President-elect Donald Trump appeared to promote the discredited theory that vaccines cause autism as he answered questions from reporters at a news conference at his Mar-a-Lago club on Monday.
Trump said Robert F. Kennedy Jr., his chosen head of the Department of Health and Human Services and an anti-vaxxer, would investigate the reasons for rising autism rates.
Trump appeared to respond to Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell’s defense of the polio vaccine, calling himself “a big supporter of it.”
“You won’t lose the polio vaccine,” Trump said.
A look at autism rates and why they’re rising:
What is Autism?
Autism is a developmental disorder caused by differences in the brain. There are many possible symptoms, many of which overlap with other diagnoses. These may include language and learning delays, social and emotional withdrawal, and an unusual need for routine. Scientists believe genetics may play a role.
What is the autism rate in US children?
Among all 8-year-olds in the U.S., one in 36 had autism in 2020. That’s according to the latest estimate from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s up from 1 in 44 two years ago.
Why are autism rates increasing?
There are no blood or biological tests for autism. You can tell by assessing a child’s behavior.
For decades, the diagnosis was only given to children with severe communication or social problems and those with unusual, repetitive behaviors. But about 30 years ago, the term became shorthand for a group of milder, related disorders known as “autism spectrum disorders.”
“Most of the increase in recent decades has been in relatively mildly affected children and adults, so we might not have called it autism in the past,” explained Maureen Durkin, a professor of population health sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
With improved screening and autism services, diagnosis is increasingly occurring at younger ages. And there is also more attention and advocacy for Black and Hispanic families, leading to an augment in autism diagnoses in these groups.
Does autism have anything to do with vaccinations?
No. Scientists have ruled out a link between vaccinations and autism, a theory based on falsified information in a 1998 article that was later retracted by the medical journal that published it.
Repeated scientific studies in the United States and abroad have found no evidence that vaccinations in general or those containing thimerosal cause autism. This preservative has been removed from routine childhood vaccinations; While it remains in some flu vaccines, there are thimerosal-free versions.
The American Academy of Pediatrics calls vaccines “one of the most significant medical innovations of our time.”
What did Mitch McConnell say about vaccines?
McConnell, who had polio as a child, said any of Trump’s nominees seeking Senate confirmation should steer clear of attempts to discredit the polio vaccine.
“Efforts to undermine the public’s trust in proven remedies are not just uninformed — they are dangerous,” McConnell said in a statement Friday. “Anyone seeking Senate approval to serve in the new administration would do well to avoid even the appearance of association with such efforts.”
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