Says Bobby Duffy, Senior Research Fellow, King's College London, author of the book "The Perils of Perception - Why We Get Almost Everything Wrong" who conducted a survey in 38 countries, and showed that the belief still exists even though Andrew Wakefield's article claiming this was rejected from the journal Lentz for forgery, and his arguments for a link between the triple vaccine and autism were refuted
Author: Bobby Duffy, Senior Research Fellow, King's College London, author of The Perils of Perception - Why We Get Almost Everything Wrong
To the article on THE CONVERSATION UK website
One of the most frustrating misconceptions in our many studies is that people continue to accept the persistent myth that vaccines pose a risk to healthy children. This is especially troubling because it has direct long-term consequences.
The Department of Public Health in the UK recently warned young people to look for measles symptoms before arriving at a music festival in Essex. This follows 12 measles cases in the district since July, far above the usual numbers. The increase reflects a broader trend. The number of measles cases in Europe quadrupled in 2017, in which 20,000 people were infected and 35 of them died. The increase in the UK is mainly among young people who are less likely to have been vaccinated in childhood, due to a panic about vaccines spread by Andrew Wakefield's now completely debunked claim that the triple vaccine could cause leaks in the stomach and reach the brain through the bloodstream (and cause autism).
However, new doubts continue to accumulate, when parties in Italy continue to spread the claim as well as the demand for freedom of choice, and over twenty tweets by US President Donald Trump spread this connection. This despite many reviews that failed to find any connection, including a study of studies (meta-analysis) of the medical records of 1.25 million children done in the UK in 2014.
Are these unfounded fears stuck in the minds of the public around the world? Our first multi-year study, in 38 countries, on vaccine misconceptions, indicates this. One in five people believe that "some vaccines cause autism in healthy children", and 38% are not sure if this is true or not. The range extends from 44% of Indians who believe this to only 8% in Spain.
But there are many countries where the majority of residents think this is true or are not sure - 65% in France, 55% in Great Britain and 52% in Italy and there are some that are not far from 50% - Sweden 49% and Germany 48%.
Why do we fear vaccines?
So why do three out of five people across these states feel unsure or believe there is a link between some vaccines and autism in healthy children, even though the claims have been completely disproved? Part of the answer lies in the fact that this claim has many elements that drive conspiracy theories.
First, this is a very emotional topic. There is nothing more emotional than worrying about the health of our children. We treat information differently when we are in highly emotional situations. So we are less rational.
Second, the medical complexity requires an understanding of the risk, which we struggle with in particular, we must understand the distinction between danger, which is the potential for harm, and risk, which is the probability that this negative result will actually occur. For example, there is a small but real chance that the vaccine may exacerbate an underlying mitochondrial disorder, which is associated with regressive autism in a small proportion of children. There are American court rulings that can legitimately be used as evidence that there is a danger, but these events are very rare and therefore the risk does not actually exist. But this is a difficult point to communicate.
Also, the media doesn't help when parts of it continue to keep the story alive. It's not just TV shows or articles in the written media that present the relationship without any backlash. Even those who seek to provide a balanced report, they give the possibility of a response and thus they actually cause a caption, because everyone can choose what they want from the evidence. Cass Sonstein, in studies of reactions to conflicting information about climate change, called this "asymmetrical updating", where people take the information that fits their views and ignore the contrary evidence.
The narrative is also important. Stories tend to stick with us. For example Jenny McCarthy, the model, actress and TV host is an example of an "autism mom" who explains how she claims thousands of parents feel after the vaccine. "I came home, he had a fever, he stopped talking, and then he was autistic." In bringing up these stories, according to representative evidence, he says, without a hint of irony, that "anecdotal information from the parents becomes science-based information."
In these environments, the story takes over reality. Paul Offit, an immunologist, refuses to appear with McCarthy in media interviews, explaining: "Every story has a hero, a victim and a villain. McCarthy is the hero, her child is the victim - and that leaves you with only one role."
The contrast to the first days of vaccinations could not be greater. When Jonas Salk announced the results of the polio vaccine tests, 16 television cameras filmed the academic presentation and transmitted the findings to 54 doctors across the US. Judges suspended hearings so that people could celebrate the findings as if it were a victory in the war.
In some ways, vaccines are a victim of their own success, because we are more likely to notice ghostly shortcomings than world-changing, but gradual, improvements. We need to fight these misconceptions to prevent them from gaining more attention.
More of the topic in Hayadan:
16 תגובות
Yosef
I agree with what you say.
I see things a little differently. The issue is not for or against vaccines - but for or against belief in the scientific method. Modern medicine is the result of a lot of science, by a lot of good people.
As I said earlier - there are two reasons for opposing the scientific method: evil and stupidity.
By the way, for the same reason I don't call myself an "atheist". Here again the point is, do you believe in the scientific method or not. And unlike the previous topic, there are more than two reasons for religious belief... in particular, religious people can be (and usually are) good and wise.
Overall I am in favor of vaccination. Without it, epidemics occur.
