Does the MMR Vaccine Cause Autism?
The MMR vaccine (officially known as M-M-R
® II) is used to prevent
measles,
mumps, and
rubella. Despite evidence to the contrary, many parents believe that there is a strong link between
autism and the MMR vaccine.
The Wakefield Study
One small study published in 1998 sparked the entire debate about the possibility of the link between the MMR vaccine and autism. This study involved only 12 children (far too few to make any meaningful generalizations about the
causes of autism). In this study, the researchers suggested that the MMR vaccine caused bowel problems, which then led to autism.
The study has been criticized for many different reasons, and 10 out of the 13 original authors have formally retracted the study's interpretation that there is a link between the vaccine and autism.
However, the Wakefield study provided something that so many parents and healthcare providers were desperately searching for -- a possible cause for autism. Best of all, this was a preventable and controllable cause.
Further Research on Autism and MMR
As with any scientific hypothesis, the possible link between the MMR vaccine and autism needed much more scientific evidence (in the form of larger and better designed studies) before it could be rejected or supported. Several studies were undertaken; this was a relatively easy hypothesis to study, and there were several different ways to study it.
Overwhelmingly, the larger studies suggested that there was no link between autism and the MMR vaccine. Over the years, even more data has been collected and even larger studies have been done. The bulk of the evidence suggests that the MMR vaccine does not cause autism.
