A massive study involving 657,461 children has found that vaccination is not related to autism cases in children, as many people wrongly believe. In short, getting vaccinated does not increase the chances of children who have autism.

There has been a myth going around claiming that children who get vaccinated have higher chances of suffering from autism than children who did not get vaccinated.

The Myth And Creating The Anti-vaxxers

The myth emerged after a misleading 1998 study, which only involved 12 children. According to the results of this isolated study, which are yet to be replicated so far, children who got vaccinated for mumps, measles, and even rubella (MMR) had higher chances of suffering from autism.

Later, it was found that Andrew Wakefield, the researcher who conducted the study, had falsified the results. In fact, his medical license was revoked as a result.

A similar case appeared in 2017 when a study linking the aluminum in vaccines to autism was discovered to have been based on manipulated images. Additionally, one of the co-authors confessed that the paper's figures were deliberately changed. This was before the study was set to be published to support the conclusion.

Though the myth has been debunked several times, many still believe that vaccines are capable of causing autism in children. As a result, some parents have kept their children from getting vaccinated, and measles cases have doubled as a result.

But this current study should help put this issue to rest as it proves that there is no relationship between autism and vaccines. The study even included 6,517 children who had been diagnosed with autism.

On the contrary, other factors have been implicated in the occurrence of autism among children. For instance, children with siblings who had the condition were seven times more likely to suffer from the condition themselves. Additionally, boys were four times more likely to suffer from autism than girls.

Vaccines Are Protecting Kids, Not Harming Them

However, even within these high-risk groups, there was no link between vaccination and autism. If anything, the study found out that lack of vaccination might have contributed to increased cases of autism. The study found out that 5 percent of the children in the study who did not have any vaccination were 17 percent more likely to suffer from autism than children who got vaccinated.

Consequently, the study demonstrates conclusively that vaccination does not lead to a higher likelihood of suffering from autism. The findings also support other studies that have made similar conclusions in the past. In these studies, it has been consistently proven that vaccination does not cause autism.

Therefore, the lesson here is that parents should not keep their children from getting vaccinated thinking that they are protecting them from autism.

On the contrary, the dangers of not vaccinating are far more extensive. Even as we speak, we have witnessed a resurgence in measles cases. Some parents are skipping vaccinations with the unfounded fear that the practice is why many children are autistic today.