MMR

March 22, 1999

In a message dated 3/22/99 12:11:26 AM, you wrote:

<<

Kim Pucka, mother of a mmr/dpt injured child (and my child's injury was mild

to the many I have met)

PS Vaccine injuries are not rare, and when it happens to your family your

attitude will change. I would much rather lose 3-5 days caring for a sick

child that has the measles than to have to pay for medical/education/respite

for the rest of his life because he had a severe reaction to the MMR.

Thank you for listening. >>

Kim or anyone else who can help,

My sister-in-law just went to the doctor for her 8 month olds checkup. It was

his first, actually. He's been healthy and she has just not taken him in yet.

She does want vaccinations for him, but has listened to my plea on the MMR: if

she's going to get it, at least get it as seperate shots. When she told her

doctor that that was her plan, he of course got rather belligerent, told her

that was a bunch of nonsense and besides, there is no way to get the shots

seperately!

Has anyone had experience getting the MMR as seperate shots? I know it's not

impossible and her doctor was probably correct when he said they order it in

bulk but I know he was misleading her when he said that that is the only way

it's manufactured! I just don't want her to fold under the pressure - I'd

rather see her forgo the whole thing, but if she will at least persue the MMR

as seperate shots, I know I'll feel better... My daughter has autism, my

sister-in-law herself is gluten/casein intolerant and other family members

have autistic spectrum disorders (ADD, etc) and digestive problems. Our family

has red flags all over the place for the MMR problems!

Thanks!

Abby

March 22, 1999

The doctor's office may not have them in any other form, but I would check

with her local health department. I bet they have them separately. Hope this

helps.

Alice Clinton

March 22, 1999

My pharmacist told me that yes, the vaccines are available separately, but that

the pediatrician needs to put in the order for them. Unfortunately, it doesn't

sound like the ped your sister-in-law is with will be willing to do this. Start

with the pharmacists in your area. If she gets all of the information for him,

and

just hands it to him to sign then he might be more willing. It will also show

him

that she is determined. If it is a clinic that she takes the baby to there might

be another ped or general practitioner that will be more open to her request.

Hope this helps!

Tammy

Abbylt@... wrote:

> From: Abbylt@...

>

> In a message dated 3/22/99 12:11:26 AM, you wrote:

>

> <<

>

> Kim Pucka, mother of a mmr/dpt injured child (and my child's injury was mild

> to the many I have met)

>

> PS Vaccine injuries are not rare, and when it happens to your family your

> attitude will change. I would much rather lose 3-5 days caring for a sick

> child that has the measles than to have to pay for medical/education/respite

> for the rest of his life because he had a severe reaction to the MMR.

>

> Thank you for listening. >>

>

> Kim or anyone else who can help,

> My sister-in-law just went to the doctor for her 8 month olds checkup. It was

> his first, actually. He's been healthy and she has just not taken him in yet.

> She does want vaccinations for him, but has listened to my plea on the MMR: if

> she's going to get it, at least get it as seperate shots. When she told her

> doctor that that was her plan, he of course got rather belligerent, told her

> that was a bunch of nonsense and besides, there is no way to get the shots

> seperately!

> Has anyone had experience getting the MMR as seperate shots? I know it's not

> impossible and her doctor was probably correct when he said they order it in

> bulk but I know he was misleading her when he said that that is the only way

> it's manufactured! I just don't want her to fold under the pressure - I'd

> rather see her forgo the whole thing, but if she will at least persue the MMR

> as seperate shots, I know I'll feel better... My daughter has autism, my

> sister-in-law herself is gluten/casein intolerant and other family members

> have autistic spectrum disorders (ADD, etc) and digestive problems. Our family

> has red flags all over the place for the MMR problems!

> Thanks!

> Abby

>

> ------------------------------------------------------------------------

>

March 22, 1999

I don't understand why anyone would vaccinate against measles, mumps and

rubella. Makes no sense to me.

all three of these diseases are milder in childhood than adulthood. If you

vaccinate your child when young, the vaccine will wear off anywhere from 2 -10

years later and your older child will be vulnerable to these diseases when they

are more dangerous.

