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Subscribe to RSSThere’s long been a prominent debate in the autism community over vaccines and whether they cause the disorder. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found no evidence to support that fear. And diseases long thought to be wiped out in the U.S., like measles, for example, have made a comeback because of parents who have refused to inoculate their children.
This morning, as reported earlier, Michele Bachmann went even further, lending credence to a notion that Gardasil -- used in vaccines to prevent HPV, which can cause cervical cancer -- can cause mental retardation.
“I had a mother last night come up to me here in Tampa, Florida, after the debate,” Bachmann said. “She told me that her little daughter took that vaccine, that injection, and she suffered from mental retardation thereafter.”
Bachmann was using this in an attack on Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who had signed an executive order mandating that girls get the vaccine. And there are certainly questions over why Perry signed the order. His former chief of staff Mike Toomey, as the Washington Post points out, "was working at the time as an Austin-based lobbyist for Merck, which was in the midst of a multimillion-dollar campaign to persuade states to make the vaccine mandatory."
But there’s no evidence to suggest the vaccine causes mental retardation.
The CDC directed First Read to the side effects page for Gardasil. They include pain, redness, or swelling in the arm where the shot was given, mild-to-moderate fever, headache, or fainting.
Not surprisingly, there was nothing on mental retardation.
CDC spokeswoman Rita Chappelle said in an email, “The Institute of Medicine released a report on August 25 looking at adverse events from vaccines, including HPV. Rare cases of anaphylaxis was the only type of adverse event seen with HPV vaccine.”
That's a severe allergic reaction.
And the Food and Drug Administration and CDC also reported: “Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) has also been reported in individuals following vaccination with Gardasil. GBS is a rare neurological disorder that causes muscle weakness. It occurs spontaneously in unvaccinated individuals after a variety of specific infections. FDA and CDC have reviewed the reports of GBS that have been submitted to VAERS. To date, there is no evidence that Gardasil has increased the rate of GBS above that expected in the population. While we continue to carefully analyze all reports of GBS submitted to VAERS, the data do not currently suggest an association between Gardasil and GBS.”
The left and right have taken shots at Bachmann for her comments.
That's quite the accusation, one that Ben Smith has already gotten a rebuttal to from the Global and Regional Asperger Syndrome Partnership. The CDC has recommended Gardisil, warning that the only verified side-effect has been rare cases of blood clots and an immune system disorder. I'm not doubting that a woman came up to Bachmann and said this. News flash: Vaccine luddism is rather widespread (especially so in some affluent areas where moms listen to Oprah, according to research I've seen from Seth Mnookin), and just because a mother might say something like this does not mean it reflects what actually happened. The fact that it's Bachmann embracing this -- Bachmann, who has a habit of endorsing or "just asking questions" about dark theories that she's overheard -- is totally unsurprising.
Even conservative blog Free Republic:
Huh? “Mental retardation” typically takes place in a pre- or neo-natal event. Autism becomes apparent in the first couple of years of life — and primarily affects boys. Gardasil vaccinations take place among girls between 9-12 years of age. Even assuming that this anecdote is arguably true, it wouldn’t be either “mental retardation” or autism, but brain damage. …
The “mental retardation” argument is a rehash of the thoroughly discredited notion that vaccines containing thimerasol caused a rapid increase in diagnosed autism cases. That started with a badly-botched report in Lancet that allowed one researcher to manipulate a ridiculously small sample of twelve cases in order to reach far-sweeping conclusions about thimerasol. That preservative hasn’t been included in vaccines for years, at least not in the US, and the rate of autism diagnoses remain unchanged.
The most charitable analysis that can be offered in this case for Bachmann is that she got duped into repeating a vaccine-scare urban legend on national television. It looks more like Bachmann sensed that she had won a point and wanted to go in for the kill, didn’t bother to check the facts, and didn’t care that she was stoking an anti-vaccination paranoid conspiracy theory, either. Neither shines a particularly favorable light on Bachmann.
Ironically, Rick Perry, who had been accused by Jon Huntsman of being “anti science” said this to NBC’s Carrie Dann today:
"You heard the same arguments about giving our children protections from some of the childhood diseases, and they were autism was part of that. Now we've subsequently found out that was generated and not true.” He added: “I would suggest to you that this issue about Gardasil and making it available was about saving people's lives.”
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Wow, another teatard making outrageous claims....it never gets old....
another that ate too many hits of acid with no debate points ... what a surprise to see the drug addicts online . bet you "can't find a job" huh...
Another neverrighty making statements without facts.
You should work for Bachmann. Then you'll see your opinions quoted as facts.
Missing the point, what politician has the right to tell parents they have to get this for their daughters while Perry makes money off of it!!!!
Now let's compare that statement to one from the article on new drugs posted on MSNBC yesterday:
So, at this point, she may be right and she may be wrong - neither the FDA (or the CDC) know for sure.
pain , redness at injection site .. upset stomach , dizzyness and/or diarrhea
well, she might be right..ultimately..but for all the wrong reasons. Not that she really understands anything related to the topic..she isn't arguing from some deep scientific knowledge, but rather from politics.
