I think she is a parasite. mind your own business Amanda Peet.. what a douche.

Whatever. She's speaking out for something she believes in, and there's no crime in that.

If parent's are concerned about vaccines, can't they simply just wait for their children to get their shots? Signs of autism show up pretty early, and I'd bet it's more likely than not that the older a child is, the better their body can metabolize any substance, include vaccinations. So why not hold out until age 4 or 5 before vaccinating your children? Or maybe doing 1 shot a year, instead of 7?

the only research she has done is with people who have a vested interest in vaccines and marketing vaccines. I really hope she never has a first hand experience with autism. She might change her mind. Besides...MOST people I know who think there is a link between autism and vaccines DO NOT advocate no vaccinations. They are only saying, like Jenny McCarthy, that there needs to be major research done on BOTH autism AND vaccines. That we give too many vaccines at once, too quickly. I don't see a problem with overhauling the vaccine schedule. And making sure all vaccines are safe and contain no toxins. There are enough toxins we cannot avoid in our environment already. Why subject our 2 week old, 2 month old, etc...to so many more all at once?

Until she has had firsthand experience with autism, she'd best keep her mouth shut! (signed, someone who has-)

I'm glad she said what she did. You don't have to have a child with autism to have an opinion. Many people who are against vaccines don't fully understand the risk that not vaccinating has (just look at the recent measles outbreak in California). Many people who comment on this subject should take a course in immunology and learn what vaccines really are and how they work (ie: they are NOT "metabolized"). Do your research and respect everyone else's opinion.

Her language was inappropriate, but her sentiment is not. Autism is something people should be united about working to prevent, not something to argue about. When each side stoops to these low levels, it makes finding a cure or effective treatment impossible. Both extreme sides need to grow up.

Well I think that vaccines should be done (maybe not all, definetly not all at the same time or same year) but no vaccines is just harmful for other children. It's contagious and while a child is still forming its immune system, its important to not catch anything dire. Amanda's choice of words had positioned her at a position where she was viewed as someone lacking factual information, if she was more careful with vocabulary, she might have come across as reasonable instead of foolish.

Good job Amanda Peet! Very well spoken. Like others have said vaccines are infinitely safer than ever before, research study after research study has shown no link that vaccines cause autism. Yes autism is very scary and tragic but endangering other children is not an answer. We have so many other causes that could be at hand (environmental exposures, better diagnostic tests {or even over diagnosis}) and blindly insisting on a link that isn't there doesn't help the cause. It's just like the Bush Administration insisting that Abstinence Only programs work when study after study show they don't, or that global warming doesn't exist even though nearly every credible scientist on the globe insists it does. I find the rising distrust in science alarming. I can't believe that anyone will believe 1 fruit loop rather than legions of highly respected researchers.

they took out the mercury ingredient in vaccines in canada

I think she has every right to have an opinion on it, and speak about it. I don't think you have to be parent to a child with autism in order to have researched vaccines and made an informed choice. Whether or not I agree with her is a different story.

I also completely agree that the thing to do is restructure the vaccination schedule. Or at least one thing to do. We don't do the AAP schedule, we do the alternate one. She never gets more than two immunizations in one visit, and there's a month between rather than two months.

Her stance would be different if her daughter had autism. Period. (coming from a mother of an autistic child)

I disagree. I know people with children with autism who agree with her. I think the majority don't, but I don't think it's a given that she'd feel differently.

I have a younger brother with autism, and I completely agree with the "parasites" comment. Autism is heartbreaking, and I understand the impulse to try and blame it on something, but there is no real evidence that vaccines cause autism. On the other hand, there's solid evidence that if people don't vaccinate their children, terrible diseases such as polio will make a comeback.

where's the solid evidence that terrible diseases such as polio will make a comeback?

I think she is 100% justified in speaking out about this... she only mentioned 'herd immunity' briefly in the beginning of the interview, but vaccinations are something that concern the entire human population. Not vaccinating your children is putting everyone at risk, and it's too dangerous to do something like that due to misinformation and unjustified fear of autism.

I don't understand where people are coming from when they say that she has no right to make her comments because she hasn't had to go through the trials and tribulations of having autism introduced into her life. No right? Does she then only have a right to speak about things that have nothing to do with autism? What are her 'rights' exactly? And who gets to decide that?

I know that I have MANY an opinion or concern about things I haven't had to deal with in my life and I exercise my right to educate myself on these subjects. If that involves having a strong opinion at any time, so be it.

