The True Epidemic Parents Should Worry About

There are reports all over the news about how measles is making a comeback. There are also worries about the bird flu pandemic. Biological warfare is always in the back of everyone's minds during this time of war. Although all of these things are legitimate issues that need government's attention, I can think of another war that is being fought right now. I can also think of another epidemic that is being ignored. It is the war on the Autism Epidemic.

Let's define the word epidemic: "the occurrence of cases of disease in excess of what is usually expected for a given period of time." I found an article written in the Los Angeles Times newspaper that stated: [One answer that researchers do have is that California is probably not unique. “There is absolutely no doubt the numbers are going up nationwide, even worldwide,” said Dr. Eric London of the National Alliance for Autism Research. Between 1975 and 1985 studies showed the worldwide rate of autism to be about 4 cases per 10,000. Between 1985 and 1995, the numbers tripled to 12 per 10,000. But researchers believe that the actual rate may be much higher, on the order of one in 500 children.] This article was written on April 16th, 1999. Did you notice what the last rate was? One in 500 kids were believed to have autism. NOW.... in the year 2008, the autism rate is one in 150!!! You do the math.

We are at the point where it can no longer be ignored. Something is happening to our children, our babies, our future! The kids that are diagnosed with autism will one day become adults with autism. Can you imagine the billions of dollars it will cost? We had approximately 301,139,947 people in the U.S. in 2007. If we take the rate of autism and do the math then we get approximately 2 million people who statistically have autism. That number will only go up unless something is done about it. Since money seems to talk I thought I would add that bit of information.

Now.....on a more emotional note.... I see parents everyday who struggle with life issues concerning their autistic child. Unless you have walked in those shoes there is no way you can know. Not only is it financially draining (all the tests, trips to doctors, medicine, special services, etc....), but it is also emotionally draining. The rate of divorce is very high among the Autism community. It can lead to depression and feelings of inadequacy. There is also the social stigma that is attached to it. Since these children typically look like other children it is hard for others to know. It's not until the children are much older that usually the signs are more obvious. Therefore, parents have to deal with the comments and unsolicited advice while the kids are very young.

There is a general ignorance among the medical community on how to handle children with autism. They don't offer any hope or help in treatment. Most parents feel like they have to resort to websites, books, or other parents for help. The danger with this is that there are people out there who will prey on parents who are so desperately seeking help. I have found numerous websites that have financial gain as their primary motive. They are either selling services or products. PLEASE BEWARE of these sites! There are actually "treatments" that can hurt your child. If you are lucky to find a doctor like Dr. Corbier who has done his research and is willing to combine alternative medicine with Western Medicine, then you can always get ideas validated.

The CDC may argue that enough research has been done to rule out vaccines as a cause or "trigger" for autism.... I have to disagree. There is not enough evidence to say that vaccines are NOT the cause or "trigger", and I think that the public deserves the right to know. Since vaccines are mandated and in some places children cannot attend school unless vaccinated, that basically voids some of our basic rights as Americans. I have already posted my feelings on vaccines and so I won't waste your time repeating myself.

This is a list of all the tests the CDC has done on vaccines as it pertains to PDD or Autism: http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/documents/vaccine_studies.pdf
At first glance, one might think that they have actually done a good job in trying to figure out if there is a link. The first test: "Denmark MMR/Autism Study" says that they followed 500,000 kids for 7 years! Wow!! That sounds so impressive, right? Well....here is what they failed to tell you and the proof to show you how the CDC will do whatever it takes to make data fit their needs: [while the study methodology appears to be good, and there is much to learn from the informative findings, there are some significant shortcomings in the conclusions drawn and the study results raise more questions than they answer and underscore the importance for more research. For example, one of the most concerning omissions of the study was their failure to consider the absence of Thimerosal in the other infant vaccines the children of the Danish study received prior to getting their MMR vaccine.
Although she did not include it in her article, the reporter from the Dallas Morning News who interviewed me ...was able to confirm that the mercury based preservative under so much legal fire for triggering autism was removed from vaccines on the market in Denmark prior to the birthdates of the children studied. American children on the other hand, have potential cumulative mercury exposures at sometimes neurotoxic levels from prenatal exposures including maternal vaccination and immune globulin preparations, environmental pollution and infant vaccinations which create a significantly different set of circumstances when the MMR vaccine, which does not contain mercury, is administered.] (Taken from online resources.)

In other words, all they did was study the MMR vaccine as the single factor or "trigger" in causing autism. Even then, the study was flawed because: [They have not satisfied the question of the MMR vaccine's potential role as a trigger amidst other environmental factors including previously administered mercury containing vaccines that have been given to children outside of their population. It is entirely possible, but not yet studied by the CDC, that a child's immune response, inhibited by the elevated mercury levels from thimerosal-containing vaccinations, has less ability to respond to the measles virus in the MMR vaccine. This might be an explanation for the presence of measles virus cultured from the brains and guts of 80 percent of autistic children. ]

In case you don't want to take MY word for it.... Here it is from the horse's mouth themselves... the CDC in a March 29, 2008 interview (you can even see videos):
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-kirby/can-vaccines-cause-autism_b_94040.html

They admit that they haven't been able to rule out the possibility of causation. They say, "We just don't know...." That sounds promising. As long as they realize that there is a possibility then perhaps we have a chance of finding out for sure. The biggest problem with this issue is that there are soooo many factors involved. There is the genetic component to it. There is also the environment. How can they do a valid scientific study unless they look at all of it? They can't.

The biggest issue I have is that they still don't think of autism as an epidemic. They still don't want to admit that there are numerous examples of children who are born healthy and "normal" and then regress. There are also numerous examples of children who RECOVER!! How can that be? If autism is just a matter of genetics then how can a child recover? That would not make sense. They also don't want to look at the independent studies that are being done. There are toooooo many conflict of interests in the government-based studies. There are billions of dollars at stake. How can they be unbiased? They can't!!!

I promise you that there will definitely be more posts on this subject to come. I need to do a little more organizing of thoughts and research to validate some of my theories and findings. I have done almost three years of research and I have some very interesting theories to propose. I feel a little bit of hope in that it is only a matter of time before the medical community has to admit that they were wrong. My only concern is that in the meantime children will have to suffer in the hands of those who have sworn and made an oath to protect them.
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'Tis a lesson you should heed,
Try, try again.
If at first you don't succeed,
Try...try again. ~Thomas H. Palmer
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