Its like defending someone who blindly shoots into a crowd and amazingly only kills an escaped convicted killer. The fact that the end ultimately and for no rationale reason didn't turn out bad doesn't justify the original action.
There should be questions as to why this drug is being pushed so much. It's being pushed so much, it could be a street drug. Just before the school year here in Houston, kids had to be brought up-to-date with vaccines. I have a 13 year old son who had to have a couple of vaccines to enter school and I was asked twice from the people handling forms we had to fill out and again by the nurses administering this vaccine if I wanted my son to receive the HPV vaccine. I had to say NO three times! I even asked if it was the controversial vaccine for teen girls that they were trying to mandate and that's been in the news and they answered yes. They stated that boys were being administered the vaccine as well.
Rick Perry is a dictator when it comes to concerns of the people. He'd do anything to boost his campaign and rich friends. He seems to want to govern America in 'Good 'Ole Texan Style'. This man is very bad news!
Thanks Patricia: I guess Rick Perry is interested in the sexual habits of young boys too.
Please make the most informed decision possible before you get your daughter or son the Gardasil vaccine. Visit truthaboutgardasil.org
one thing about BACHMAN, when she opens her mouth she's in trouble. her and PALIN should open a house that provides favors for sub par gentlemen get the idea.
The Alaskan Screech Owl and the Minnesota Mockingbird.
chris both are being protected by the bunnyhugger party as the Barak Arab Obama is blowing this election for the entire donkey party .
I like the fact that nothing you say makes any sense. At least you're dependable.
Her comment among others demonstrates why she is not presidential material.
That's what did it for you?
Last year my cousin went to Wisconsin for a month. He was fine when he left but after comijng back he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Does this mean that Wisconsin causes cancer? Well after raedingt Bachmans comments I figure it may cause brain damage
OK - if a parent or the person himself/herself refuses to be vaccinated and they become ill from the disease for which they were not vaccinated, maybe the taxpayers should not have to pay for the illness treatment. Same goes for those against mandatory health insurance. In the old days, if a homeowner didn't pay the fire brigade, then there was no effort to put out the homeowners fire. That's just fair.
When was it ok to let your nieghbors house burn down? Let them die of their malady. Is that the American talking or the taxpayer? The taxpayers have been keeping people alive all over the world even though they live in areas that don't support their needs. Taxpayer is just another word for chump.
Whom ever wrote this article is TOTALLY wrong in saying that thimerasol hasn't been used in vaccines for "years". That is FALSE INFORMATION. Reading the insert of any shot will show you the ingredients used to make that vaccine. There are SEVERAL that still use thimerasol as a preservative and they include: Recombivax by Merk (Hepatitis B vaccine), Tripedia by Aventis Pasteur (DTP vaccine), Rabies vaccine by GlaxoSmithKline, Menomune by Connaught Laboratories (meningococcal vaccine), JE-VAX by Aventis Pasteu (encephalitis vaccine), HiB Titer by Wyeth-Ayerst (influenza vaccine), FluShield by Wyeth-Ayerst (influenza vaccine). So whoever decided that this article would be called "FACT CHECK" forgot to check their facts. The public is so misled on the dangers of vaccinations because the powerful lobby groups choose to spread DISINFORMATION about their products so that they can get rich at the misfortune of the idiots who hear these speaking points and are misled with the poor information. READ THE INSERTS!!! Even the HPV vaccine inserts talk about auto immune responses that can cripple these little girls - and people like Rick Perry want to MANDATE it. Shame on those people and shame on this article's author for not FACT CHECKING.
Thimerosal is used in the manufacture of some children's vaccines to ensure sterility in the early stages of the manufacturing process. It is then extracted from the final product. How much "mercury" is left. Possibly enough to detect it with the most sensitive instruments we possess. Far less than would be in the breast milk of a lactating woman. If you are going to fact check other peoples' posts, at least do it completely and honestly.
Yo how much mercury is in your new light bulb? Do you need a NASA to give you a printout or would you like to read how to dispose of said product. Jumping the gun aren't we.
Hey jumping - so because it's there from pollution means it's ok to inject more? Forget the "most sensitive instruments". For flu vaccines it's listed right there in the package insert. 25 mcg per 0.5mL dose. That's "safe" exposure of you weigh 300 lbs.
Gramma, you are stuck in the 20th century. The flu vaccine given to young children is mercury free. You are quoting from the package insert on multiple dose vials which are not used in younger children. At least be honest in your intransigency.
Bob, again your bias is showing. The amount of thimerasol left in children's vaccines is virtually undetectable. At least I was being honest and saying that your could detect 1 part in a billion with sensitive instruments. For all practical purposes, that is a homeopathic dose. Check out the amount of arsenic in your favorite homeopathic remedy and you will find it is more than the amount of mercury in a vaccine.
jumping, I am quoting from the 2011 Fluzone package insert. Fluzone is the only one thus far approved for children. Only single dose vials are processed to remove the thimerosal. https://www.vaccineshoppe.com/image.cfm?doc_id=12427&image_type=product_pdf
To put it in proper perspective, reference the CDC. There will be 166-173 million doses of flu vaccine produced by 6 different manufacturers. Only 79 million doses will have the "trace" amounts of thimerosal you describe. Less than half. It isn't just children who get more thimerosal (mercury) than they can handle. The majority of flu shots to be given this season have more than most adults can handle, too. http://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/qa/vaxsupply.htm
If you actually KNEW anything about homeopathy you would know it doesn't actually contain anything.
