The flu virus of flu vaccine does not cause autism in kids during pregnancy.
A new research study manages to strengthen the findings of other similar studies seeking to combat the idea that the flu vaccine causes autism in kids. The novel aspect of the study is that it examined whether or not the pregnant women who either have the flu or get the flu vaccine are increasing their children’s chance of developing autism.
The study which was published in JAMA Pediatrics analyzed an extensive amount of data on approximately 197,000 children who were born between 2000 and 2010 and were registered in the Kaiser Permanente Northern California healthcare system after a period of gestation of at least 24 weeks.
Researchers also conducted follow-ups analysis on the children in periods from two years and up to 15 years. They discovered that 1.6 percent of the kids were diagnosed with ASD. Among the mothers of 1.6 percent of kids, only fewer than 1 percent had the flu while being pregnant, and only around 23 percent of the mothers received a flu vaccine during their pregnancy.
These findings led researchers to conclude that there was no correlation between a mother either being infected with the flu virus or receiving the vaccine to combat or prevent it, and her not yet born child. Lisa Croen, the senior author of the study firmly emphasized the lack association between autism in children and whether or not the mothers had the flu or got the flu vaccine during their pregnancy.
The researchers encouraged women to get the flu vaccine without any reservations to its effects on children during pregnancy. They also did not recommend any changes in the United States’ vaccination policy.
Although there were a number of studies examining whether the flu vaccine causes autism in children of young age, there was no previous research of its effects during pregnancy. Researchers found that previous studies only analyzed the symptoms of influenza in pregnant mothers and not the vaccine during the pregnancy or after it.
Those studies produced mixed results among which an increased risk for premature labor and delivery as well as higher risk of birth defects. Scientists are hopeful that the new study will help future mothers make more informed decisions about their own health and that of their babies.
Image source:
Michael Turner
