Flu Shot and autism risks???

[Adamsmama]

My oldest son has been diagnosed with autism (low-mod functioning) with Sensory Integration Disorder and CP. While I was pregnant with him at around 28 weeks I had the flu shot (with thermisol) and Rhogham with thermisol. I didn't know much about autism, mercury, etc.

So, since that point I've refused flu shots and made sure the Rhogham shots I took with my last 2 pregnancies were mercury free. I have pretty bad asthma currently (I've always had it but it got worse after I had my last child 3 years ago) and was told because I'm due in November to get the flu shot in about Aug./Sept. I'm really scared to get the shot because I'm not sure of the risks that puts the baby to getting autism. I'm a little afraid of not getting it because of all the deaths last year from H1N1 (which I didn't have or the shot) in pregnant women ... I'm at double risk for complications from asthma and pregnancy during flu season. Where we live typically people don't get the flu until late December through March. Last year the flu started in September and lasted through November. I feel like this is a bad situation from all angles. I'm scared because I was almost hospitalized last year with pleurisy and severe bronchitis (I even had bleeding in the lungs -- very scary). I'm on inhaled steroids/nasal steroids and take albuteral whenever I get sick because it always affects my lungs.

[SpottedFoxx]

~big sigh~

There is NO autism/vaccine link. None, zero, zilch, nada, nothing. The so called doctor who claimed there was had admitted fudging his research and has been stripped of his licenses and has basically been blackballed.

[Adamsmama]

Wow! I didn't know that. I was just trying to find a link to why my oldest is so delayed (low-mod functioning) and classic autism and brain damage. There are only 2 difference that happened during his pregnancy: a flu shot and basically a double dose of thermisol (from rhogham/flu shot) and I was hypothyroid and wasn't treated.

[SpottedFoxx]

I hear you. I don't think there is a parent on this board (or any where else for that matter) who wouldn't want to know why their child was "____" (fill in the blank).

My son had seizures. He came home from Guatemala at 5 months old. We were home 4 days when he had a series of 5 grand mal seizures. I suspect he had been having transient seizures long before this happened. The seizures caused a brain injury. I finally had to stop trying to figure out what happened and just accept my wonderful, beautiful, smart little spit fire for who his is, regardless of how he got this way.

Sometimes you have to stop searching for a reason and just accept things as they are. I understand you are scared. That is what your OB is there for. You can get thimersal free flu shots. I'd be shocked if your OB doesn't have them. If it gives you peace of mind, go that route. It sounds like going without a flu shot is a lot more dangerous for you than getting one.

[mama2soren]

If you x-post on the Vaccine Forum, you can get some great info from others who are very well-educated on vaccine risks and benefits.

[DoulaVallere]

The single dose flu shots are mercury free, as are all of the H1N1 vax's. We're personally an anti-vax family, but if you feel like you need the flu vax, just ask your dr to give you one from a single dose needle instead of the multidose vial.

[Adamsmama]

Originally Posted by DoulaVallere

The single dose flu shots are mercury free, as are all of the H1N1 vax's. We're personally an anti-vax family, but if you feel like you need the flu vax, just ask your dr to give you one from a single dose needle instead of the multidose vial.

I considered just getting the H1N1 shot but my asthma dr. told me the new vaccine coming this Fall will have an 3 strains (one of them is H1N1).

[2boyzmama]

Originally Posted by SpottedFoxx

~big sigh~

There is NO autism/vaccine link. None, zero, zilch, nada, nothing. The so called doctor who claimed there was had admitted fudging his research and has been stripped of his licenses and has basically been blackballed.

I might edit that statement to say there are no *proven OR disproven* autism/vaccine links. Likely it is a very complex combination of factors that leads to developmental disorders, and what triggers it could be different for different people. There are many vaccine-free autism-spectrum people, even some who are multi-generational vaccine-free.

That said...I think that you need to have a better understanding of what your risks are, and what the risks/benefits of the vaccines are FOR YOU. For example, you say that you had pleurisy and severe bronchitis last year...do you know what triggered it? Did you have flu? Have you ever had *real* influenza? Because twice now our family has had "textbook flu symptoms" and we tested negative for the flu. I honestly believe that flu numbers are exaggerated enormously! There are dozens of viruses circulating during flu season that cause flu-like illnesses, and for which the vaccines will do no good whatsoever.

SO...you are right to be concerned that you fall into two high risk categories. But you need to factor in your chances of acquiring actual influenza, the efficacy of the vaccine, the chances that they get the strains right, and then weigh that against the real and potential risks of the vaccine itself (knowing, as it's been pointed out already, that you CAN get preservative-free vaccines).

Only you can determine what is right. If you take this question to the vaccine board, no doubt almost everyone will tell you not to get it. If you take this question to a mainstream vaccine, no doubt everyone will tell you TO get it. So you will have to wade through the information yourself.

