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 New Autism Consortium
Study Proves
(Again) that Inherited Genes Don't
Cause Autism
By SafeMinds Board Member Mark Blaxill
The Autism Genome Project
Consortium (AGPC) deserves credit for at least one thing. They know how to make
a public relations mountain out of a scientific molehill.
The AGPC was all over the
news last month, leading a celebration that went global. "Genes breakthrough in
autism study" proclaimed a UK headline. "Genetic link to autism found",
announced the Sydney Morning Herald, while the Los Angeles Times told us with
only bit more circumspection that a "Big study identifies new genes that may be
involved in autism." The publicity blitz included the suggestion of practical
applications, with a report from the Daily Mirror in London promising that an "Autism
find could lead to a new test" while Business Week picked up more directly on the
commercial opportunity, "Autism's genetic ties may lead to early detection,
treatment."
We've seen this movie
before. No really, not just the metaphorical repetition of the autism genetics
script, but a real movie. It's called Groundhog
Day. Like Bill Murray's character waking up every morning on the same day, the autism gene hunters
relive this same public relations routine over and over again with full
awareness of their past failures. Meanwhile the media, like Murray's fellow
travelers in the movie, remain blessedly free of any long term memory and go
willingly along for every ride.
Genetic analysis once again finds...not very much
So what, you might ask,
was all the excitement about? In brief, the AGPC reported evidence that a particular
type of rare, inherited mutation (called a CNV, or copy number variant) was
more frequent in the DNA of autistic cases than controls. Unlike past autism-CNV
studies, the authors did not report that the total number of mutations per
individual was more frequent in autism. Instead, according to the AGPC, the specific
mutations found in autism cases were more frequently located on active genes. In the eyes of the study authors,
this "higher global burden of rare, genic CNVs" suggests that the location rather
than the frequency of CNVs on the autistic genome made them likely to be
disruptive in their biological effect. Read more.
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 From the Executive Director
The CDC's Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices considers using
"evidence -based" guidelines for vaccine recommendations.
Over
the past decade, I have attended several meetings of the Advisory Committee for
Immunization Practices (ACIP) held at the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta. The
committee is charged with making recommendations on the use and administration
of vaccines approved by the FDA. ACIP
recommendations are then adopted by individual states and become state law.
The committee came under fire by Congress in 2000 when it was revealed that six of
the eleven voting members of the committee, at that time, had financial
interests in the pharmaceutical companies that manufacture vaccines and that, for
the prior 10 years, every one of the recommendations by the ACIP had been
accepted by the CDC and translated into public law.
This is also the committee who has
flatly refused to state a preference for thimerosal free vaccines for pregnant
women, infants and children despite recommendations from the Institute of Medicine to do so and the urgent plea by SafeMinds and fourteen other organizations.
What was different at the most recent ACIP meeting, held
June 23-24, 2010, is that the first
session opened with a discussion surrounding the utilization of "evidence- based"
guidelines for deciding vaccine recommendations. It may be surprising to many of you that the
committee had not been using such guidelines in the past. Read more.
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US to burn millions of
unused mercury containing swine flu vaccines at a cost of $260M. But what's the
cost to human health?
By SafeMinds Board Member Jackie Lombardo
Left over swine
flu vaccines are considered hazardous waste. As with all toxic waste, these
vaccines must undergo specific treatments before disposal, and health
authorities have just announced they are permitting their incineration.
However, because these unwanted products contain mercury, SafeMinds questions
the wisdom of this decision which allows even more mercury to become airborne.
A 2009 study led
by Harvard University and the U.S. Geological Survey predicts mercury levels in
the Pacific Ocean will rise by 50 percent within a few decades as man-made
emissions of mercury increase. Mercury is a neurotoxin that can alter brain
development of fetuses and has been linked with learning problems, autism, and
reduced IQ. No amount of mercury in any form is safe.
It was over 10 years ago that SafeMinds first brought a
concern over mercury in vaccines and autism to health authorities and demanded
a recall of all childhood vaccines containing mercury. The shocking overlap between the manifestations of mercury toxicity and autism along with the fact that the amount of mercury in
vaccines exceeded EPA safety guidelines by 100 fold in some infants brought a
cross-my-heart promise from vaccine manufacturers and health authorities to
stop using mercury. But today in 2010, there is still mercury in vaccines
intended for infants, children and pregnant women.
