice in Vaccination, also opposed the rules. "New Jersey parents must be allowed to choose which vaccines their children will receive," she said.

The new rules say:

Children from 6 months to 59 months must get the flu shot each year to attend preschool or day care.

Children from 2 months to 59 months also must get the pneumonia, or pneumococcal, vaccine.

A diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus (DPT) booster is now required for sixth-graders to attend school.

A meningitis shot also is now required for sixth-graders.

Some of those objecting worry about thimerosal, a preservative containing mercury used in some vaccines. Some autism groups point to thimerosal as a possible cause of autism.

Bresnitz said three of the four new vaccines required do not contain thimerosal. He called the trace elements found in the flu vaccine harmless, citing several studies. Nonetheless, he said parents can request thimerosal-free flu vaccine for their children.

Collins said some parents have found the thimerosal-free flu vaccine hard to come by.

Several pediatricians interviewed support the new rules.

"These are perfectly safe and beneficial to the public," said Michael Segarra, vice president of the New Jersey Academy of Pediatrics' New Jersey chapter. He said thimerosal-free flu vaccine is easily available.

"If that's the issue, that's not a problem," he said.

He also said older children need the vaccine to prevent meningitis, which leads to brain inflammation and can cause serious brain injury and death. The DPT booster shot can prevent pertussis, or whooping cough. "Sometimes we see this chronic cough in teenagers. It's pertussis," he said.

A spokesperson for Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey said the insurer will evaluate the new rules and generally covers all mandated vaccines.

Before the vote, Anne Downing of Readington, the parent of a 7-year-old autistic child, pleaded with the council.

"What causes autism? Please tell me," she said, describing how her daughter sometimes bites "chunks of skin" out of her arm. "Please come over and see what it's like living with a child of autism."

Voices such as hers have not swayed many of those in public health. George DiFerdinando, a physician with the UMDNJ School of Osteopathic Medicine in Stratford, called the new influenza rules valuable.

"We know influenza can kill and permanently damage children," he said.

Carol Ann Campbell may be reached at ccampbell@starledger.com or (973) 392-4148, Sue Livio at slivio@starledger.com or (609) 989-0802.

●○● Age of Autism Article

2007-12-08T06:14:00.000-08:00

AGE OF AUTISM "Q&A" THE SACRED COW (VACCINES) AND AUTISM IN INDIA

Age of Autism Q&A is a new feature by Dan Olmsted. We hope you enjoy it.

By Dan Olmsted

A recent Senate report that absolved public officials of misconduct in reviewing the safety of the mercury preservative Thimerosal contained an overlooked conclusion: "The contention that Thimerosal is used in vaccines provided to third world and developing countries is accurate."

The document cited the CDC's view that "the vaccination of children in much of the world will continue to require the use of multiple-dose vials for reasons of cost, production, and storage capacity." (A preservative is needed in multi-dose vials because repeated needle sticks to withdraw vaccine expose the vial to microbes.) This fits with the comment at the secretive, CDC-sponsored Simpsonwood conference in 2000 by Dr. John Clements of the World Health Organization: "My mandate as I sit here in this group is to make sure at the end of the day that 100,000,000 are immunized with DTP, Hepatitis B and if possible Hib, this year, next year, and for many years to come, and that will have to be with Thimerosal-containing vaccines, unless a miracle occurs and an alternative is found quickly and is tried and is found to be safe."

This begs the question for those concerned about a link between mercury, and vaccines in general, and autism: What is happening with the autism rate in those countries? There have been reports that rates have soared in the past few years, but public health authorities attribute the increase to better diagnosis and awareness. They say neither Thimerosal nor vaccines themselves cause autism.

In this first-of-its-kind interview, two veteran health professionals talk about their eyewitness experience in India – and their account differs starkly from the official line. I met husband-and-wife chiropractic doctors Matthew Lewis and Dipti Patel at a Long Island autism conference recently. I was impressed by their candor and compassion and the significance of their first-hand observations.

AOA: Because of Dipti's heritage, as I understand it, you've gone back to India over a period of years.

