Vaccine Center Issues Warning - The National Vaccine Information Center yesterday warned state officials to investigate the safety of a breakthrough cancer vaccine as Texas became the first state to make the vaccine mandatory for school-age girls. Negative side effects of Gardasil, a new Merck vaccine to prevent the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer, are being reported in the District of Columbia and 20 states, including Virginia. The reactions range from loss of consciousness to seizures.

The Age of Autism: Doctors for Mercury - As doctors and health authorities fight state bans on mercury in vaccines and keep giving it to kids and pregnant women, one fact stands out: their certainty. The image of pediatricians and public officials as valiant defenders of mercury takes a bit of getting used to, given their longstanding efforts to keep the toxic element out of our food, our bodies and the environment. No reasonable person -- let alone health professional -- would advocate keeping mercury in childhood vaccines unless they were absolutely certain it was an exception to this lethal legacy.

Vaccine Additive Linked to Autism - A mercury-laced preservative once widely added to pediatric vaccines exposes infants' brains to twice the neurotoxin previously suspected, offering evidence that health guidelines may underestimate the risk newborns face, researchers say in a report being published today. The additive, thimerosal, has been used in vaccines since the 1930s and is almost 50 percent mercury by weight. Since 2001, manufacturers have gradually phased it out of almost all domestic pediatric vaccines, though it remains in use overseas in cheaper "multidose" vaccines.

Debate Over Vaccines, Autism Won't Die - Seven years after it began, the debate over vaccines and autism just won’t die. In fact, it appears to be finding new life. Several churches have started a grassroots movement to rid vaccines of mercury. A new book on the issue is getting attention. A Kennedy has entered the fray.

David Kirby Responds to R.F.K. Jr.’s Article and Says “Bring It On” - Last month, at the Autism One conference in Chicago, I issued a challenge to the thimerosal naysayers. Borrowing from a certain leader of the Free World, I said, simply, “Bring it on.” So here is the challenge, repeated again. Dr. Julie Gerberding (CDC Director), Dr. Steve Cochi (head of the CDC vaccine program), Dr. Marie McCormick (head of the IOM panel that dismissed the thimerosal theory), Dr. Paul Offit (a leading pediatrician who passionately derides the theory) or any other prominent person who insists that there is no evidence of harm from injecting organic mercury directly into the systems of infant children at levels far in excess of federal safety limits: Let’s talk. You pick the time, place and speakers. You can even set the ground rules. All I ask is that you come forth, and let's get this over with.

Deadly Immunity: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Investigates the Government Cover-up of a Mercury/Autism Scandal - "I devoted time to study this issue because I believe that this is a moral crisis that must be addressed. If, as the evidence suggests, our public-health authorities knowingly allowed the pharmaceutical industry to poison an entire generation of American children, their actions arguably constitute one of the biggest scandals in the annals of American medicine."

ASA Supports "Mercury Free Vaccine Act of 2005" - Autism Society of America (ASA), the nation's oldest and largest organization dedicated to the supporting individuals and families dealing with autism, is pleased to announce its support of the bipartisan move by Congressman David Weldon, MD (FL-15) and Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) to assure the removal of childhood mercury exposure through vaccines. HR 881, the "Mercury Free Vaccine Act of 2005" was introduced last week in the US House of Representatives.

Research Supports Link in Autism to Mercury - Children with autism may process mercury differently than most children, leaving them susceptible to damage from preservatives in vaccines and other sources of the heavy metal, according to a controversial new report released Monday.

Desperate Measures - Armed with a new study, some parents say vaccines trigger autism. But is skipping shots the answer?

MO Kansas City, Missouri Colleges Call for Vaccinations - Health officials are hoping college students will add one more thing to their back-to-school list: a meningitis vaccination.

Arizona State University: Autism Baby Hair Study - A summary of preliminary results as shared with program participants. “Our preliminary conclusion is that many children with autism had low mercury in their baby hair, probably due to impaired excretion. The impaired excretion is probably partly due to excessive oral antibiotics, although genetics or other factors may also play a role.”

Thimerosal Debate Continues - During the 1990s, autism became epidemic, affecting up to 15 times as many children as it did in the prior decade. A small but growing segment of the medical and scientific communities believes the additive Thimerosal, included in mandated multiple childhood vaccines, is the agent that has created the growth of autism. However, the governmental agency charged with the protection of American's health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration, refute the claim.

PA Officials Fight for Stronger Controls on Mercury Pollution - People who enjoy some species that contain trace amounts of mercury may be doing more harm than good. But if 11 states -- including New Jersey and Pennsylvania -- have their way, strict federal regulations would significantly reduce mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants and trash incinerators.

Mercury Linked to Autism-Like Damage in Mice - Institute of Medicine Says Study Does Not Support Link Between Mercury, Autism in Humans.

U.S. CDC's Unspoken Acceptance of Vaccine Additive Raises Furor - Federal officials have added the flu vaccine to the routine immunization schedule for children, but will remain silent about whether parents should request a mercury-free version of the shot. Critics blasted last week's decision, particularly in light of government warnings about other types of mercury exposure.

U.S. Mercury-laced Shots OK for Kids, CDC Says - Hundreds of thousands of infants and toddlers who get flu shots starting this fall could be exposed to a mercury-laced preservative that has been all but eliminated from other pediatric vaccines because of health concerns.

Vaccine Additive Linked to Brain Damage in Children - Mercury-based preservative tied to autism, ADHD, U.S. researchers say. After assuring parents that additives in vaccines don't cause brain damage, scientists have found what they believe could be a "smoking gun" linking these additives to autism and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in children.

UK MMR RIP? - A conspiracy of silence or paranoid scaremongering? Is the MMR vaccine a cause of autism - or is it a vital health program undermined by this medical maverick?