I just can't see the logic. If you are prepared to vaccinate against MMR for the

rest of the child's life, perhaps there is some logic....but why only when

young?

Sebastiana

>

>Kim or anyone else who can help,

>My sister-in-law just went to the doctor for her 8 month olds checkup. It was

>his first, actually. He's been healthy and she has just not taken him in yet.

>She does want vaccinations for him, but has listened to my plea on the MMR: if

>she's going to get it, at least get it as seperate shots. When she told her

>doctor that that was her plan, he of course got rather belligerent, told her

>that was a bunch of nonsense and besides, there is no way to get the shots

>seperately!

>Has anyone had experience getting the MMR as seperate shots? I know it's not

>impossible and her doctor was probably correct when he said they order it in

>bulk but I know he was misleading her when he said that that is the only way

>it's manufactured! I just don't want her to fold under the pressure - I'd

>rather see her forgo the whole thing, but if she will at least persue the MMR

>as seperate shots, I know I'll feel better... My daughter has autism, my

>sister-in-law herself is gluten/casein intolerant and other family members

>have autistic spectrum disorders (ADD, etc) and digestive problems. Our family

>has red flags all over the place for the MMR problems!

>Thanks!

>Abby

>

>------------------------------------------------------------------------

>

March 22, 1999

hi sebastiana,

my name is jacki and i have three children. my third was severely injured by

his dtp vaccines. i read your e-mail to kim and i was wondering if your

daughters autism was a result of a vaccine. i just started the

vaccineinjuriesonelist list and hope to contact as many victims as

possible. sharing therapy results and doctor conficts, etc could save us all

alot of time and heartache. i know our experience has been an emotional

rollercoaster with many happy moments and others that are crippling. please

e-mail me and let me know your situation.

thanks, jacki

ps-nice to meet you!

Re: MMR

>From: Sebastiana <pienaar@...>

>

>I don't understand why anyone would vaccinate against measles, mumps and

rubella. Makes no sense to me.

>

>all three of these diseases are milder in childhood than adulthood. If you

vaccinate your child when young, the vaccine will wear off anywhere from

2 -10 years later and your older child will be vulnerable to these diseases

when they are more dangerous.

>

>I just can't see the logic. If you are prepared to vaccinate against MMR

for the rest of the child's life, perhaps there is some logic....but why

only when young?

>

>Sebastiana

>

>>

>>Kim or anyone else who can help,

>>My sister-in-law just went to the doctor for her 8 month olds checkup. It

was

>>his first, actually. He's been healthy and she has just not taken him in

yet.

>>She does want vaccinations for him, but has listened to my plea on the

MMR: if

>>she's going to get it, at least get it as seperate shots. When she told

her

>>doctor that that was her plan, he of course got rather belligerent, told

her

>>that was a bunch of nonsense and besides, there is no way to get the shots

>>seperately!

>>Has anyone had experience getting the MMR as seperate shots? I know it's

not

>>impossible and her doctor was probably correct when he said they order it

in

>>bulk but I know he was misleading her when he said that that is the only

way

>>it's manufactured! I just don't want her to fold under the pressure - I'd

>>rather see her forgo the whole thing, but if she will at least persue the

MMR

>>as seperate shots, I know I'll feel better... My daughter has autism, my

>>sister-in-law herself is gluten/casein intolerant and other family members

>>have autistic spectrum disorders (ADD, etc) and digestive problems. Our

family

>>has red flags all over the place for the MMR problems!

>>Thanks!

>>Abby

>>

>>------------------------------------------------------------------------

>>

September 18, 1999

http://www.whale.to/Vaccines/asthma.html

I know one kid who developed severe asthma (hospital visits) after MMR

MMR

Does anyone know if the MMR shot could be the reason my asthma is so

terrible?