In fact last
fall, the Centers for Disease Control recommended children age 5-9 get two
doses of mercury-containing swine flu vaccine. If a parent doesn't ensure the
vaccines are mercury-free, a 50 lb child would receive 25 mcg of mercury from
each vaccine. According to the EPA, a child that size
can handle only a maximum of 2.3 mcg of mercury daily from eating fish.
In addition, it
was recommended that young children continue to receive seasonal flu shots
which, like swine flu shots, also contain a whopping 25 mcg of mercury each. If
that 50lb child also received the recommended seasonal flu shots at the same
time as receiving swine flu shots (2 doses of each at two visits), he/she would
have received roughly 20 times the EPA limit for ingested methyl-mercury at one
doctor's visit, and another 20 times the EPA limit at the second doctor's
visit.
There is still no
federal law against mercury in vaccines. They promised, but that promise made to the
American public by vaccine manufacturers and health authorities over 10 years
ago has been broken time and time again. Incinerating unwanted
mercury-containing products paid for by US taxpayers must stop. Demand mercury
free vaccines. Demand mercury-free air.
US to burn millions of swine flu vaccine doses
$260M of Swine Flu Vaccine to Be Incinerated
Mercury sources, distribution, and bioavailability in the North Pacific Ocean: Insights from data and models
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Start the Revolution: Order Age of Autism by Dan Olmsted and Mark Blaxill Today!
 From
Dan Olmsted and Mark Blaxill:
Our book "The Age of Autism: Mercury,
Medicine, and a Man-made Epidemic" goes on sale Sept. 14, and starting
today we're asking you to buy copies and urge friends and family to do the same.
Click HERE to order. We started on the journey to write this book
determined to seek the truth, and now we need you to help spread the word about
what we found. Early sales increase press runs, expand bookstore orders and
launch best sellers that command national attention. For the sake of our
children, our country and our future, attention MUST be paid.
Says Robert F. Kennedy Jr.:
"Olmsted and Blaxill's devastating account
shows how medical and manufacturing interests have mounted an assault on human
health for decades and covered their tracks along the way. The Age of Autism is
only the latest episode in centuries of crimes against nature but is in many
ways the most troubling. Autistic children are the canaries in the coal mine;
shame on all of us if we don't heed their distress call."
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SafeMinds Board Members and Committee Members Spread Awareness with Print and Online Publications
 Mark Blaxill isn't the only SafeMinds board member commenting on the recent Autism Genome Consortium Project. Read Katie Wright's thoughts on the study at Age of Autism.
 SafeMinds Government Affairs Committee Member Angela Warner writes for Age of Autism on autism military families filing a lawsuit against the Department of Defense for health care. Read Angela's article.
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In the News
CDC Reports 163 deaths from lead poisoning in Nigeria
Unmonitored gold mining practices in a remote area of
Nigeria have lead to massive lead poisoning of an entire community, with
children the hardest hit. Doctors
Without Borders is struggling to treat the victims but more deaths are
likely.
Recycled Coal Ash Raising Health Concerns
In 2008, 60 million tons of coal ash were "recycled" in the
United States. This leftover ash from
the burning of coal in power plants is often contaminated with metals like
arsenic, chromium and lead, yet it is finding its way into use as "fill dirt"
in many states. The use of coal ash in
North Carolina has lead to contamination of ground water on several sites and
attempts at regulation have been spotty and heavily resisted to date.
EPA Delays Enforcing Lead Paint Regulations
Industry pressure has forced the EPA to delay enforcement of
the new regulations requiring contractors to have government-approved training
in lead paint containment and abatement.
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Going Once! Going Twice! SOLD! SafeMinds Online Auction Starts July 20th!
SafeMinds will run its online auction from July 20 - 30, 2010. This is our key fundraiser of the year and we hope you will support the event. Just a sampling of some of the items available: We need your support!
We're asking you to participate in one of the following ways...
Donate.
We need Auction items to add to our auction. If you have valuable merchandise, rare collectibles, business or personal services or access to unique events, we need your contribution today. Click here to Donate. Be a Sponsor.
Promote your business on the auction website and e-newsletters for as little as $100. Click here for more information.
Tell Your Friends.
Do you know someone who would be interested in supporting our cause? Please share the news of the online auction with your friends so they can be part of the excitement.
Refer a Friend to our auction so they can get involved.
Thank you in advance for your continued support! We look forward to your item donation and online bids! |
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