Tuesday, July 12, 2005

Dear Reader,

Don't you DARE issue a public opinion about a medical controversy unless you're a Medical Doctor - that's with a capital M and a capital D, mister.

If you're not an M.D., keep your opinion to yourself.

That's a blunt way of describing a not-so-subtle message that ran through a report on ABC's World News Tonight last month. And many officials in the medical establishment would be very pleased if you and I knew as little as possible about the controversial topic of this report.

Simple as A-B-C

The ABC report concerned the association between childhood vaccines and autism. The topic was raised when Rolling Stone magazine published an article by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., titled "Deadly Immunity." In a nutshell: Mr. Kennedy accuses the medical establishment of helping drug companies cover up evidence that autism may be caused by vaccines that contain the mercury-based preservative thimerosal.

After covering the details of the controversy (as I've also done in several e-Alerts) ABC anchorman Charles Gibson turned to medical Timothy Johnson, M.D., for commentary. Dr. Johnson began by recognizing the controversy and then pointing out that there is no conclusive scientific evidence to back up the autism/thimerosal link. And then he kindly pointed out that Mr. Kennedy may not be a reliable source on this matter because he's not a doctor.

The condescending implication, of course, is that poor Mr. Kennedy's non-doctor status puts him in a class of laymen who couldn't possibly grasp the nuances of this case.

Granted, Mr. Kennedy doesn't have an "M.D." after his name. But he is a graduate of Harvard University and the University of Virginia Law School, and he has a Masters Degree in Environmental Law from Pace University.

So, it's safe to assume, while he's not a medical doctor, he's also not a complete idiot.

What's up, Docs?

The Boston Globe recently carried an article by Mr. Kennedy that reiterated many of the points he made in the Rolling Stone piece, such as the fact that in the early '90s public health officials significantly increased the number of vaccines containing thimerosal.

No degree in medicine needed to understand that one. Or this one: According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the autism rate among U.S. children in 1995 was 1 in 2,500. Ten years later the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) puts the rate at 1 in 166.

Gee...I'm not a doctor either, and yet these dots are pretty much connecting themselves!

But if ABC's Dr. Johnson wants some M.D.s to weigh in on the thimerosal issue, Mr. Kennedy can oblige:
Maruice Hilleman, M.D., was one of the leaders of Merck's vaccination program. In a 1991 memo he warned company executives that when the standard schedule of vaccines was given to a 6-month-old child, mercury exposure would be more than 85 times the safety standards set by the government. He suggested that thimerosal use be stopped. His suggestion was disregarded. Government officials later added seven more vaccines containing thimerosal to the vaccine schedule.

In June 2000, a secret meeting to evaluate thimerosal research was organized by the CDC and included representatives from the FDA and several drug companies. At that meeting, Bill Weil, M.D., described the results of the studies as "statistically significant."
One of the participants of that meeting, Richard Johnston, M.D., said that he didn't want his newborn grandson to receive vaccines with thimerosal "until we know better what is going on."

Jill James, M.D., is an FDA scientist who recently conducted a study that found many autistic children lack the ability to produce glutathione, an antioxidant that helps the body remove mercury.

I wonder if the opinions of four M.D.s are enough to persuade Dr. Johnson that drug makers should have been far more careful when they included a known toxin as an ingredient in their widely used vaccines?

An ounce of caution...

Many scientists, researchers and Dr. Johnson argue that there is no conclusive scientific evidence linking autism with thimerosal use. When they say this, they're setting the bar high for scientific proof. And they should. One or two, or even three or four studies may be very persuasive without being scientifically conclusive.

So let's say 15 years ago there was no hard evidence based on current research that mercury would poison a generation of children. Then wouldn't it have made a world of sense to hold off forcing it on our kids until the evidence WAS conclusive?

I realize this sort of talk gives drug company bean counters a good laugh. But the parents of thousands of autistic kids aren't laughing. And sadly, neither are their beautiful children.

In recent years the thimerosal content of children's vaccines has been reduced, but Mr. Kennedy notes in the Boston Globe article that the preservative is still used in flu vaccines, tetanus boosters and some over-the-counter drugs. If you have a young child or grandchild, ask your pediatrician for assurance that any required vaccines contain no thimerosal.

...and another thing

Can e-mail help you stay healthy?

If it's the right kind of e-mail, maybe so.

In a study of more than 1,600 subjects, those who received e-mails that discussed the benefits of exercise and good nutrition tended to exercise more and had greater knowledge about health issues than those who did not receive the e-mails.

Health e-mails were sent out to half the test subjects every week for three months.

Canadian researchers report that the e-mail group also reduced their body mass index, while the non-e-mail group actually gained some weight on average.

So...can your health improve just by reading the HSI e-Alert when it pops up in your e-mail inbox every day? I can't make such a claim (or FDA attorneys will come knocking on my door). But just in case, make sure you keep reading. And, as always, feel free to invite your friends and family to enjoy this new brand of "medicine."

To Your Good Health, Jenny Thompson

Sources:

"Deadly Immunity" Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Rolling Stone, 6/20/05, rollingstone.com
"Autism, Mercury, and Politics" Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., The Boston Globe, 7/1/05, boston.com
"Efficacy of an E-mail Intervention for the Promotion of Physical Activity and Nutrition Behavior in the Workplace Context" The American Journal of Health Promotion, July/August 2005, healthpromotionjournal.com
"Spam Can Help Prod People to Better Health - Study" Reuters Health, 6/30/05, reutershealth.com

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