I stupidly went in and got a booster of MMR 10 years ago when I found out a

kid in my daycare class I taught was not vaccinated. There was an outbreak of

measles in the state at the time and they were warning us to get a booster if

your shot was x amount of years old. (I didn't know that you could get your

blood tested for immunity) The army (my hubby was in the army) was more than

willing to shoot me up with anything.

Ever since, my asthma has been triple worse. I see a conection. My husband

also developed asthma after all the injections he got.

January 11, 2000

> For what it's worth, I was immunized and got the

> measles, and mumps too.

>

What are the statistics for this? Does anyone have this all laid out? I

know when there's a measles outbreak that the vaccinated have just as good a

chance as the unvax to get it but what are the statistics? My parents

decided to go on the offensive by trying to send me links saying " Please

give the contents of this site some serious thought. Very little, if

anything, in life is foolproof, but I think you are taking dangerous risks

to prevent more minimal risks. "

They don't know what they just got themselves into! .

January 11, 2000

For what it's worth, I was immunized and got the

measles, and mumps too.

Sue

__________________________________________________

January 12, 2000

For what it's worth, I was never vaccinated with MMR and had measles, mumps and

rubella with no worries at all. My mother didn't blink twice ;-)

Seb.

At 06:58 PM 01/11/2000 -0800, you wrote:

>From: Sue <malibusue_98@...>

>

>For what it's worth, I was immunized and got the

>measles, and mumps too.

>

>Sue

>_

March 19, 2000

In a message dated 3/19/2000 5:00:27 PM Central Standard Time,

ruth@... writes:

<< Could someone give me some information please on whether a child/baby, can

catch mumps, rubella or measles from a child recently vaccinated with the

MMR vaccination? >>

I can tell you that they can contract at least the measles. My kids did.

I'm not sure about mumps & rubella. I believe this is where my kids got

mumps as well. But any live vaccine will make the recipient contagious for

up to 6 weeks post shot. If you have an infant or older person around kids,

you need to let the person in charge know that you want to be notified if a

recently vacinated child will be around them. That way you cn decide if you

want the exposed (and for these two groups, that is the very young and very

old, I would say you DON'T want them exposed.)

March 19, 2000

Could someone give me some information please on whether a child/baby, can

catch mumps, rubella or measles from a child recently vaccinated with the

MMR vaccination?

Any info is greatly appreciated,

Thanks,

Ruth Acaster

May 28, 2000

What about the MMR and diabetes? Your sentence about how the MMR works

furthers my theory that the MMR destroyed my daughters pancreas and her

ability to produce insulin. The MMR works " by stimulating the immune system

to produce antibodies against the viruses

>without causing harm. " Well, my daughters immune system attacked her and

>now she has diabetes.

Any info on my theory??!

Thanx,

LOrna

>From: " " <whale@...>

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>Subject: Re: MMR

>Date: Sun, 28 May 2000 22:07:32 +0100

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> MMR

>

> > Hi All,

> > My sister has a child who appears to be mildly autistic. He is 4 years

>old

> > and goes to a special preschool. He also goes to a psychologist. She

> > vaccinates her children, but she is concerned about the thimerosal in

> > vaccines, and the MMR-Autism connection. Her son is " due " for his

>booster

> > shots before he starts school in the fall. She was wondering if there

>is

>a

> > connection between Autism and the MMR only or if there is also a

>connection

> > between Autism and just the Measles vaccine by itself. She is thinking

>about

> > splitting the vaccine up into three different shots. It is pointless to

>try

> > to talk her out of it as she has already made up her mind to vaccinate.

> > Thanks.

> >

>

>Dr Rimland

>http://www.house.gov/reform/hearings/healthcare/00.06.04/rimland.htm

>Lynn Redwood http://tlredwood.home.mindspring.com/

>

>If autism is from the mercury you may get more mercury in 3 shots.

>

>This is what a GP found out:

>

>As a GP I gave kids the MMR jab. Now I wouldn't give it to my own.