That said, I honestly don't know where I stand on the immunization debate. I feel that there are valid concerns on both sides, enough to make a parent stop and think about any choice they have to make...which in itself is a good thing. I don't believe that we should blindly follow anything (doctors, government, religion, etc.)

I'm glad celebrities are out there to explain these things to us. I find it especially funny that she says that the media (that's you, Good Morning America) focuses on what celebrities say more than what researchers say, which is exactly what GMA is doing by interviewing her.

Media outlets today are a joke.

I'm glad celebrities are out there to explain these things to us. I find it especially funny that she says that the media (that's you, Good Morning America) focuses on what celebrities say more than what researchers say, which is exactly what GMA is doing by interviewing her.

Media outlets today are a joke.

@roxtarchic: if a person is exposed to a disease he/she is not immune against, he/she will contract it. A no-brainer, really. Every disease that's not been 100% eradicated will make a comeback as more and more misinformed, panick-mongering parents refuse to vaccinate their children.

The science shows now evidence that vaccines cause autism. We need to leave our emotions out of this.

i agree demoralize... i dont think anyone should blindly follow anything either. i started to blindly follow w/the shots and after the first few, i realized i needed to know more about them... before he got any more... so i did my research, from both sides of the fence... and i know where i stand, and i know why i stand there now. and everyone has the right to their opinion, wherever they're standing in this country.

that's "no evidence", not "now evidence". TeamSugar, any way you can let us edit our posts?

i'm not a panick mongering parent, nor am i misinformed. i asked a question. direct me to the study you're referring to that states polio will make a comeback.... and the science you're quoting so that i can read it and compare it to the other studies i've read, and interpret it for myself

@roxtarchic: It's plain common sense. No immunity + exposure = infection. There's already been a measles outbreak - is that not enough evidence for you? If it was possible for measles to come back, it's possible for other diseases to come back.

Just talk to people who were alive during the polio epidemic, or who survived measles, mumps and rubella. These diseases killed thousands. There is no solid link between autism and vaccines. The component thought to possibly have a link was removed, yet autism is still on the rise. The rise of autism is not due to vaccines it is due to a better understanding of the illness and earlier and correct diagnosis. Children 30 or 40 years ago who today would be diagnosed with some degree of autism were just considered "retarded" and sent on their way. If we start to get sidetracked and try to blame this on one thing, which looks to be the incorrect cause, it will be a setback.

@chocolatine.... NO it's not enough evidence, it's not evidence at all.. you typing an equation is not evidence.

some people will become infected if exposed to a disease and others WON'T, thats FACT. and some people who are vaccinated can become infected w/a disease they're vaccinated against ... including measles (which isn't a deadly disease in any case) there are different strains of diseases and the vaccine might or might not cover for that strain.

making an informed choice about vaccinations involves a lot of research... everyone should do their homework on the topic before they decide where they stand.

I'm wondering if autism affects boys more than girls.

I wonder this because Jenny has a son and she smoked and she also didn't breastfeed her baby by her own admission. I have a co-worker who has a son with autism and she smoked.

I think we should look into this a little more.

@junebug20: my mom never smoked a cigarette in her life, leads a healthy lifestyle, took her iron & prenatal vitamins during pregnancy, etc., and my little brother was born autistic nonetheless .

I didn't know that Jenny smoked - did she smoke during pregnancy? If she did, she is a terrible mother and has no business giving health and parenting advise to anyone. Even if she didn't smoke, she has no business fear-mongering on a topic she knows so little about.

I worried so much about having my daughter vaccinated. But I would have worried even more if she had not been vaccinated. And if you choose not have your children vaccinated, how does that affect their being allowed to attend schools? My daughter is starting a two year old program soon and her vaccination records have to be up-to-date before she can attend the school.

I totally agree with Amanda Peet. I can't believe women are blaming their own genetic defects on Vaccines.

Autism is caused by a genetic defect that derives from the mother. Read up on Fragile X syndrom, they are related.

Actually roxtarchic, measles can be deadly. It's not common but people do die of measles. Besides death there are also some very serious side effects that can cause serious, long-term damage.

chocolatine,

Thank you for responding without flaming. I was afraid I might be on the receiving end of it, but you have class.