Matthew: Ever since we were in school we would do doctors-without-borders-type trips. We'd get a group of maybe 20 or so chiropractors and go out to a village in India and provide chiropractic care. We would literally have thousands of people show up.

Dipti: They'd carry people in. The kids who had (damage from) the polio vaccine would get dragged in.

AOA: What year did you start?

Dipti: 2001.

Matthew: Then we kept going on a yearly basis. We might skip a year and then we'd be back a year later. It was interesting because we got to see some changes.

AOA: And you say from the beginning you did see kids who you felt had vaccine-induced problems?

Matthew: First of all, if you live in the United States you don't see polio. There were schools there that were for children who had polio. They would actually take the whole school and bring the school in (to see us) and we would "adjust" all the kids with polio. And out of those kids, when we were serving the parents, we'd say, "What happened to the child?" and they'd say, "They were fine … (they got an) injection … this is what happened." So we know that when you vaccinate for polio certain kids are going to get polio as a result of the vaccine, but as a whole I would say that (polio vaccine) probably helped. I'm not critical of that. It's what they did, and that's what we saw.

And then what happened was there was a subset of people that we would see who would bring their kids with mostly neurological problems but they didn't necessarily contract polio. But they had other neurological deficits going on and the parents would say the same thing. "We had the injection. Someone came, the doctor came, and he did this to everybody and some kids were left like this."

AOA: And they were only talking about polio shots at that point?

Matthew: No, I can't say that for sure. But it was some kind of injection, vaccine-related. This was in 2001.

AOA: So, then, how did things change?

Matthew: In 2005 when I went the big difference was, we'd still see the kids with the polio and everything like that, we'd still see the parents coming in with the kids who don't have polio who say, "Something happened to my child once they got a vaccine." But then, even more specifically, we had people talking about autism and also explaining characteristics of autism-like behavior.

AOA: Such as?

Matthew: You know, the flapping of the hands, the stimming, just that fogginess – their arms and legs are fine. There are kids who have (side effects of vaccines) who have a cerebral-palsy-like presentation or some kind of muscular dystrophy. That wasn't the case – these kids walked but they would be very loose or have no (muscle) tone. They would just not be thriving, the mother coming and saying "They're not speaking."

What I would suggest to you is the difference was that this was new to them. They had not seen this before. They saw what happened with the polio vaccines, they saw what happened with the shots. This was something unique, different.

AOA: And you think that was because of new shots?

Matthew: I honestly don't know.

Dipti: Yes, I would say so because during that time, 2001 to now, even, more shots from America are going over to those countries.

Matthew: When you ask me was it these shots, when I think about that for a moment … you know, initially when we went we were in a village in the middle of nowhere. But what started happening was we got on national TV for the work that we were doing, so there was a larger scale, there were more people coming from all over. We had people coming from 24 hours away, and so we started having more affluent families that were traveling, and they were bringing these kids. And so these kids, I would say, yes, they were getting more vaccines. They were coming from a different realm outside of this village.

What I would suggest is that in the village, we always saw – every time we went – parents who knew that they got a vaccine and the child was hurt, period. Is it autism? (They) don't know. But they knew there was a connection between a vaccine and a negative consequence, and maybe something good (by preventing disease).

Now we started seeing parents who were coming in saying, we gave vaccines, we'd never seen this before … (Those families) are getting better attention now. They're getting their regular child visits that they were not getting in the villages necessarily, and now they're having problems …

AOA: That they wouldn't have had 10 years ago necessarily?

Matthew: They didn't know what it (autism) was. They never saw this.

AOA: To play devil's advocate, this is something that presumably public health officials would keep surveillance on, because if this is a WHO project and there are changes towards what sounds like autism, it's not something that would be hard to notice. You noticed it. Where is WHO on this? Why aren't we hearing about this?

Matthew: I just don't know if they even track that kind of thing.

AOA: They should track it.

Matthew: Sure. (But) "polio or no polio," that's what they're looking at.