This week there was a case of a woman who was not vaccinated - I don't remember why, and because of this the fetus was twice in danger, one of them alive, and the doctors barely managed to save it. But always exercise judgment and sometimes it is about making a decision in uncertainty.
I recently read about an omega-3 food supplement, which, when taken correctly, according to professors, inhibits diseases that lead to the destruction of brain cells, and can be used continuously (as opposed to drugs whose effect wears off after a short period of time and it is necessary to increase the dose). It is good. But I also read on several medical websites - about studies that showed a 71% increase compared to the existing rate, in a violent type of prostate cancer. So those who are at genetic risk, and those who cannot take it, but every taking has an element of gambling.
In my understanding, the full effects of a drug can be seen after 60 years of research - several generations. This is how medicine progresses and I am actually in favor of medicine. Medicines approved after about 13 years of trials.
gift
Did anyone say it's bad?
What's wrong with autism? I'm on the spectrum, so is Einstein and maybe Zuckerberg and probably this one from Microsoft and that one from this and that one from there. In short, take a vaccine against yourselves and that's it
Yosef
You are not against vaccines, and I am not talking about people like you.
The problem is twofold: people who do not vaccinate comprehensively, and people who spread lies about vaccines. The lies are that vaccines don't help, that pharmaceutical companies sell vaccines to make a fortune, that no disease has disappeared following vaccinations, that the Ministry of Health is trying to fool us, that childhood diseases are good, and so on.
Do not draw conclusions from research. Even in physics, no conclusions are drawn from a single experiment. That's why there are doctors and there is the Ministry of Health. Those who think they are smarter than them are usually not smart at all.
There is another argument of vaccine opponents that they don't say out loud: if most people get vaccinated then I less need to get vaccinated. I don't understand who allowed these scumbags to have children….
Sorry. There is a point judgment. As someone who gets vaccinated, if I read scientific studies that warn about a specific vaccine I will not get vaccinated before checking. There are also doctors who believe that the papilloma vaccine is harmful. I sent you 2 links. At least one of them is medical.
As for Omega 3 - most researchers believe it is good, but about 5 researchers believe it is also harmful.
Yosef
Opponents of vaccines are either evil or stupid. Wicked - if they know the truth, stupid if they don't check what the truth is.
Certainly there is a risk in the vaccine. The risk of not vaccinating is hundreds of thousands and millions of times greater. And this is even before taking into account the issue of "vaccinating the herd".
There is no such thing as a "community of doctors". There are health systems and there are doctors, who are people.
There is not a single doctor worthy of the title "doctor" who opposes vaccines. There are doctors who oppose vaccines. In Israel there is one scoundrel... I will get into trouble if I mention his name... who opposes - but sells his own "homeopathic vaccine".
The topic here is vaccines and autism. Because of the son of a dog named Wakefield, an unnecessary huge fortune was invested to prove that there was no connection between the two things. And of course this has been proven.
Yosef - there is a risk in using seat belts. There are cases where people have been killed because of seat belts - if they weren't wearing belts, they would be alive today.
So is anyone opposed to seat belts because of this?
A good example of people's stupidity is the behavior of the weakened polio vaccine at the time. There is not a single documented case of a person who received the weakened vaccine after the killed vaccine - and contracted the disease (I was able to find a single such case, but I was unable to verify the source of this case, and it is possible that it did not happen at all). There are far too many wicked and stupid people in Israel who claim otherwise.
Miracles will not be dragged into slander. I do not slander the entire population of doctors and I vaccinate myself.
https://www.mako.co.il/health-news/local/Article-69286541b3b5251006.htm
https://www.drugwatch.com/vaccines/hpv/
Sometimes the system in the country does things that are not necessarily in the best interest of the general public but for the majority.
Sometimes the system is like a big ship, it takes time to change direction.
Here we get into a philosophical/moral debate - if 0.1% of the population gets sick as a result of a certain effect, they must prevent that effect.
Aviram
I did not understand. Are you claiming that there are no autistic people who have not received vaccines?
There is a high probability of an autistic child who did not receive vaccines (this is the absolute proof against the vaccine deniers). who is this boy
Yosef
what exactly do you know keeping it a secret? And what are your sources?
What you have done now is a defamation of those for whom you live. Shame on you!
Regarding a vaccine against the papilloma virus, I know that there are things in the body and the medical community continues to insist that there is not.
Well done Assaf
I would not believe that someone like you could do one thing and another and come to the conclusion that I am a "believing" person.
Raphael (the believer)
After seeing your comments in:https://www.hayadan.org.il/theres-a-psychological-link-between-conspiracy-theories-and-creationism-2308182
I understand that we have a "business" with a believer
And as I commented elsewhere
Against faith there is no point in arguing
so
All I have to say is that (what we wanted to prove)
Collected your response shows your ignorance
Remember - a caveat to wisdom: silence
Nechama Porta
In that the ignorance is not only in our small country,
For it turns out that instead of the inhabitants of the world abandoning superstitions,
More and more people are approaching different "religions".
whose essence is always the same: exploiting human weaknesses
and exploiting the ignorance of the entrants for the benefit of the distributors...