I don't take a whole lot of what Jenny McCarthy says for real because I don't respect the decisions she made when she was pregnant. I heard she smoked when pregnant, did not want to breastfeed, and I believe she wanted a c-section so she wouldn't have to go through the labor. I was looking for baby books and came upon hers on Amazon. I read the reviews and they made me sick.

I'm sorry your brother has autism. I hope they can find a cure someday soon. My own husband has had Type 1 diabetes since the age of 5 and believes it was from a vaccine he received as a child in Austria, but no one can say for sure. So I understand the controversy and the concerns.

I just don't understand the diseases these days. When I grew up, I never heard of autism, Alzheimers, Restless Leg Syndrome, Acid Reflux, etc. I remember when we first heard of AIDS and that was a big deal, now we do not hear of it so much.

from wikipedia: The fatality rate from measles for otherwise healthy people in developed countries is low: approximately 1 death per thousand cases. complications from measles are more common in adults than children.

and the most recent outbreaks involved 127 people, none of them died (from reuters) and none of them were vaccinated.

but if someone believes the measles vaccine or any vaccine contributes to autism or add or whatever... they'd have to weigh their options and do their research and decide what they think is worse...

@choclatine: You don't actually contract every disease to which you are exposed. Each year, a number of flu viruses evolve, and we are exposed to at least some of those new strains. Your immune system might be challenged by the new virus, but it won't necessarily succumb to the infection, but instead develop the necessary immunity to continue to avoid infection. Even in terms of exposure to measles, scientists admit only that the infection rate is exceedingly high - but not absolute. I'm not saying that people shouldn't be vaccinated for measles, polio, etc., I'm just rebutting your argument that exposure = automatic contraction of the disease.

Amanda Peet is entitled to her opinion, but she is not entitled to belittle someone else's opinion or actions.

And in terms of whether there is a causation between vaccinations and autism, there has been at least one court to find that it's not outside the realm of possibility. Admittedly the court is not a court of scientists, and in civil cases (which this was) the requirement of proof is much lower than that needed for a criminal conviction, but the plaintiffs received money for damages...

I think this contretemps is actually good for the parenting community. I think - like someone above mentioned they had done - that parents often do things simply because the pediatrician tells them to do it, because that's the way it's always been done, and don't necessarily engage in any soul-searching or research on the issue of vaccinations. And now, they will. Sad that it might take two celebrities in a pissing match to make it happen, but at least it's happening all the same.

From the Mayo Clinic (slightly more reputable than Wikipedia):

Approximately 30 million to 40 million cases of measles occur worldwide each year, resulting in close to 1 million deaths.

And I believe you said "which isn't a deadly disease in any case" and I just wanted to point out that was a fallacy, not argue about how deadly it was or was not.

Plus, with the rate of viral mutations increasing, the more people who could possibly get measles, the more likely we are to get vaccine resistant strains of measles which will likely cause way more cases of death.

Just reading the comments posted here suggests that a lot of people are not properly informed as to why parents, and the likes of Jenny McCarthy are asking the government to do further research in the number and timing of vaccinations given to our children.

They are not against vaccinations, but they are questioning why so many vaccinations are given too early to our young babies who are showing that they cannot process these vaccines inside their little bodies. What they are asking is for the gov't to do an extensive research on why SOME KIDS(1 in 150) have regressed after receiving vaccinations (some between 18-36 mos, some after 6 mos. of life, some even earlier) wherein these kids' developmental milestones are at par with their ages but suddenly stopped developing normally right after vaccination.

The issue these parents and some celebrities are pushing is the timing and number of vaccinations...

Ms. Peet, until you have walked the walk, and talked the talk, you will never be able to fully understand and/or have compassion regarding the autism community. You have no direct connection with autism and apparently no class either, to call vaccine concerned people a parasite. Were you hired to speak for the provaccine entities or is this all to boost your entertainment image.

chocolatine.. g.d. I'm going to just assume you're republican too.

You really think that we're all going to catch everything we are exposed to? I LOVE to toy with life like you have no idea (especially before I had my daughter).. And I don't believe in vaccinations... weather 'control', god ..well, I'm for sure [ex-pastor's daughter], or the 'government' that we are suppose to believe in.

After all.. You really have no idea WHAT these vaccinations consist of as it is for having SUCH a strong opinion. (Unless it's you making it?) In some cases it is fk'n water. But hey, you are what you believe in... like our water is pure, the people above our government aren't out to kill us.. they don't even exist, and all of that kind of sh1t.