Disease and Disorder; When Correlation Doesn’t Mean Causation

It’s possible that the next generation is in danger.

Less than often do we hear of a research study being debunked after it’s been released to the public eye to be known. For British scientist, Andrew Wakefield who scarred and caused a public terror against vaccinations, that seems to be the case. His discredited and retracted research was proven to have falsified findings, but people still don’t believe that his false conclusion was false. One man's fictional findings involving a correlation between vaccinations and autism has led to worldwide paranoia and idiocy. In many parts of the world, it appears that many parents would prefer to leave their children open to deadly diseases rather than to brush up on their facts and brush away their ignorance. 

Although many parents believe the detrimental consequences of vaccinating their children, the research behind the possible outcomes have been debunked and rebuked. Many doctors and researchers have found no correlation between autism and vaccinations. It is a scary event to potentially put your child on the road to danger by vaccinations, but without it, you could “potentially be cause them [the children] more harm” (Effiong). Vaccinations have been used to save lives and eliminate disease around the world. In the end, most vaccinated children don’t even develop autism, meanwhile autism still occurs in unvaccinated kids. The facts just don’t add up. Correlation doesn’t ever mean causation, therefore saying that you won’t vaccinate your kids because it’ll make them autistic is ignorant. 

Having an autistic child is no easy and desirable wish. There’s no clear explanation to what causes autism - just that it’s genetic and environmentally influenced. Although the measles, mumps, and MMR vaccination is environmental factor that some have linked to the development of autism, the facts don’t add up (Effiong). Despite the debunked research and the uncorrelated links, some parent still want to believe in the vaccine conspiracy. When the perfect life and the perfect kid aren’t given to you, it’s usually easy to “grasp at anything to make sense of a hardship” - real or not (Senator). Miserable and devastated, it’s hard for parents to believe that their DNA was the potential problem resulting in a desperate search for an outside factor. Their feelings about vaccinations might influence other parents, creating a dangerous circle for the next generation, vulnerable to disease and sickness. When it comes down to the final straw, most don’t know which is worse: having an autistic child or the return of deadly diseases to attack helpless children.

Having a child is like playing the lottery; you never quite know what you’re going to come out with and in the end, you’re just going to have to deal with that. However, it is the parent’s job to safekeep their “winnings”. By allowing a child to be susceptible to illness and disease because of a mythical autism possibility is irresponsible.

Effiong, Utibe. "Breaking the Silence on Autism and Vaccines." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 11 Mar. 2015. Web. 31 Mar. 2015.

Senator, Susan. "Why Parents Want to Believe in a Vaccine Conspiracy." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2015. Web. 31 Mar. 2015.