We know why most folks got scared of the MMR vaccine.
And most of us remember when most folks welcomed the MMR vaccine the end of endemic measles in the United States.
Why You Were Worried About the MMR Vaccine
Of course, that all changed when Andrew Wakefield spoke at the press conference for his 1998 Lancet paper and said:
“And I have to say that there is sufficient anxiety in my own mind of the safety, the long term safety of the polyvalent, that is the MMR vaccination in combination, that I think that it should be suspended in favour of the single vaccines, that is continued use of the individual measles, mumps and rubella components… there is no doubt that if you give three viruses together, three live viruses, then you potentially increase the risk of an adverse event occurring, particularly when one of those viruses influences the immune system in the way that measles does. And it may be, and studies will show this or not, that giving the measles on its own reduces the risk of this particular syndrome developing… the risk of this particular syndrome developing is related to the combined vaccine, the MMR, rather than the single vaccines…. People have been saying for some time, people on the periphery of autism, have been saying for some time that this may well be related to bowel damage.”
Although there was no evidence for any of that, vaccination rates went down and measles rates went up – the Wakefield Factor.
But no, it wasn’t one person at a press conference that us lead down a decade of worry about the MMR vaccine.
“And then the nurse gave my son that shot. And I remember going, “Oh, God, no!” And soon thereafter I noticed a change. The soul was gone from his eyes.”
Andrew Wakefield had plenty of help!
Not only from anti-vaccine celebrities, but from the media and their scare stories.
Why Are You Still Worried About the MMR Vaccine?
But that is all old news.
Over and over again, we see new studies that show that the MMR vaccine is safe and is not associated with autism.
Andrew Wakefield’s work was never replicated.
The MMR vaccine never contained thimerosal and doesn’t even contain aluminum, which I mention only because those are ingredients that some folks get scared about, not because they are harmful.
Vaccines are safe. The MMR vaccine is safe.
And more and more, as predicted, we are seeing why vaccines are necessary – more and more outbreaks. Outbreaks that are proving to be deadly.
Why are you still worried about the MMR vaccine?
Because anti-vaccine folks are still scaring you away from vaccinating and protecting your kids!
Don’t listen to them!
More on MMR Vaccine Fears
- MMR vaccine—worries are not justified
- Is the MMR vaccine safe?
- Should I still worry about the MMR vaccine?
- Ask the Experts about the MMR Vaccine
- CDC – Understanding MMR Vaccine Safety
- Parents’ concerns about MMR
- Study – Parental decision-making in uptake of the MMR vaccination: a systematic review of qualitative literature
- Andrew Wakefield’s many statements that MMR causes autism
- Is It True That Andrew Wakefield’s Research Never Claimed Vaccines Cause Autism?
- How the case against the MMR vaccine was fixed
- Wakefield’s article linking MMR vaccine and autism was fraudulent
- Andrew Wakefield GMC Charge Sheet
- Andrew Wakefield – the fraud investigation
- BMJ series on the Wakefield fraud
- Andrew Wakefield’s Harmful Myth of Vaccine-induced “Autistic Enterocolitis”
- Is It True That Andrew Wakefield’s Research Never Claimed Vaccines Cause Autism?
- The media’s MMR hoax
- The MMR story that wasn’t
- Andy Wakefield exonerated because John Walker-Smith won his appeal? Not so fast there, pardner…
- Surprise, surprise! Andrew Wakefield was paid by lawyers to undermine the MMR vaccine
- Antivaccine hero Andrew Wakefield: Scientific fraud?
- The Lancet retracts Andrew Wakefield’s article
- Andrew Wakefield’s many statements that MMR causes autism
- Andrew Wakefield “Acted Unethically”
- Andrew Wakefield: paid $316k to administer $80k in grants by the Strategic Autism Inititiative
- Andrew Wakefield’s vaccine patent
- Andrew Wakefield Tortures History
- Andrew Wakefield discredited – a collection of his attacks on vaccines
- The Wakefield birthday party blood draw story
- 20th anniversary of the Andrew Wakefield vaccine fraud – no celebrations
- Andrew Wakefield: Recognized as the Great Science Fraud that he is
- Andrew Wakefield, the MMR, and a “mother warrior’s” fabricated vaccine injury story
- Andrew Wakefield – dishonest attempt at self-justification
- May 24, 2010: Andrew Wakefield Struck off the UK Medical Register. He’s Still Harming Autistic People
- Refuting one of the tropes that Andrew Wakefield was wronged
- Andrew Wakefield: Don’t try to blame me for the results of what I said and did
- Andrew Jeremy Wakefield, Litigious Bully
- Studies ‘supporting’ Andrew Wakefield
- On The Lancet’s Retraction of Wakefield’s 1998 Paper Alleging A Connection Between the MMR Vaccine and Autism
- BREAKING: BMJ calls Andrew Wakefield a fraud
That’s the weakest article I’ve ever read on MMR. No real facts. You can’t just say “vaccines are safe” “MMR is safe”. Prove why it’s safe. Address the vaccine injurys that have happened. Address the fact that vaccines are given a free pass in a way that no other drug has. Address that people are making billions of dollars off vaccines. Address the fact that the US has some of the least healthy kids and we’re one of the most vaccinated countries. If you really want to bring anti-vaccine people around you have to address real concerns and to just keep repeating “vaccines are safe and affective and polio and measles have gone away” is not enough. We must do better. I’ve been researching vaccines for quite a while now and have looked at lots of info from both sides. I just feel that the pro-vaccine argument falls short and is not answering the real questions that anti-vaccine folks have. Both sides need to stop screaming back and forth about autism. That’s not the conversation.
Why am I worried? Because vaccinating for benign illnesses is nothing more than a money making scam and is of no benefit to anyone other than those who are stakeholders. And, now they want to vaccinate seniors with the MMR and Chicken Pox vaccines. Why?!!! We had these illnesses and have gained lifelong immunity, so this urge to vaccinate us for things we are already invulnerable to is beyond ridiculous.
A key emerging issue is that of mothers ability to confer temporary immunity on infants through trans-placental antibodies and breast milk. In the early days of measles vaccination, mothers still had natural immunity. But the next generation of mothers, who themselves had been vaccinated as children and therefore had never obtained full immunity as a result of contracting measles naturally, were less able to protect their infants naturally. That’s when we started seeing an uptick in infant deaths from measles. Well done guys – you have stripped mothers of the co-evolved infant protection mechanism that in the past staved off measles until the 4-8 age range when it is a comparatively trivial illness.