AAP: Vaccine Safety: Examine the Evidence

Even though there has never been any reputable, science-based evidence to support a link between vaccines and autism, the antivaxxer crowd continues to pretend that isn't the case as they push retracted papers from discredited "doctors" and self-proclaimed experts, nutritionists, or 'alternative medicine gurus'.  One tactic I tend to see employed on a regular basis is the famed "link dump" where an antivaxxer will share a website or a blog page (often his or her very own blog or webpage) which lists dozens upon dozens of various studies or papers all of which they claim show vaccines are harmful, or show that vaccines cause autism, or show that vaccines are deadly etc.

So often the problem is that these studies and papers are rarely ever peer-reviewed nor are they published in reputable medical journals (or reputable non-medical journals for that matter).  Those that are peer-reviewed or published will often have little to nothing to do with vaccines, and they surely don't prove that vaccines cause autism.  Sadly, I have even seen cases where these websites and blogs contain studies that actually say the exact opposite of what antivaxxers are claiming, but they lack the ability of understanding the subject matter and simply misunderstood a line of text in the abstract.

The other aspect of these link dumps that I find so peculiar is that often times there is zero context other than a title which says "Proof that Vaccines cause Autism" or "Evidence that Vaccines are Killing Us" or some other outrageous claim.  If one cannot even offer the slightest context around the studies they are listing, does it not suggest they haven't bothered to even read them?  Or is it that they have tried to read them but found the subject matter far too complex?  Either way, I have noticed the same lists appearing on antivaxxer blogs and websites (in one occasion even the same typo in the URL of a study which tells me those copying the list didn't even bother to visit all of the sites) and thus it seems as if in some cases antivaxxers are merely sourcing other antivaxxers without bothering to vet the information.  In theory this could lead to antivaxxer A being cited by antivaxxer B who in turn is cited by antivaxxer C who is then cited by antivaxxer A who never realizes they are actually indirectly using themselves as the supporting evidence to claims they themselves originally made.

Confused yet?  I can't blame you, but keep in mind antivaxxers have also been known to create their own blogs and then cite those blogs as sources within comments as if writing something and then linking to your own words adds credibility.

So what is my point you might ask?  Well, during a recent discussion with some colleagues I commented that even though there haven't been any studies that have successfully linked vaccines to autism, there have been several peer-reviewed AND published studies that have shown no link between vaccines and autism and that these studies were widely known.  The problem it seems is that those searching for real live published science are often overwhelmed because when they do find a study they may not understand what it means or they may not understand what the conclusions of a study actually were.

So inevitably the question was asked... where is the easiest place to find these studies, and unfortunately that answer is rather complex.  You could go directly to the journals which publish the studies, you could search pubmed, or you could try browsing the websites of the CDC or the FDA, but if we are honest with ourselves we must admit most people simply don't have the time, nor the patience, to follow this path.

Wouldn't it be nice if someone (a reputable someone) would put a list together that could be shared with parents or laypersons who have an interest in the subject?  Of course blogs and websites do that sort of thing all the time, but what about an actual organization known for their healthcare advocacy or one which is composed of over 60,000 pediatricians or pediatric specialists (you know... doctors who actually specialize in children)?

If you haven't guessed, I'm referring to the American Academy of Pediatrics which has published a memo detailing around 40 of these studies.  They make occasional updates to the list as new information is published, but even more impressive is that they do an amazing job of offering context!  This means they don't just provide a list of studies or sources but rather they summarize each study as well as providing a brief overview of what the author conclusions were, thereby giving those interested a succinct way of seeing the results without necessarily needing to read through hundreds upon hundreds of pages of medical and technical material.

Of course the list is geared towards parents, but I've found myself referring to it on many occasions and I can state in no uncertain terms that it is a useful list for anyone interested in vaccine safety up to an including pediatricians, researchers, and educators.  Thus, if you ever find yourself wondering if there is a nice package detailing the science behind vaccines... this might be right up your alley.  Click the link below, read the summaries and conclusions, dive into the studies themselves, and make up your own mind.  That isn't so hard is it?

Vaccine Safety: Examine the Evidence