>

>The triple vaccine routinely given to children to prevent measles, mumps

>and

>rubella has been controversially linked to autism-like symptoms. We asked

>Dr

> Halvorsen to investigate. (Sunday Express Magazine 21 May 2000)

>

>Childhood immunisations, I had always assumed, were safe. The Department

>of

>Health (DOH) has repeatedly reassured us that their benefits are far

>greater

>than the risks and, as a GP, I have been responsible for the immunisation

>of

>many hundreds of children. So, when I was asked by the Sunday Express

>Magazine to write about the MMR vaccine, I expected to be able to reassure

>readers that the vaccine was of clear benefit and that side-effects were

>either not serious or extremely rare. My research unearthed a different

>story that makes for disturbing reading.

>

>The MMR immunisation was introduced in the UK in 1988 with the first dose

>aimed at children of 12-15 months, a second at 3-5 years. It is designed to

>protect against measles, mumps and rubella (German Measles) and works by

>stimulating the immune system to produce antibodies against the viruses

>without causing harm. It was well received by both parents and doctors so

>that over 90 per cent of children were being immunised by 1992.

>

>Most children received the vaccine with no obvious serious side-effects but

>it grew increasingly apparent that some became seriously ill within a few

>weeks. These children began behaving strangely, stopped talking and became

>socially withdrawn, staring into space for hours on end. Many developed a

>raging thirst, bizarre eating habits, multiple food allergies,

>hyperactivity

>and sleep problems. This was usually accompanied by abdominal pain,

>bloating

>and bowel disturbances, and some became incontinent of urine or faeces.

>They

>did not simply fail to develop but lost what they already had. Now, we all

>know coincidences happen, but here are thousands of children who had all

>developed normally until receiving the vaccine, after which they became

>very

>unwell in a remarkably similar pattern. The behaviour these children showed

>was similar to autism, but differed in that they were previously developing

>normally and then lost the skills that they had developed, such as speech

>and play, a condition called " autistic regression " .

>

>Most of the parents felt sure that the cause of these devastating changes

>in

>their children was the MMR vaccine, but if they mentioned this concern to

>their doctors it always met with dismissive reassurance that it must have

>been a coincidence because the MMR was safe. One doctor, instead of

>dismissing the possibility of a relationship with the MMR vaccine, listened

>to the worried parents and studied some of the affected children. Dr

>Wakefield, from the Royal Free Hospital in north London, published a paper

>in February 1998 in the medical journal The Lancet suggesting that the MMR

>vaccine could be the cause of the children's autism and bowel disturbances,

>which he calls " autistic enterocolitis " . Dr Wakefield was vociferously

>attacked for causing unnecessary worry in parents and the MMR vaccine was

>vigorously defended as being " highly safe and effective " .

>

>The Chief Medical Officer, Sir Calman, felt confident enough to

>say,

> " I have concluded there is no link between MMR immunisation and autism. "

>

>Questioned in Parliament in 1997 on the possible link between MMR and

>autism, then health minister Tessa Jowell reassured MPs that: " No vaccine

>is

>issued in the United Kingdom unless it passes the highest standards for

>quality, and parents should have confidence that the vaccines that are

>provided are both safe and efficacious. "

>

>But I was concerned to find that the safety trials on the MMR followed

>children up for only three weeks. This could not possibly detect

>side-effects that appeared after three weeks. This is alarming for a

>vaccine

>aimed at millions of healthy children.

>

>In 1999, two studies appeared that the Department of Health claims

> " reinforce the conclusion that there is no link " between MMR and autism.

>The

>first, by the Committee on the Safety of Medicines, involved examining

>questionnaires sent to the parents who had suspected MMR as a cause for

>their child's autism - 1200 questionnaires were distributed and 126

>examined

>in detail. The study concluded: " It is impossible to prove or refute the

>suggested associations between MMR vaccine and autism " - hardly convincing

>reassurance.