AOA: David Kirby ends his book EVIDENCE OF HARM with rates increasing in China. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. does the same thing in Rolling Stone. But then you get people saying "It's just better diagnosed." But when you folks come at it from an experiential way over time …

Matthew: I've been talking about this since I've gone there. I learned in school the potential dangers of vaccines and I read about it before I went. I read Barbara Loe Fisher's book, A Shot in the Dark, and it's just something that piqued my interest when I was in school.

Dipti: You forgot to mention that before he was even a chiropractor he worked with autistic children. He had a background in autism – behavioral therapy on the floor with the kids.

Matthew: So I had an interest in vaccines and an understanding of what was happening. And then I just went out into the world and I wasn't looking for it, I went to India and all of a sudden (I saw) all the stuff I was reading about, which you can't really see in America.

Because if I was in my private practice in the United States, I don't get kids that come with vaccine damage – well, now I do – but you don't get kids with a parent who comes in and says, "He got a shot and he was sick." That (observation) gets thrown away. But when you go there, it's raw. Parents will just tell you whatever they saw.

Dipti: There's no pediatrician saying "Oh, no, you're crazy." It doesn't work like that. It's a totally different culture. We (in the U.S.) have almost come to an acceptance that our kids are being destroyed.
--
Dan Olmsted is Editor of Age of Autism.

●○● Petition Against Mandated Vaccines

2007-12-06T11:34:00.000-08:00

To: Anthony D. Romero, Executive Director, American Civil Liberties Union

We are asking that the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) take action against vaccination waivers. Parents should have the right not to vaccinate their children by simply saying "no". Those that refuse to vaccinate are currently forced into signing a waiver that has language which blames the parents and practically praises vaccine makers.

Know Your Rights

By endorsing this particular waiver, parents would essentially be signing an admittance of neglect and or "abuse" for refusing vaccines. The language contained in this waiver could put parents and caregivers in jeopardy down-the-line if they should ever find themselves in the courts due to their child's health problems, when confronted with child protective services, divorce, or just about any matter pertaining to that child that could be used against the parent(s).

Do Vaccines Work?

Example One:

According to a report printed by The Lancet (21/9/1991), a polio outbreak began in Oman between the years of 1988 and 1989. This is significant because a polio outbreak occurred despite the children being vaccinated prior to the outbreak. Curiously, the region with the highest attack rate had the highest vaccine coverage, while the region with the lowest attack rate had the lowest vaccine coverage.

Example Two:

Sweden abandoned the whooping cough vaccine in 1979. Why? Out of 5,140 cases of whooping cough in 1978, it was found that 84 percent had been vaccinated at least three times. You may find this report in the BMJ 283:696-697, 1981.

Pay-outs

More than $1.1 billion in claims have been paid by the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program to parents of children affected by vaccines. On average, each family received nearly a million dollars each. Sadly, the claims by the parents had to fit in the programme's extremely narrow definitions in order to qualify for compensation.

Naughty CDC

The CDC Vaccine Advisory Committee and its members get money from vaccine manufacturers.

They own stock in vaccine companies and get paid to conduct research.

As of 2003, the CDC has had 28 licensing agreements with companies and at least one university for vaccines.

Vaccines once endorsed by the CDC were pulled off the market after infants (and even some adults) had serious reactions. People had to die for the CDC to admit wrongdoing.

Why Your Doctor May Not Care

Your doctor gets paid by the companies that supply the vaccines for each and every vaccine.

A 1993 federal "Immunization Initiative" gave States more than $400 million in vaccine incentives and a $100 bounty for each child vaccinated with the shots the federal government recommended.

You should know that according to the February 1981 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), 90 percent of obstetricians and 66 percent of pediatricians refused to take the rubella vaccine, and in 1990 a British survey showed that over 50 percent of doctors in the UK rejected the Hepatitis B vaccine. (British Med Jnl, 27/1/90).

Check your State's laws regarding exemption. Most States will allow you to avoid vaccinations if you have a religious or ethical reason. However - keep in mind that it is your right not to disclose your faith or your full reasons for not wanting to vaccinate your child.

