Earlier in the week, the Institute of Medicine released a report which was claimed by many as “proving” there is no connection between teh MMR vaccine and the meteoric rise in autism over the last 30 years (estimates range between 2400% and 4500% over the three decades since the introduction of the triple jab).
As Paul Harvey would say “now the rest of the story…”
FEAT DAILY NEWSLETTER Sacramento, California http://www.feat.org
“Healing Autism: No Finer a Cause on the Planet”
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April 26, 2001 Search www.feat.org/search/news.asp
Burton Hearing: IOM Report Dirty
The biggest news to come from this year’s ‘autism/MMR’ hearing by Dan Burton in Washington DC Wednesday was the surprising revelation that the recently released IOM reported on the issue had been reviewed and altered by people associated with vaccine manufacturers in advance of the report’s release. Burton said that this compromised the alleged unbiased nature of the report and that he vowed to find out what parts of the report material was sent by whom, and what changes were made and who made the changes.
Burton also pointed out that although the report had said that they could not claim there was no causal connection between autism and vaccines, the widespread media reports said just the opposite. He expressed concern that the continuing spin and misrepresentation on the matter will only serve to undermine the credibility of the government with the public.
Burton also wanted to know more about the mercury contamination of vaccines. The main issue was to find out what from vaccine officials, what if any part of the manufacturing of vaccines used mercury in its processing.
More details from the hearing, conference and rally in Washington to come shortly.
My apology for missed publications of the newsletter in the last two days. I was unable to gain access to the equipment that was supposed to be available for this purpose. This report comes to you through the generous loan of Rick Rollens laptop. -Lenny Schafer * * *
Possible Autism Test for Newborns
A blood test at birth could reveal whether a child is likely to develop autism or suffer mental retardation, claim researchers. Normally these conditions cannot be diagnosed until later in childhood, when their effects on the child are already pronounced. Autism is a developmental disorder which means, in many cases, that children have problems with social interaction, and problems with verbal and non-verbal communication. Children who have mental retardation have significantly delayed development and low IQ scores. Although there are as yet no treatments which can prevent or effectively treat either of these conditions, scientists at the US National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke say the finding could help doctors develop them. The study was made possible by a huge archive of infant blood stored by the California Department of Health Services. Researchers were able to compare concentrations of key proteins in the newborn blood of children with autism, to those who developed normally.
Elevated levels of the proteins - all growth factors associated with neural development - appeared to be linked to later diagnosis of autism or retardation.
Growth factors
The team believe that not only do the growth factors play a key role in development of the central nervous system, but also that too much of them may disrupt the normal process by which a cell develops into the correct type and moves to the right area, and dies at the right time.
Children who suffered from cerebral palsy, another disorder linked to faulty early neural development, did not have elevated levels of the proteins.
Dr Karin Nelson, the senior investigator for the study, said: “Finding that the normal regulators of brain development were different in children with autism from normal controls in the first days of life opens an exciting new avenue of research.
“We think this work will be a step to better understanding to biologic basis of autism and hope it will lead to better ways to treat and perhaps prevent autism.”
The origins of autism are still controversial, with a small number of scientists suspicious about the role of a combined measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, usually given at approximately 16 months of age.
No Damning Evidence
The bulk of scientific opinion suggests there is no damning evidence linking autism to the jab, and the UK authorities have insisted that it is safe.
The number of children diagnosed with some sort of autistic spectrum disorder has increased sharply over the past decade.
Advocates of the MMR theory say that this rise may at least be partly attributed to the introduction of the combined vaccine, whereas others say that improved awareness of autism means that many cases which might have been missed in the past are now being identified.
Dr Lorna Wing, a consultant psychiatrist at the National Autistic Society Centre for Social & Communication Disorders in the UK, said: “A biological test for autism would be extremely helpful. We look forward to hearing more information about the findings.”