For years now, scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and elsewhere have said that autism is probably a purely genetic disorder. Those days are over now.
David Kirby | Posted 12.20.2008 | Politics
Senator Daschle is not anti-vaccine, but his record shows his willingness to question -- and even oppose -- vaccine makers and big pharmaceutical interests when it comes to protecting the rights of American medical consumers.
David Kirby | Posted 12.19.2008 | Living
Idil, a Somali mother in Minnesota, told me she had been trying for more than a year to get state officials to pay attention to all the sick kids in the local Somali community. She's now "taking off the gloves."
Kim Stagliano | Posted 12.12.2008 | Living
God almighty, we're aware already! When your two year old can't speak, you know "the signs." We need immediate answers for the kids who are here and growing older every day.
David Kirby | Posted 12.11.2008 | Living
Is the vaccine-autism debate over? Not according to the co-founder of the largest, most mainstream, most influential autism organization in the world.
Shelley Hendrix Reynolds | Posted 11.23.2008 | Living
Will the next administration set serious goals of reversing the rate of autism diagnosis by the end of their term or just declare autism a national health emergency and let it go at that?
David Kirby | Posted 11.16.2008 | Politics
The media may be transfixed on "Joe the Plumber" today, but the real winner of last night's debate was autism. No single disorder has ever been so prominent in a national election.
Deirdre Imus | Posted 10.18.2008 | Green
There was a time when the FDA was considered the gold standard throughout the world in maintaining drug and food safety. Today, however, the agency's image is tarnished almost beyond repair.
David Kirby | Posted 09.14.2008 | Living
The President of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Dr. Renee Jenkins, made a rather puzzling comment on Good Morning America, during a segment on vaccine safety and the risk of autism.
David Kirby | Posted 09.11.2008 | Living
Until now, estimates of mitochondrial disease rates have held steady at about 1-in-4000 people. A new study shows that 20 times that number have genetic mutations that could cause the disease.
Charlotte Hilton Andersen | Posted 07.30.2008 | Living
Amanda Peet's real mistake? Daring to give other parents advice. She should know by now that the only answer is a wistful smile and a silly anecdote.
Lisa Conte | Posted 07.26.2008 | Green
Let's be clear: mercury from vaccinations as a contributing factor to autism, or perhaps the threshold breaking factor, in genetically susceptible children has not been scientifically discredited.
Dr. Yvonne K. Fulbright | Posted 07.16.2008 | Living
Sure, the government and many physicians have recommended that girls and young women receive the HPV vaccine. But it may have been plugged prematurely. There's still so much we don't know.
David Kirby | Posted 06.29.2008 | Living
My original post mischaracterized the CDC vaccine investigation, and I'm reposting this piece to reflect that information accurately, but also to point out many of the weaknesses identified in the CDC's data.
Ann Medlock | Posted 06.04.2008 | Living
There's no reason to fear rabies shots; the conventional wisdom of foot-long needles is a fiction, and the vaccine is 100% effective in preventing death by rabies.
David Kirby | Posted 12.25.2008 | Living