The Truth About Vaccines and Autism

The Truth About Vaccines and Autism: Here's What You Need to Know to Keep Your Child Healthy

Why do the rumors that vaccines cause autism persist? Experts explain the science behind the issue (12 Photos)

Cynthia Ramnarace and Erika Rasmusson Janes on Apr 20, 2012 at 12:52PM

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a Cynthia Ramnarace and Erika Rasmusson Janes on Jan 14, 2011 at 4:57PM

Numerous scientific studies have debunked the theory that vaccines cause autism, but nothing has been more shocking -- and relevant to the debate -- than the news that the original study linking the two was revealed to be "an elaborate fraud."

The originally 1998 study by Dr. Andrew Wakefield, published in the Lancet, theorized that the measles mumps rubella vaccine (MMR) triggered changes that resulted in autistic behaviors. But the British Medical Journal (BMJ)’s January 2011 issue says that Dr. Wakefield falsified the information in it -- deliberately. An editorial in BMJ states the news "should now close the door on this damaging vaccine scare." (Learn more about the news here.)

"We've already proved [Wakefield's] hypothesis was false," says pediatrician Ari Brown, M.D., spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics and the author of Baby 411 and Expecting 411. "Hopefully it will influence public opinion though, and teach parents never to base their decisions on the results of one study. Good science, like a good recipe, can be repeated with the same results."