>

>It is hard to obtain precise figures for the number of children affected

>with autism because the government does not keep records. But the second

>study cited by the DOH looked at one area - north London -and found an

>alarming increase in autism there. The incidence was running steadily at

>between four and eight of the children born there each year between 1978

>and

>1985. Then came a dramatic increase to just under 50 of the children born

>in

>1992, the last year studied by Professor Brent and colleagues at

>University College London. Curiously, however, they concluded: " Our

>analyses

>do not support a causal association between MMR vaccine and autism. "

>

>To others, including myself, the research figures actually support the link

>between MMR and autism. What has not been adequately explained is the

>recent

>massive increase in autism. However, the start of this increase can be

>traced back to children who were born in the mid 1980s in Britain and the

>1970s in the United Sates. These were the first children to receive the MMR

>vaccine. In California the incidence of autism was running at 150-200 a

>year

>until 1980, then it took off to reach nearly 600 in 1990.

>

>In the UK some local authorities have measured the rate of autism and have

>again found very high numbers. However, the Government still has no plans

>to

>monitor the number of children with autism. The lack of willingness of the

>Government and the medical profession to accept that a problem could exist

>smacks of complacency at best, and negligence at worst. Not all governments

>hold the same view. In Japan, MMR was withdrawn in 1993 because of an

>unacceptably high level of side-effects.

>

>The evidence against MMR is now mounting. Dr Wakefield has studied more

>children with " autistic enterocolitis " . His research suggests that the MMR

>vaccine can cause an abnormal immune reaction which, in susceptible

>children, causes the child's immune system to damage the child's gut,

>allowing it to absorb chemicals that may attack the brain. This is an

>auto-immune reaction and it may be no coincidence that some research has

>linked other auto-immune diseases, such as diabetes, with immunisation.

>

>It is looking more and more likely that recent increases in the numbers of

>children with autistic regression and other developmental disorders may be

>triggered, or caused, by the MMR vaccine. The illnesses the vaccine is

>designed to prevent can themselves cause damage, but the use of MMR in this

>country may be doing more harm than good. Parents from the UK, mainland

>Europe, Australia, the US~ Canada or Asia are all telling the same story.

>

>The parents of over 2,000 children are planning to take their cases to

>court. It has been suggested that parents are using the MMR vaccine as a

> " scapegoat " in a desperate attempt to explain their child's autism. This

>strikes me as an insensitive and flawed suggestion: the last thing parents

>want to believe is that their child's devastating problems were caused by

>something they inflicted on the child themselves. The Government gives the

>impression of not wanting to know and appears to be more concerned with

>preserving public confidence than in investigating these children. On 10

>April this year Professor Liam son, Chief Medical Officer, sent a

>letter to every GP in the country in which he repeats that " there is no new

>evidence that indicates a causal link between MMR vaccine and autism " .

>

>The Hippocratic principle is that doctors should " first do no harm " . At the

>very least parents must be told of the concerns surrounding the MMR

>vaccine.

>Doctors should obtain " informed consent " when offering any medical

>intervention, especially when the " patient " is not ill to start with. That

>means discussing the risks as well as the benefits. If the MMR vaccine were

>a drug, it would be suspended until proper trials had been done to examine

>its safety. Based on what I now know, I would not give my children the

>combined MMR vaccine. I would consider either using the vaccines singly

>(not

>available in this country but possible in mainland Europe) or not

>vaccinating at all. It may be safer for healthy children to catch these

>illnesses rather than run the risk of immunisation. It's important that

>girls have either had rubella or are immunised before pregnancy .

>

> >

> > ------------------------------------------------------------------------

> > Find out your allergy risks online!

> > Get a $10 discount at eNutrition just for trying it.

> > And a chance to win a desert Spa Getaway.