I recommend you also post this in the health and healing forum to get information on ways to boost your immune system pre-emptively, and also how to treat viruses if you do get sick, so as to hopefully avoid serious side effects (high doses of Vit D, for example; garlic; etc)

I don't envy you this decision! I face the same decision every year for my middle son who has a primary immune deficiency with a compromised pulmonary system, is underweight, and has other risk factors. I fear the fall-spring every year because he always gets sick, often pretty seriously! But of all the illnesses he's had, only two have been "vaccine preventable"...chicken pox and rota virus. He's never had lab-confirmed flu, or any other lab-confirmed illness for which there is a vaccine.

Really, when you consider how many hundreds-thousands of illnesses circulate that there AREN'T vaccines available for, you start to fear the few that there are vaccines for less and less.

[buttercup784ever]

"I might edit that statement to say there are no *proven OR disproven* autism/vaccine links."

Science can't prove a negative. You won't ever see a study trying to prove there *isn't* a link to vaccines and autism. So she is correct when she says there hasn't been a link between autism and vaccines, because there has never been a study that has successfully found a link.

So I guess the most correct way to say it is, "science has not found a link" instead of "there is no link".

[newmum35]

I would have your vitamin D levels checked. Ask your dr for the blood test and be sure you get the right one for the D3. Majority of people are deficient and there is a connection to asthma as well. You might be able to benefit from supplementation.

Mercury is so highly toxic to neuron health, the fact you received 2 shots known to contain thimerosol during a time of rapid brain development raises red flags to me but it is impossible to say whether it was the sole factor, a contributing factor or no factor in your particular case. There is a huge amount of evidence out there though that it may have played a major role.

Other sources of mercury: dental fillings (silver amalgams are 50% mercury), high fructose corn syrup, fish. The fetus inside you is not able to detoxify this mercury as a child or adult would (because their organs are still not fully developed) and they are especially vulnerable. Even after birth, some babies have impaired ability to excrete these toxins for one reason or other. Injected forms (such as in shots) are far worse because they bypass the normal routes of digestion and elimination (the liver) although certainly all sources add up.

Never stop searching for answers. Definitely ask in the vaccine forum and I would also check out the mercury chelation groups so that you can get the heavy metals out of the body. (It binds to mercury in the organs such as the brain and pulls it out) It is never too late to help your child but the earlier the better. YOu can do hair analysis tests to determine level of toxicity to heavy metals and dozens of other things.

http://groups.yahoo.com/

more specifically:

http://groups.yahoo.com/search?query=mercury+chelation

[Kristine233]

Its my opinion that vax are not related to Autism causation. BUT I think its possible that already Autistic individuals can experience exaggerated side effects (reactions) from some vax (or metals or foods etc) and those side effects can make the Autistic traits more apparent because the body is not able to tolerate the reaction.

So does it cause Autism? No. Can it affect the health of the child? Yes. I will also specify that I think this applies to all children/people and not just those with Autism. Of course, this is just my theory and I don't know that any research has been actually done on that.

So what I tell people is to research vaccinations first for themselves and make the decisions based on how they feel about the vax instead of how they feel about Autism. For us, this meant my youngest had a selective delayed vax schedule because I felt more comfortable with an alternative schedule that allowed her body more "healing" time between vax and also made some unnecessary. Since I felt that it would be healthier for an Autistic child, it must make it healthier for a NT child as well. Its just that you wouldn't see the reaction as apparently in an NT child because the body might be able to adapt easier to the foreign substance. Again, just my theory.

I think heading over to the vax forum and just doing some research there would be a great place to start! My only regret is that I didn't research all of this when I was a first time mom with my oldest. (she is NT, its my middle child that has Autism)

[Adamsmama]

Thanks for all the input. Something I notice with all 3 of my kids is that the NT kids are really smart, a little quirky and have some very mild sensory problems (my son much more so than my daughter -- auditory and touch/texture/hot/cold). My son that is autistic also has pretty substantial brain damage, a lot of stimming, mild CP and sensory issues. I guess it is really the brain damage more than "autism" alone that bothers me. I don't know that vaccines cause/don't cause autism -- I just wonder if vaccines during pregnancy can hurt the baby. If I get it, which I guess I'm leaning towards, because of my other problems it will definately be free of mercury. My diet is completely free of corn syrup, preservatives/addivites ... I'm on a very strict diet, eat mostly organic but always free of dyes/preservatives, low saliyclates. I do not currently eat fish, either.

[mama2soren]

No flu shot is 100% mercury-free. The ones that are labeled as such still have trace amounts of mercury.

Another concern many people have is the large amount of aluminum, a known neurotoxin, that is present in most vaccines. While the flu vaccines are aluminum-free, they contain other ingredients that some find questionable, including formaldehyde and MSG.

Again, I encourage you to cross-post this on the Vaccine Forum. You will learn a lot about vaccines during pregnancy.

[Shell_Ell]

I was due last November in the midst of a ton of H1N1 fear mongering. I completely understand how hard this decision is. I'm going to second the person above who said focus on Vitamin D... you should get your levels up for nursing anyhow, and flu protection is also a big plus.

I would never get a vaccination while pregnant. Period. End of story for me. I would never dismiss someone who was nervous about it, especially not someone who's been through a lot with a special needs child. There are real risks.