Sincerely,

CLICK HERE TO SIGN THIS PETITION!

I am not one who agrees with a lot of what the ACLU goes after but this cause and petition has my support and I hope also any parent, grand-parent, family and/or guardian!

We have every right to reject or decline vaccines that we KNOW will harm our children!

●○● Revaccinations? Now there's a great idea!!!!!!! (sarcasm)

2007-12-04T14:00:00.000-08:00

Bad batch of Vaccines are a cause for "revaccination" .... Now the headline was just changed to read -

Vaccines ruined by poor refrigeration

Do they really think people are that stupid? I guess they do!!

CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT THE "RUINED" VACCINES

It never ceases to amaze me ... you'd think with all the "preservatives" they add to keep the vaccines fresh and good that this wouldn't happen ....
Hmmm, I guess maybe it's time to find another lethal preservative!

●○● Merck laughing at the damage they are doing!

2007-12-04T07:38:00.000-08:00

The audacity to sit there and laugh at the damage that they have done is beyond me!

●○● Know the signs .... animated

2007-11-27T06:47:00.000-08:00

Thank you Brandi!! God bless you!

●○● PDD Assessment Test

2007-11-26T05:06:00.000-08:00

Here is a link to do a PDD Assessment Test. It's not a final DX, but it does a pretty good job of covering the basics. I did it for our son and he scored a 162 = Severe PDD.

For anyone wanting to check it out here is the link --> CHILDBRAIN

remember it is not a final diagnosis but if your child is showing the signs listed TAKE HIM IN TO BE EVALUATED ASAP!

●○● Study - risk factors of autism

2007-11-14T09:15:00.000-08:00

Largest study to investigate risk factors of autism to begin enrolling families

OAKLAND, Calif., November 14, 2007 — http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-11/epr-lst111207.php

Researchers from Kaiser Permanente and the California Department of Public Health, as well as from five other sites nationwide, today will begin enrolling families in the largest study to date investigating the genetic and environmental factors that may cause autism and other developmental disabilities.

The five-year research study, called the Study to Explore Early Development, will involve 2,700 children and their parents from six areas around the nation, including Santa Clara and Alameda counties. The study is open to both Kaiser Permanente members and non-members with children who were born from September 2003 to August 2005 in Santa Clara and Alameda counties. Children with autism and other neuro-developmental impairments (developmental delays), as well as children with typical development, will be studied and are being recruited.

“We hope this study will help us learn more about the factors that may lead to autism and other developmental disabilities, and how genes and the environment may affect child development,” said Lisa A. Croen, PhD, the study’s local principal investigator and an epidemiologist with Kaiser Permanente’s Division of Research in Oakland, Calif. “The results may also contribute to better services and treatments for affected children and to prevention strategies.”

For reasons not fully understood, autism is on the rise, affecting on average about one in 150 children born in the United States, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which also is involved in this study. The chronic, lifelong condition affects the normal functioning of the brain, impacting development of social and communication skills. The American Academy of Pediatrics recently released guidelines recommending all children be screened for autism between the ages of 18 and 24 months, even if parents haven’t expressed any particular concerns.

“The new national recommendation for regular screening of children for autism has raised the community awareness of the importance of early diagnosis of autism in order to help children and families,” said Dr. Marc Lerner, MD, FAAP, the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Chair of State Government Affairs for California. “What is now needed is research like the SEED study to understand the reasons behind the dramatic growth in the diagnosis of autism, which will help us to address prevention and treatment.”

Factors that will be studied include family medical history; genetics; and socio-demographic, lifestyle and environmental factors. Study information will be obtained by conducting interviews and exams, reviewing medical records, collecting cheek swabs, and blood and hair sampling, according to Pilar Bernal, MD, medical director of Kaiser Permanente’s Regional Program for Autism Spectrum Disorders. Kaiser Permanente maintains two autism centers – one in San Jose, Calif., and another in Rancho Cordova, Calif., a suburb of Sacramento.

●○● Jenny on LKL on Autism

2007-10-06T05:54:00.000-07:00

HOORAY FOR AWARENESS!!!