It's a shame that the dangers of this product have now been obscured and dismissed because Bachmann had something to say.
Dear God, Can some of you join me and everyone chip in a few brain cells to give her? I would love for her to have enough brain power to at least know when to shut up.
I know, why waste them? BUT maybe...a long shot of course, but maybe she will shut up.
Coo Coo for coa coa puffs! This woman is shameless. Having her as a valid candidate amongst the GOP contenders is ridiculous at best. Anyone that supports or encourages her needs to check themselves and answer why?
With all of the Republican nut cases vying for the Presidency, how can we hope to remove the current redistribution confiscationist resident in the White House?
and we are being reassured by a govt agency, why dont i believe anything that comes out of any govt speaker or dept considering all thats happened in the past
Glad the truth was printed. Any steps to prevent cancer are wise to take and the vaccine risks are truly not what Bachmann stated. Anyone want to know the horrendous risks associated with Chemo? Texas was aggressive in stepping up to the plate to protect young girls, but cancer is a far more aggressive killer. Bravo Texas!!!!!!!!! All candidates need to recognize that we are done buying lies.
I think Bachmann suffered retardation from air headedness.
where does this insanity end? next thing Bachmann will be announcing there is no such thing as gravity, she can't see it, it's liberal agenda pseudo-science - and she has it on reliable account it's really "divine falling." Tea Party nutjobs will buy it most assuredly. i recommend psychotropic medications for the obviously deranged woman. would u trust her to have her finger on a nuclear warhead button?
Are you kidding me! A person "suffers from mental retardation"? My daughter has traveled the world, met celebrities and stars, competes in sports and has been on a stage in front of 80,000 people in Shanghai, she goes to work, sings in the choir and reads the liturgy in church. She has an intellectual disability, and I can assure you, she is not suffering, except from the arrogance and ignorance of people like Michelle Bachmann.
If bachmann is going to trash Gardasil she should at least get her facts straight. In the adverse reaction category it has caused girls to pass out, develop seizures and even die. This is actually backed up by VAERS as well as testimonials from the girls themselves(if they are alive) or their families(if they died from Gardasil). Not only that but Gardasil is pointless considering you still have a risk of HPV if you have had sex with multiple partners and still need to get regular screenings.
So, lets see if I've got this straight. The crying woman said her daughter got the vaccine, and then she "got" mentally retarded. Is that correct? Was this like . . . the next day? Or was it 6 months later?
So accordingly, if her ass falls off tomorrow, it will, undoubtedly, have been caused, directly, by the double cherry fruit crush smoothie that she had at the July 4th Picnic.
Good grief Michel, you have to listen to this stuff, but what imaginary force is compelling you to repeat it (especially into a microphone). Your mouth is your biggest enemy
Idiots like Bachman only believe what they want to believe and do not have enough sense to trust people who actually have studied and know the info needed in order to make the recommendations - this is just one more symptom of paranoia of central government that is so widespread in the Tea Party...I miss the days when people like this would just go off the grid in BF nowhere where the rest of us sane people could ignore them!
Sorry folks, this one she has right. Research for yourselves the young girls who are now dead from this vaccine. Instead of posting here on things you don't know about, research for yourself. FIND OUT THE TRUTH.
The vaccine only protects against 4 strains of the virus, do you know there are 99 strains out there? A TRUE virgin is only person NEVER exposed to HPV. We ALL have been exposed, especially those with more than ONE partner in their lifetime.
Sanevax.org
truthaboutgardisil.com
Being monogamous will not protect you against HPV infection. Only true virgins, nuns who have remained celibate all their lives, are free of the strains of HPV causing cancer. Some strains of HPV cause warts. Do you want a vaccine to protect you against those strains too. Stop misusing science. There are only a few strains of HPV that cause cervical cancer and the most prevalent are included in the vaccine. There would be no point in making a vaccine against the other strains.
I realize that girls are having sex at a younger age now days, but for the most part this HPV vaccine is uncalled for the majority of girls, unless they are sexually active. It is a major push by drug companies for a very lucrative money maker and nothing more, if you really check the facts and look at it with a open mind. But politicians will be lead people like fish to it, as they make a lot of money by backing the drug makers.
By the time girls are sexually active, it is too late for the vaccine. It is preventive, not curative.
I was for Bachman until this incident. She showed she's just another politician trying to win no matter what the facts are. I think Perry is at least a honest man, even if I don't like all his ideas.
Wise up Terry, perry's ideas are sickening, Romney is the best of them all.
Patriotic
Do you really want to vote for a cult religion?
Bachman is a Tea Party fanatic - now that she is finally a no go for the Tea Party as THE candidate she is vying for VP for Romney..........
What a bunch of clowns!