> > Click Here:

> > 1/4575/7/_/489317/_/959546275/

> > ------------------------------------------------------------------------

> >

>

________________________________________________________________________

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May 28, 2000

MMR

> Hi All,

> My sister has a child who appears to be mildly autistic. He is 4 years

old

> and goes to a special preschool. He also goes to a psychologist. She

> vaccinates her children, but she is concerned about the thimerosal in

> vaccines, and the MMR-Autism connection. Her son is " due " for his booster

> shots before he starts school in the fall. She was wondering if there is

a

> connection between Autism and the MMR only or if there is also a

connection

> between Autism and just the Measles vaccine by itself. She is thinking

about

> splitting the vaccine up into three different shots. It is pointless to

try

> to talk her out of it as she has already made up her mind to vaccinate.

> Thanks.

>

Dr Rimland

http://www.house.gov/reform/hearings/healthcare/00.06.04/rimland.htm

Lynn Redwood http://tlredwood.home.mindspring.com/

If autism is from the mercury you may get more mercury in 3 shots.

This is what a GP found out:

As a GP I gave kids the MMR jab. Now I wouldn't give it to my own.

The triple vaccine routinely given to children to prevent measles, mumps and

rubella has been controversially linked to autism-like symptoms. We asked Dr

Halvorsen to investigate. (Sunday Express Magazine 21 May 2000)

Childhood immunisations, I had always assumed, were safe. The Department of

Health (DOH) has repeatedly reassured us that their benefits are far greater

than the risks and, as a GP, I have been responsible for the immunisation of

many hundreds of children. So, when I was asked by the Sunday Express

Magazine to write about the MMR vaccine, I expected to be able to reassure

readers that the vaccine was of clear benefit and that side-effects were

either not serious or extremely rare. My research unearthed a different

story that makes for disturbing reading.

The MMR immunisation was introduced in the UK in 1988 with the first dose

aimed at children of 12-15 months, a second at 3-5 years. It is designed to

protect against measles, mumps and rubella (German Measles) and works by

stimulating the immune system to produce antibodies against the viruses

without causing harm. It was well received by both parents and doctors so

that over 90 per cent of children were being immunised by 1992.

Most children received the vaccine with no obvious serious side-effects but

it grew increasingly apparent that some became seriously ill within a few

weeks. These children began behaving strangely, stopped talking and became

socially withdrawn, staring into space for hours on end. Many developed a

raging thirst, bizarre eating habits, multiple food allergies, hyperactivity

and sleep problems. This was usually accompanied by abdominal pain, bloating

and bowel disturbances, and some became incontinent of urine or faeces. They

did not simply fail to develop but lost what they already had. Now, we all

know coincidences happen, but here are thousands of children who had all

developed normally until receiving the vaccine, after which they became very

unwell in a remarkably similar pattern. The behaviour these children showed

was similar to autism, but differed in that they were previously developing

normally and then lost the skills that they had developed, such as speech

and play, a condition called " autistic regression " .

Most of the parents felt sure that the cause of these devastating changes in

their children was the MMR vaccine, but if they mentioned this concern to

their doctors it always met with dismissive reassurance that it must have

been a coincidence because the MMR was safe. One doctor, instead of

dismissing the possibility of a relationship with the MMR vaccine, listened

to the worried parents and studied some of the affected children. Dr

Wakefield, from the Royal Free Hospital in north London, published a paper

in February 1998 in the medical journal The Lancet suggesting that the MMR

vaccine could be the cause of the children's autism and bowel disturbances,

which he calls " autistic enterocolitis " . Dr Wakefield was vociferously

attacked for causing unnecessary worry in parents and the MMR vaccine was

vigorously defended as being " highly safe and effective " .

The Chief Medical Officer, Sir Calman, felt confident enough to say,

" I have concluded there is no link between MMR immunisation and autism. "

Questioned in Parliament in 1997 on the possible link between MMR and

autism, then health minister Tessa Jowell reassured MPs that: " No vaccine is

issued in the United Kingdom unless it passes the highest standards for

quality, and parents should have confidence that the vaccines that are

provided are both safe and efficacious. "

But I was concerned to find that the safety trials on the MMR followed

children up for only three weeks. This could not possibly detect

side-effects that appeared after three weeks. This is alarming for a vaccine

aimed at millions of healthy children.

