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Does autism start at birth?
Autism is from birth, although autism-like symptoms can occur as a result of brain injury and illness etc. It is likely that autism is the result primarily of environmental factors triggering genetics that would not normally cause a problem to result in ASD, or autism spectrum disorder. Vaccines have been suspected to cause autism for a while, but the evidence for them causing autism is weak. The actual cause of autism is not yet known, although we do know that some drugs can cause autism when exposed to unborn babies in utero. One example of this is the anti-convulsant sodium valproate, which is still commonly prescribed to women of childbearing age. Class action lawsuits in various countries (including the UK and USA) are currently underway.
Could autism be caused by mercury poisoning?
While excessive exposure to mercury can cause brain damage and psychiatric problems, the symptoms of are usually much different from those of autism. The amount of mercury that was present in MMR vaccine was never great enough to cause this in most individuals, and the mercury has been since been removed all together.To put it in proper perspective:The trace amount of mercury in current flu vaccines from the thimerosal used as a preservative is approximately equal to the amount you get from a single meal of fish.There are also many other types of brain damage which can lead to autistic-type symptoms and a diagnosis of autism. For instance, head trauma or being deprived of oxygen to the brain can cause autism symptoms. Hundreds of chemicals in addition to mercury can cause symptoms of autism. In the modern world, there has been a great deal of urban legend speculation that mercury from vaccines could possibly cause autism. This speculation has been demonstrated to be false in the case of Cedillo v. HHS, decided in the Federal Vaccine Court in Feb. 2009. What really has been happening is that autism generally starts when children are of the age when they receive vaccinations. Not knowing the cause, as even scientists don't know the cause of autism, parents tend to blame anything that was happening by coincidence during the time of vaccinations, as if vaccination were the cause of the autism that happened for other unknown reasons at about the same time. It's as if a million people watched TV today, a small proportion died in car crashes later in the week, and somebody tried to blame the car crashes on watching TV several days earlier.Actually, if mercury from vaccines caused autism, autism would have been more common when mercury was in vaccines. But autism wasn't more common then. Also, mercury has been out of vaccines for several years now and autism is still occurring and even increasing. So, whether you look at mercury formerly being present and most kids not getting autism, or you look at mercury being gone and kids still getting autism anyway, either instance (and especially both put together), along with Cedillo v. HHS, clearly demonstrate that the tiny amount of mercury that used to be in vaccines wasn't causing autism.As a matter of fact, there is more mercury in an average banana than there is in a vaccine. The bottom line is that no one knows the cause of autism, and until medical research solves this riddle it will be difficult to help afflicted children or prevent autism from hurting more kids. But, until the true cause of autism is discovered, meanwhile falsely blaming innocent vaccines and their removed tiny traces of mercury only interferes with finding the true cause and finding the alleviation of a real cure.ANSWER:There is no one true cause, although most cases are probably genetic in origin and not due to external factors. The vaccine courts conceded in the cases of Hanna Poling and Baily Banks that the mercury in vaccines helped contribute to their autism; these were rare, isolated instances of a rare genetic condition that was affected by such minuscule amounts of mercury. All the other cases that have come before the court, many thousands of them, have been rejected.ADDENDUM 12-30-2009: Post hoc ergo propter hoc is well established as a false argument. Neither do correlations prove cause and effect. If it can somehow be demonstrated that children with reduced ability to detoxify have a higher rate of autism or vice versa, the defect is in their detoxification ability and not in the vaccines. In other words, it would be important to pre-screen children for detoxification enzyme deficiencies rather than deny vaccines to the many who are not adversely influenced by them. By way of analogy, just because a few people run down little old ladies with cars doesn't mean cars should be banned. If there is an established pattern of testable defect conferring a high statistical probability of autism, the liability accrues to the physician who does not test for it. The liability does not accrue to the vaccines which are predominantly innocent of any offense whatsoever unless used in a way that would constitute medical malpractice, assuming your referenced findings are accurate in the first place and not caused by other factors as yet overlooked and undiscovered. Speaking from personal experience, I as a human guinea pig have received a dozen tetanus shots bearing standard mercury loads, all within a six-month period, and I experienced no adverse effects-- much less autism.
Can autism be detected by an ultrasound?
No, Autism cannot be detected by ultrasound and hopefully pre-natal screening for Autism will not be developed during the time that ableism still exists against Autistic people. Autism can only be diagnosed through assessment by a trained professional who assesses behaviour.
What do doctors say about vaccines causing autism?
No they do not. Autism is not a side effect of MMR vaccine. Information about the Study Showing a Link Between the MMR Vaccine and Autism Andrew Wakefield, the researcher who controlled the well-known study that claimed a link between autism and vaccinations changed the results of his study for his purposes. The medical records of the children were obtained and evaluated in 2009, and those show results differing from those that Wakefield published. Contrary to what he reported in his study, several of his subjects showed signs of autism before the vaccinations. Also, he had accepted funding prior to beginning the study to prove that the MMR vaccine was harmful, so it was a conflict of interest when he did this study. In addition, his study only involved 12 children, which was too small to prove anything, and the children were not randomly selected, so it was a biased study. Wakefield's results were already in question because despite removing the mercury from vaccines, autism rates continued to increase. Also, countries that had been using different vaccines and vaccination schedules also had increasing rates of autism. Numerous studies have disproven the conjecture that vaccines cause autism.
Can mild autistic children read?
There is no such thing as 'mild autism' - a person is autistic, how it effects them can be mild. As autism is a spectrum it effects different people in different ways and to different severities, even children who are severely effected by their autism may still be able to read.
If you have overcome autism can you still drift into your own world sometimes?
Autism isn't something that you overcome, Autism is your identity - you are always Autistic, there is no way to change that. As someone who is Autistic you will still display traits of your neurology.
Is inoculation still used?
Many vaccines are still in use today.
Is the UK against autism?
No, the UK is not against autism and I'm not sure how countries could be against a disorder.The UK is one of the most tolerant places for Autism, for example we have one of the only Autism-specific laws (Autism Act) which requires people in government and healthcare to learn about Autism and a pathway to diagnosis. Although Autistic people in the UK still face prejudice in schools and employment, also under Tory government Autistic people are less likely to work, get support into work, or receive appropriate benefits - this is the fault of the Tory government, not the UK.
When did tony hawk get autism?
Autistic people don't 'get' autism, Autistic people are born Autistic just like people are born African-American or born male/female. Tony Hawk thus was born Autistic, he became Autistic while he was still developing in his mothers womb.
If canine vaccines are not cold can they still be given and will they still protect against illnesses?
If the vaccines are supposed to be kept refrigerated until use, they are worthless if they are no longer cold.
Are you ill if you have autism?
Autism is considered a "neurodevelopmental disorder." Many parents of autistic children are trying to get the DSM to reclassify autism as not being a mental illness. Autistic people can, however, have many other psychological illness's such as OCD. It depends on what you mean by "ill"; if you're technically speaking then check with the DSM, but if you are talking in a more judgmental sense then the answer can vary. No matter what autistic people are still people and deserve to be treated as such.
Is there any vaccine to cancer yet?
There are vaccines to cancer. Vaccines are used during an early stage of cancer to get better results. However, it is still possible to treat existing cancer in a later stage with vaccines. Those kind of vaccines are called therapeutic cancer vaccines.
