Science finds no link between vaccination and autism

By Amy Harris

The international scientific community is united in stating that claims of a link between vaccination and autism are not based on evidence.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), “a robust, extensive evidence base exists showing childhood vaccines do not cause autism. Large, high-quality studies from many countries have all reached the same conclusion. Original studies suggesting a link were flawed and have been discredited.”

Furthermore, scientists say that vaccines are one of humankind’s most effective tools for staying healthy. They are safe for infants, children, pregnant women, and healthy people, according to science. Vaccines save lives, prevent the need for hospitalizations, and keep entire communities healthy.

Vaccines do not cause the disease they protect against. They may cause temporary minor reactions such as a mild fever or soreness at the injection site, but more severe reactions are rare. “Vaccines are one of the safest and most effective interventions we use with our patients,” said Dr. Sarah Harris, a pediatrician who has worked both in the U.S. and abroad.

Other than in an emergency such as COVID, all vaccines approved by the U.S. by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have gone through years of careful research and testing before they are available to the public. Medical organizations representing doctors and public health officials worldwide, such as the WHO and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), develop vaccine guidelines and schedules after extensive reviews of all existing medical science and research findings.

The AAP, American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), and American Academy of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommend that most people, including children, get both the flu vaccine and COVID-19 vaccine. Over time, because vaccines can become less effective, getting an updated booster vaccine may be necessary.

Emergency department physician Dr. Lara Wagner says she knows that nothing is scarier than a really sick kid. “I know how fast and how sick kids can get from a virus that a vaccine could have prevented,” she said. And she noted that in almost 20 years of practicing emergency medicine, she has never treated a child who became seriously ill as a result of getting vaccinated.

In 2006, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended screening all children at 18 and 24 months for autism at routine health check-ups. Many infants and toddlers receive multiple vaccines during this same time frame. This timing can lead parents and other caregivers to incorrectly assume that their child’s autism diagnosis is related to the vaccines they received.

Because there is so much incorrect information in the news and on social media, it is important that people talk with their healthcare providers about what they have heard about vaccines. Healthcare providers can make sure which vaccines are right for a patient as well as the timing of those vaccines.

Getting vaccinated and staying up to date with your vaccines is one of the most powerful ways to protect your health, your child’s health, and your community’s health. Pediatrician Sarah Harris advises families that in today’s world, with even fewer people vaccinating their children, vaccine-preventable diseases will return. “That is why, now more than ever, it is important to protect your children from the very real threat of these serious and even life-threatening diseases,” she said.