In 1999, two studies appeared that the Department of Health claims

" reinforce the conclusion that there is no link " between MMR and autism. The

first, by the Committee on the Safety of Medicines, involved examining

questionnaires sent to the parents who had suspected MMR as a cause for

their child's autism - 1200 questionnaires were distributed and 126 examined

in detail. The study concluded: " It is impossible to prove or refute the

suggested associations between MMR vaccine and autism " - hardly convincing

reassurance.

It is hard to obtain precise figures for the number of children affected

with autism because the government does not keep records. But the second

study cited by the DOH looked at one area - north London -and found an

alarming increase in autism there. The incidence was running steadily at

between four and eight of the children born there each year between 1978 and

1985. Then came a dramatic increase to just under 50 of the children born in

1992, the last year studied by Professor Brent and colleagues at

University College London. Curiously, however, they concluded: " Our analyses

do not support a causal association between MMR vaccine and autism. "

To others, including myself, the research figures actually support the link

between MMR and autism. What has not been adequately explained is the recent

massive increase in autism. However, the start of this increase can be

traced back to children who were born in the mid 1980s in Britain and the

1970s in the United Sates. These were the first children to receive the MMR

vaccine. In California the incidence of autism was running at 150-200 a year

until 1980, then it took off to reach nearly 600 in 1990.

In the UK some local authorities have measured the rate of autism and have

again found very high numbers. However, the Government still has no plans to

monitor the number of children with autism. The lack of willingness of the

Government and the medical profession to accept that a problem could exist

smacks of complacency at best, and negligence at worst. Not all governments

hold the same view. In Japan, MMR was withdrawn in 1993 because of an

unacceptably high level of side-effects.

The evidence against MMR is now mounting. Dr Wakefield has studied more

children with " autistic enterocolitis " . His research suggests that the MMR

vaccine can cause an abnormal immune reaction which, in susceptible

children, causes the child's immune system to damage the child's gut,

allowing it to absorb chemicals that may attack the brain. This is an

auto-immune reaction and it may be no coincidence that some research has

linked other auto-immune diseases, such as diabetes, with immunisation.

It is looking more and more likely that recent increases in the numbers of

children with autistic regression and other developmental disorders may be

triggered, or caused, by the MMR vaccine. The illnesses the vaccine is

designed to prevent can themselves cause damage, but the use of MMR in this

country may be doing more harm than good. Parents from the UK, mainland

Europe, Australia, the US~ Canada or Asia are all telling the same story.

The parents of over 2,000 children are planning to take their cases to

court. It has been suggested that parents are using the MMR vaccine as a

" scapegoat " in a desperate attempt to explain their child's autism. This

strikes me as an insensitive and flawed suggestion: the last thing parents

want to believe is that their child's devastating problems were caused by

something they inflicted on the child themselves. The Government gives the

impression of not wanting to know and appears to be more concerned with

preserving public confidence than in investigating these children. On 10

April this year Professor Liam son, Chief Medical Officer, sent a

letter to every GP in the country in which he repeats that " there is no new

evidence that indicates a causal link between MMR vaccine and autism " .

The Hippocratic principle is that doctors should " first do no harm " . At the

very least parents must be told of the concerns surrounding the MMR vaccine.

Doctors should obtain " informed consent " when offering any medical

intervention, especially when the " patient " is not ill to start with. That

means discussing the risks as well as the benefits. If the MMR vaccine were

a drug, it would be suspended until proper trials had been done to examine

its safety. Based on what I now know, I would not give my children the

combined MMR vaccine. I would consider either using the vaccines singly (not

available in this country but possible in mainland Europe) or not

vaccinating at all. It may be safer for healthy children to catch these

illnesses rather than run the risk of immunisation. It's important that

girls have either had rubella or are immunised before pregnancy .

>

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May 28, 2000

In a message dated 5/28/00 4:10:09 PM Central Daylight Time,

whale@... writes: