ABC Drama, Eli Stone, Tackles Autism-Thimerosal Controversy

SafeMinds asks network for balanced viewer information despite AAP pressure

SafeMinds has formally asked ABC to resist the latest attempt by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) to stifle public discussion on the link between thimerosal and autism. According to an article published in the New York Times last week, the premiere episode of Eli Stone, an ABC drama, depicts the main character, Eli Stone, successfully bringing a mother's lawsuit to court against a pharmaceutical company claiming that a vaccine additive, "mercuritol", in their influenza vaccine caused her son's autism. 'Mecuritol' resembles the real-life mercury-containing compound thimerosal, used in infant vaccines as a preservative.

A letter from AAP's president has urged ABC to cancel the program. Along with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), AAP's Committee on Infectious Diseases makes official recommendations on infant vaccines, and together they were responsible for the addition of mercury-containing vaccines to the infant immunization schedule, including influenza vaccines. Despite the availability of mercury-free flu vaccines, both AAP and CDC have refused to state a preference for them for infants and pregnant women. AAP's conflict of interest on thimerosal vaccines was not stated in their letter to ABC.

ABC has responded that they will air the episode and add a statement that the episode is fictional and to visit the CDC's website for more information on autism. SafeMinds, in its own letter to ABC, applauded their resolve to air the episode. In the interest of offering objective and balanced information on the real-life mercury-autism issue, SafeMinds has requested that ABC state that research on thimerosal's effects is on-going and that viewers be given the opportunity to visit the SafeMinds website as well as CDC's. The Safeminds website provides information on scientific research and analysis supporting a mercury-autism link and mercury-containing vaccines and their alternatives.

The episode airs on Thursday, January 31st at 10/9c and the parallels to real life drawn by the episode are undeniable. There are thousands of vaccine-autism cases yet to be heard in federal vaccine court. The autism epidemic is a national emergency, with 1 in 150 children diagnosed with some form of this debilitating disorder. The cost to society for specialized education and long term care is large. Mercury in any form is a potent neurotoxin and is especially harmful to the fetus and infants. Environmental mercury exposures are increasing. The rapid increase in autism rates indicates that one or more environmental factors are playing a role in autism. While research on the role of mercury in vaccines in relation to neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism continues, SafeMinds cannot support the use of mercury-containing vaccines. The Eli Stone premier is a needed addition to continued discourse on this important subject for our children's health.

Read SafeMinds letter to the ABC.

Read SafeMinds Mercury in Vaccines FAQ

Read- Sanofi Pasteur US Media Relations on the Preservative Free Influenza Vaccine Supply 2006/2007 Season

Download SafeMinds flu vaccine brochure

David Kirby on The Huffington Post: Pediatricians, ABC and Censorship: Facts Are Scarier Than Fiction

Age of Autism: PEDIATRICIANS DEMAND CENSORSHIP FROM ABC

SafeMinds board member Deirdre Imus was on the Imus Showspeaking about the NY Times article by Edward Wyatt in which he reviewed the upcoming show on ABC, "Eli Stone."

Informed Consent in Immunization - Today's Battle Line

A Message from SafeMinds' President, Theresa Wrangham

Like many parents, I am faced with numerous health care decisions and ask questions of health care providers, as well as research independently for the best answers. However, I continue to be amazed by attitudes within our health agencies and government in deciding what is best for us in lieu of providing education and information that allows us to make those decisions for ourselves.

Increasingly, we are bombarded by measures "in the public's best interest" smacking of Big Brother attitudes. Recent actions in New Jersey to mandate immunization of children without stating a preference for mercury free vaccines are a good example.

Parents in New Jersey have been very vocal in expressing their concern regarding mercury in vaccines, as well as the right to choose. Their state's response to those concerns represents strong arm tactics for immunization compliance over parental concern and informed consent.

What exactly is informed consent? According to the State of University of Washington School of Medicine regarding Ethics in Medicine,

"Informed consent is the process by which a fully informed patient can participate in choices about her health care. It originates from the legal and ethical right the patient has to direct what happens to her body and from the ethical duty of the physician to involve the patient in her health care.

It is generally accepted that complete informed consent includes a discussion of the following elements:
· the nature of the decision/procedure
· reasonable alternatives to the proposed intervention
· the relevant risks, benefits, and uncertainties related to each alternative
· assessment of patient understanding
· the acceptance of the intervention by the patient"

Reasonable alternatives include refusal of treatment (PEDIATRICS, Volume 95 Number 2, Pages 314-317, February 1995 - Bartholome). With that understanding, how many parents would consent to immunization of their children, if pediatricians were to inform parents that "Senate Committee hearings last September found the FDA had not met their statutory obligation in adequately demonstrating the safety of mercury in vaccines. The vaccine I would like to give today has 25 micrograms of mercury in it and exceeds federal safety guidelines. Would you like your vaccine with, or without, mercury?"

Unfortunately, many parents will never be informed of these facts - but shouldn't they? If parents ask about mercury, they will instead be told it is safe. To add insult to injury, many states do not offer philosophical exemption from immunization and only offer medical and religious exemptions. This circumstance doesn't provide "reasonable alternatives" and policies mandating immunization, contrary to medical ethics and law establishing autonomy over one's body, are becoming the order of the day.

While many would like to say that the mercury-autism debate is over, there is no escaping that until clinical research supports the spin consistently put on epidemiologic studies of poor design, rife with conflicts of interest and over reaching conclusions, the debate is far from over. Even so, it would appear that immunization policy is being steered steadily toward a one-size-fits-all schedule at the expense of parents' authority in making health care decisions.

While research on mercury in vaccines continues on both sides of the fence, with vaccine manufacturers able to meet demand with mercury free versions of vaccines, safety demands banning the use of mercury in vaccines. Such an action would bring about a restoration of image for our government agencies - an image in need of restoration judging by comments made in the February of 2005 report by the IOM Vaccine Safety Research, Data Access, and Public Trust Report. Without a ban and/or statements of preference, choice and real information accorded to individuals regarding vaccines to meet informed consent requirements becomes an even deeper battle line to be defended.

The absence of informed consent exhibits a lack of trust, respect and choice for "The People" by government officials. The role of government in this process needs only to be the offering of unbiased information to the public, on which we will base our decisions. Governmental strong arming to mandate vaccines to improve immunization rates must not override an individual's right to informed consent and autonomy in his/her health care decisions, or the Government's burden to demonstrate immunization safety.

Wrong Conclusion on California's Autism DDS Data and Thimerosal Exposure

Summary of SafeMinds Analysis Reveals Latest Attempt to Cover Over Thimerosal Harm

Earlier this month SafeMinds issued a short statement and comprehensive analysis of the paper by Robert Schechter and Judith Grether that examined autism rates and thimerosal exposure. The paper, published in the journal Archives of General Psychiatry, compared recent thimerosal exposure levels with California Department of Developmental Disabilities Services (DDS) data on autism enrollments over time. Noting that autism enrollments continue to rise while claiming that thimerosal has been removed from vaccines, Schechter and Grether concluded "the DDS data do not support the hypothesis that exposure to thimerosal during childhood is a primary cause of autism."

SafeMinds closely examined the DDS data set, the thimerosal exposure information in the paper, and Schechter and Grether's interpretation of the findings. The examination revealed that the data can equally support the hypothesis of thimerosal exposure as a primary causative role in autism. Given this equally valid interpretation, the Schechter and Grether paper appears as yet another attempt by public health authorities to prematurely declare mercury in vaccines safe for infants. Dr. Schechter works for the Immunization Branch of the California Department of Public Health. The Archives of General Psychiatry is an American Medical Association publication.

Drs. Schechter and Grether present the DDS data in a commendable manner (by birth year) and describe some of its problems, but they omit a number of limitations in their autism and thimerosal information. While DDS data has many strengths, significant deficiencies exist in using the data as an epidemiology resource which, combined with inaccurate assumptions on thimerosal exposure and a disregard for other contributing exposures, make determination of the contribution of thimerosal to recent autism rates difficult. Some of the limitations include:

• A trend to earlier age ascertainment and administrative changes altering DDS caseloads may have led to an artificial rise in recently reported DDS enrollments.
• DDS has not been consistent or rigorous in removing inactive cases from their database once they are entered.
• Thimerosal removal from the DPT, Hib, and Hepatitis B vaccines took place over many years, delaying the time point at which a decrease in fully diagnosed age cohorts could be observed so the time point was not captured by the authors. Interpretation of the effect of thimerosal reduction in these three vaccines is compromised by the concurrent increase in uptake of mercury-containing flu vaccines by infants and pregnant women and by the continued exposure of children to reduced or trace amounts of mercury in the 2000-2003 timeframe.
• Dose uncertainty arises from the high number of recent immigrant enrollments in DDS, who may represent non-U.S. born cases immunized with non-U.S. vaccines containing thimerosal.
• Exposures to pregnant women and infants from a number of harmful environmental substances implicated in autism, such as mercury emissions and pesticides, are increasing, even while thimerosal is being removed. These agents were not considered in the Schechter and Grether paper. Thimerosal may very well have been a primary causative agent in autism, since it is a highly effective mechanism for delivery of long-lasting mercury into cells. Now other agents that act on the same biological pathways may be rising to the forefront.

Given these deficiencies and limitations, use of the DDS to determine the precise effect of thimerosal's reduction (not removal, as suggested by the authors) on recent autism rates is premature and findings incomplete. What the paper's data do support are the following points:

• The autism epidemic is real and not solely an artifact of better diagnostic practices or changing diagnostic criteria. Autism requires more government focus.
• Increased rates support a strong environmental role in autism causation. More autism research funding should be allocated to studying environmental causes.
• The imprecision of the DDS data and uncertainties over thimerosal dose is too great and argues the need for more rigorous epidemiology studies describing autism prevalence trends from the 1980s to the present.
• The study does not rule out thimerosal, even as a "primary" causative factor, if multiple environmental agents are involved. Thimerosal remains a top candidate for contributing to cases from 1930 to the present and the need for it to be investigated fully remains strong.
• Other environmental factors are being identified as playing a role in autism but none has been adequately studied. The environmental causes of autism are likely to be multiple and complex. A comprehensive research agenda that systematically studies all leading candidates for environmental triggers is urgently needed.

Click here to read SafeMinds analysis.

Click here to view Schechter-Grether paper.

Click here to read Mark Blaxill's Age of Autism Article, Making Sense of the California Autism Numbers.

Click here to read Boyd Haley Responds to California Autism Numbers.

Autism Research Strategic Plan In Development at NIH

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is developing a strategic plan for autism research. Done poorly or well, the plan will have a considerable impact on the lives of people with autism and their families. Members of the autism community who have an interest in seeing greater efforts given to the environment's role in autism causation and in biomedical treatments for autism would benefit from a more balanced, transparent, and inclusive strategic planning process.

The Combating Autism Act of 2006 authorized over $600 million in autism research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The CAA specified that NIH create a strategic plan to guide autism research for the next 5 years. The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) of the NIH is managing the process, which was approved at the November meeting of the NIH Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC). The IACC has 13 government members and 6 public members. Lyn Redwood, co-founder and director of SafeMinds, is an IACC member.

The strategic plan development process involves several stages. A Request for Information (RFI) was issued in December through which NIMH compiled the public's recommendations for research. SafeMinds submitted a detailed document in response to the RFI. Four Workshops were then held the week of January 14. The Workshops covered the topic areas of Treatment, Diagnosis, Biology, and Risk Factors and were charged with identifying the most promising projects to consider for each area. SafeMinds directors Redwood, Vicky Debold, Jim Moody, and Laura Bono attended. A small Workgroup will convene at the end of February to review the Workshop recommendations and create a draft document. The draft will be submitted for review at the March 14th IACC meeting.

Over several communications with NIMH, SafeMinds representatives have recommended several changes to the process which would lead to a better strategic plan (see related Age of Autism article). More advocates should be included in the process. The public's recommendations should be more fully considered: while NIH received over 500 responses to the RFI, the Workshops barely referenced this input in their deliberations. The process needs more transparency rather than closed Workshops and Workgroup sessions. SafeMinds believes that more open and participatory interactions should be instituted. Proponents of environmental causation and biomedical interventions need representation within the Workgroup. Although the CAA specified that 13 subject disciplines be part of NIH autism research, several were absent in the Workshops, such as gastroenterology, endocrinology, and nutrition. These disciplines must be incorporated to be truly representative of the areas of most promise and requiring investigation.

Affected families are justifiably concerned over the current pace and direction of autism research considering the lack of progress against this disease in terms of prevention and treatment. As the most critical stakeholders, families must have a strong voice in the strategic planning process for autism research at NIH. Safeminds is requesting a comprehensive set of changes to the process and will post this list shortly. SafeMinds is working with NIH and other autism organizations to try to get these changes adopted.

Congressman Dan Burton Wants Answers from the FDA

Reprinted from National Autism Association announcement.

Have you been wondering just how much thimerosal is considered a "trace amount" by the FDA and who, if anyone, is testing mercury content in currently licensed vaccines?

Congressman Burton is wondering the same thing - and he's asking the FDA for answers.

Click here to read his letter.

SafeMinds Elects New Officers and an Overview of our 2007 Accomplishments

A Message from SafeMinds Executive Director and Co-Founder Sallie Bernard

SafeMinds held its annual election of Board Members this past November and we would like to make our community aware of changes within our Board's structure, as well as SafeMinds 2007 accomplishments.

Lyn Redwood, who has served as SafeMinds' President since its founding in 2000, has stepped down to pursue other commitments she has taken on with the Autism Research Institute. Lyn will continue to serve on our Board in the capacity of Vice-President. SafeMinds is so grateful to Lyn for her extraordinary contributions and representation of SafeMinds as our President and her continued presence on our Board. Her leadership and passionate commitment to our community are beyond words.

Theresa Wrangham was voted in as President and begins her duties in this month. Theresa lives in Colorado with her husband Scott and daughters Rachel and Deanna. She is the mother of a 17 year old affected daughter and brings to the fore an experienced parent's perspective on raising a healthy child affected by ASD and mercury toxicity. She is the Past President and Co-Founder of Autism Society of Boulder County, bringing the first biomedical and behavioral conferences to Colorado's autism community and spearheading legislation to ban mercury containing vaccines from use in Colorado. Theresa has served on our Board for the past two years and brings with her excellent experience in running an organization and will be a tremendous asset to SafeMinds.

We welcome our new and old Board Members alike, as they start, or return, and are very grateful for their efforts. Click here for more information on SafeMinds board members and the capacities they serve in the organization.

2007 has been an eventful year full of accomplishments for SafeMinds. Click here for a detailed look at our activities.

We will keep our community advised of new goals for 2008 that are additions to our ongoing activities of pursing mercury's removal from vaccines, the conducting and monitoring of mercury-related research and responding to misinformation on this important health issue.

Changing Minds! Changing Lives!

Please join NAA in an important grassroots effort to educate and enlighten physicians across the country!

Changing the Course of Autism
A Scientific Approach to Medical Treatment
by Bryan Jepson, M.D. with Jane Johnson

What was once seen as a mysterious, incurable mental illness is now being recognized as a medically treatable, whole-body disorder.

Unfortunately, far too many pediatricians are still tied to the misconceptions of the past. It's extremely difficult for parents who wish to treat their children's medical issues to find a physician who understands the complex health problems that our children with autism face.

It's for this reason, we're asking all parents to participate in educating pediatricians.

"Changing the Course of Autism" was written with physicians in mind. It contains over 50 pages of references to published scientific studies supporting the information and treatment options provided by Dr. Jepson.

We encourage each of you to buy a copy of this book today and deliver it to your local pediatrician. It can be purchased for $12.89 on Amazon.com

For less than $13, we can give hope to countless numbers of children across the country by providing their doctors with the gift of knowledge and understanding.

SafeMinds 2008 Flu Vaccine Brochures Now Available

SafeMinds printed 2007-2008 flu vaccine brochures are now here. You can download the brochure here or e-mail eksafeminds@gmail.com to order printed copies.

Looking for an easy way to support SafeMinds?

Go Shopping!

That's right, go ahead and buy something for yourself -- a new CD, the latest bestseller, everyday essentials like pet food or vitamins, even a computer. But first join www.iGive.com/SafeMinds.

Every time you shop at one of the over 680 name-brand stores in the iGive.com Mall, we'll receive a donation of up to 26% of each purchase you make, at no cost to you.

Remember, donating to SafeMinds won't cost you a thing. But we'll miss out on a lot of extra dough, if you don't join. So visit www.iGive.com/SafeMinds now. Membership is free and your privacy is guaranteed.

Click here to join.

Wishing Won't Cure Autism . . .

But Research Will

Support SafeMinds today. Every donation makes an impact. Click here to make a donation.

Visit The Age of Autism

The Age of Autism is the nation's first daily Web newspaper for the environmental-biomedical community - those who believe autism is an environmentally induced illness, that it is treatable, and that children can recover. For the most part, the major media in the United States aren't interested in that point of view, they won't investigate the causes and possible biomedical treatments of autism independently, and they don't listen to the most important voices - those of the parents. Visit the website at www.ageofautism.com.