Is There a Link Between Autism and Vaccines?

No, there's no link between vaccines and autism. This was mentioned in a paper in 1998 and has been disproved time and time again. The paper in question was retracted and several large studies since have shown no association.

A large study from 2013 supports this statement. This involved giving vaccines to children and found the body's response to the vaccine was the same between children who had developed autism and those who did not, suggesting no link.

Why Do Some People Still Believe Vaccines Cause Autism?

Unfortunately, it is still widely believed there is a cause as currently, there is no clearly identified cause. Scientists cannot pinpoint the exact cause of autism. Therefore, many incorrectly think symptoms occur due to something coincidentally at the same time, such as vaccines.

Children usually show symptoms of autism by 12-18 months, sometimes earlier. This is about the same time they are also offered routine vaccinations, fuelling this myth. Importantly, a child can regress (stop using skills they’ve already learned) between 1 and 2 years of age - regardless of whether they’ve been vaccinated or not.

What Do the Largest Vaccine Safety Studies Actually Show About Autism Risk

16 well-documented studies based on large-populations have confirmed no link between autism and vaccines. These studies compared autism status between those individuals who had an MMR vaccine and those that didn't - no connection was found.

The studies also looked at 1 particular ingredient, thimerosal, used not only in MMR but other vaccines and again found no connection. Then the studies started looking at the number of vaccines given at 1 time, which also found no connection.

These studies looked at over 1.8million children and confirmed no link, compared to the initial flawed paper that only looked at 12 children.

If Vaccines Don't Cause Autism, What Are the Real Risk Factors? Understanding Autism Development

Whilst not fully understood, research suggests a combination of genetic influences and environmental factors may cause autism.

Certain genetic changes may affect early brain development in a child. This also depends on parents' age at the time of conception. The mothers health, whether she is overweight, diabetic or if birth was premature or at a very low birth weight could all be potential factors.

Ultimately, there are many risk factors that may be associated with development of autism though this is still not fully understood. One thing which is clear, is that there is no link between vaccines and autism.