Vaccination benefits outweigh any potential risks<\/p>\n
Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
A mother recently posted a message in a mailing list here, urging
\nparents to be aware of mercury contained in some vaccines, which
\nallegedly causes a condition with symptoms similar to autism.<\/p>\n
She said her two-and-a-half-year-old son was one of the
\nvictims, suffering heavy metal poisoning from the vaccination.<\/p>\n
The mother also recommended the Indonesian translation of a
\nbook about what parents should know about children's
\nvaccinations, written by Stephanie Cave, MD and Deborah Mitchell.<\/p>\n
At the end of last month, the Indonesian Autism Foundation
\nheld a seminar called \"Is vaccination safe?\".<\/p>\n
Well, is it?<\/p>\n
The debate over vaccination safety has been going on for a
\nwhile, with some scientific studies claiming a link between
\nchildhood vaccinations and autism.<\/p>\n
One study pointed at the mercury content in thimerosal, the
\npreservative found in some vaccines, especially the
\nmeasles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine.<\/p>\n
The MMR, the study suggested, had caused a particular form of
\nautism, new variant autism, in which children deteriorate over
\ntime and suffer bowel disorders.<\/p>\n
Last February, however, scientists from the Royal Free
\nHospital in England found there is no evidence of such a link.<\/p>\n
\"There is a huge amount of good evidence that there's no
\nrelation between MMR and autism,\" Prof. Brent Taylor, who led the
\nresearch, told BBC News Online.<\/p>\n
Autism, the latest study shows, was just as likely among
\nchildren who did not receive MMR, or to have surfaced in children
\nbefore they were vaccinated.<\/p>\n
Taylor said that by not having the MMR jab, children were
\nbeing put at risk of measles, mumps and rubella.<\/p>\n
Leading British medical publication The Lancet also issued a
\nrare retraction earlier this year for an article it published
\nciting a link between vaccinations and the onset of autism.<\/p>\n
However, many parents and campaign groups still believe that
\ndozens of children have been affected through vaccination.<\/p>\n
Parents here, apparently, are no exception.<\/p>\n
According to pediatrician Hardiono Pusponegoro, who chairs the
\nnational board of the Indonesian Pediatrician Association (IDAI),
\nmany mothers were afraid of getting their children vaccinated.<\/p>\n
\"Whereas we doctors, along with the Ministry of Health, have
\nissued a joint statement that vaccinations are safe,\" Hardiono
\ntold The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
He regretted the influence from a book, which he did not name
\nbut said was written by a parent who is not a doctor but whose
\nchild is autistic, that has been translated and sold here.<\/p>\n
\"The writer is very anti vaccine. Parents here read that book
\nand things are messed up,\" said Hardiono.<\/p>\n
He acknowledged there was an increasing number of autism cases
\nhere. Unfortunately, no one knows what causes the disorder, with
\nsymptoms ranging from a lack of social skills to a profound and
\ncrippling inability to relate to others.<\/p>\n
What is known is that there is genetic factor involved, which
\nis allegedly triggered by environmental factors, such as viral
\ninfection and allergy.<\/p>\n
As autism is usually diagnosed during the toddler years when
\nchildren receive many shots, some believe that the vaccine, or
\nthe thimerosal it contains, is another trigger factor for autism.<\/p>\n
Thimerosal, a type of mercury called ethyl mercury, is used to
\nprevent contamination in vaccine so the latter remains sterile.
\nIt is no longer used in childhood vaccines in the United States,
\nbut it remains in the influenza vaccine and other vaccines in
\nother countries.<\/p>\n
Hardiono said that in Indonesia, thimerosal can still be
\nfound, including in diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus (DPT) and
\nhepatitis vaccines, both of which are mandated for children by
\nthe government.<\/p>\n
\"There is a limit of the ethyl mercury level that is allowed
\nin children's bodies, as mercury can damage the brain. But even
\nif the two vaccines are combined, the mercury limit does not
\nexceed the limit. It is tolerable and not dangerous,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The new vaccines available are free from thimerosal or contain
\na minute amount.<\/p>\n
As for the report of heavy metal contamination, Hardiono said
\nthat the mercury content in fish from the Jakarta Bay, as
\nrecently reported by the media, is much higher.<\/p>\n
\"The mercury in the fish is much higher than all the mercury
\nin the vaccines combined. The type of the mercury is also
\ndifferent, it is methyl mercury, the one that caused the Minamata
\ntragedy,\" Hardiono said, referring to the mercury poisoning that
\noccurred in residents living near a factory in Japan.<\/p>\n
If parents are still worried, Hardiono suggested that they
\nonly have their children immunized with the DPT and hepatitis
\nvaccines.<\/p>\n
\"Especially DPT, we can't bargain with that as the risk is
\ndeath,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"But the bottom line is, we shouldn't be worried about
\nvaccination. If we forsake vaccinations, this country will be
\nruined.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/vaccination-benefits-outweigh-any-potential-risks-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}