A new report from Peter McCullough’s Foundation claims that autism is linked to many genetic, medical, and environmental factors, and that vaccines may play a major role by upending a child’s immune system through too many immunizations.

In 1998, Andrew Wakefield held a press conference about his research paper, which claimed vaccines might cause autism. That paper was later proven to be fraudulent and retracted (withdrawn). At the time, scientists knew less about autism than they do now. Today, studies show that autism is mostly caused by genetics and starts very early, even before a baby is born. The brain differences seen in people with autism begin during early development in the womb, not because of vaccines or anything that happens later.

Many large-scale studies from trusted health groups like the CDC and WHO have shown again and again that vaccines do not cause autism. One big study from Denmark looked at more than 650,000 children born between 1999 and 2010 to see if the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine was linked to autism. The researchers followed these children for years and found about 6,500 with autism. Children who got the MMR shot were no more likely to have autism than those who didn’t. Another meta-analysis looked at data from over 1.2 million children and also found no connection. These are strong studies showing vaccines don’t cause autism.

The McCullough report claims that when a child gets too many vaccines, it can overwhelm their immune system. The report claims this stress on the body’s cells, called “mitochondrial stress,” causes autism. But science doesn’t back this up. There’s no evidence that the germs (called antigens) a baby’s body fights every day or the small number of antigens in vaccines hurt the immune system in any way.

In fact, the number of antigens in vaccines has gone down over the years, even while autism rates have gone up. That means vaccines aren’t the cause. And even though “mitochondrial stress” is a popular phrase right now, experts from Science Feedback explain that there’s no proof that vaccines trigger autism, even in people with mitochondrial disorders. They explain that infections, not vaccines, are the real danger for these children. Vaccines actually protect them by preventing fevers and other problems that could lead to brain injury.

So why do some people still believe vaccines are to blame? Often it’s because they don’t want to accept the evidence. When one idea is proven wrong, they move on to a new one, like saying “too many vaccines cause autism” or blaming another vaccine. This cycle keeps going, even though the science is clear. Instead of wasting money on disproven ideas, we should use it to find better ways to support and help autistic people.

In an interview on Mike Rowe’s YouTube show, criminologist Gavin de Becker claims that vaccines are unsafe because they can spread through the body, harm the heart and brain, contain dangerous chemicals like mercury, and don’t really stop diseases.

Gavin de Becker starts off his interview talking about trusting experts, but yet draws the line when it comes to vaccines. He believes vaccines harm the body, contain dangerous ingredients, and don’t stop diseases.

Polio was wiped out in the United States is mostly because of vaccines. In the 1950s, scientists made the first polio vaccine, which was a huge step forward in medicine. These vaccines worked very well to stop the spread of polio. They helped kids live normal lives again and gave parents peace of mind. Before the measles vaccine, nearly every child got it before the age of 15. Since the measles vaccination, even a single case is national news.

Lately, aluminum and mercury in vaccines have been hot button issues. Aluminum is sometimes added to vaccines as an adjuvant, to help the body’s immune system respond better. This means children need fewer doses to get full protection. Research has shown over and over that the tiny amount of aluminum in vaccines is far below levels that could be harmful. Our bodies already handle small amounts of aluminum because it’s naturally found in food, water, and even some medicines.

Most of the aluminum from vaccines leaves the body quickly through the kidneys. One study published in Vaccine found that the amount in vaccines is much smaller than what people take in every day from food and the environment. The small amount that stays in the body for a short time does not build up to dangerous levels. Vaccines save millions of lives every year, and their benefits are much greater than the very small and disproven risks sometimes claimed.

We also know a lot about thimerosal. Thimerosal, a mercury compound used in some flu vaccines today, has caused concern due to its name being confused with a harmful type of mercury. Thimerosal contains ethylmercury, which is safe and quickly leaves the body. It’s different from harmful methylmercury found in some fish. Thimerosal has been used safely in vaccines, drugs, and contact solutions since the 1930s.

Studies on babies, including those preterm and low-weight babies, show that ethylmercury leaves the body quickly. About half of it is gone in three to seven days, and the rest is flushed out in the baby’s stool. Within a month after getting a vaccine, mercury levels in the blood return to normal, so it does not accumulate over time.

Studies also show that thimerosal does not increase the risk of autism and does not harm the brain or body. Additionally, thimerosal has not been used in childhood vaccines since 2001. Autism diagnoses continued to rise following the 2001 removal of thimerosal from all childhood vaccines. The continued rise of autism diagnoses is, in fact, mostly due to growing awareness and changing diagnostic criteria.

Dr. Paul Thomas’ claims that vaccines are more dangerous than the diseases they prevent are again going around.

The post lists death rates for different diseases and the vaccines that prevent them. It says the risk of dying from polio is “1 in 1 trillion,” which sounds right today but leaves out an important detail. The reason the risk is so low is that almost everyone gets vaccinated. If someone actually catches polio, about 1 in 200 people become paralyzed, and 5 to 10 percent of those people die.

Even though polio is almost gone, we still give the polio vaccine. That’s because diseases can travel fast. For example, in 2022, there was a polio outbreak in New York, showing that the virus can return if people aren’t protected.

The numbers about vaccine dangers probably come from VAERS, but that’s not solid proof that vaccines are unsafe. VAERS is a public system where anyone can report a side effect, and the CDC only stores the information. It doesn’t check if each report is true. The VAERS website even says that some reports might be wrong, incomplete, or not caused by the vaccine at all. That’s why scientists have to study the data carefully before deciding if a vaccine actually caused a problem.