Study links Mercury with Autism

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So, where do you stand on this issue?

-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer

But has anyone proven such a thing, other than the assertions of ambulance chasers?

-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer

That would be a job for multi-disciplinary teams of scientists to determine, after many, many studies have been done by as many different research teams. Not lawyers trying to shakedown corporations. Those studies needed to provide an overwhelming body of evidence that Prozac can cause autism and how it causes autism do not exist.

Space travel topic

A visit to Venus or Mars might have the same effect.

After doing my family tree I have narrowed down the lineage(s) of where my Autism originated. I am glad that it is expressed in me.

Can "scientists" explain exactly how genes cause Autism? Why is everyone so biased toward genetics as a cause when no one can explain it? There is no more evidence that Autism is caused by genes as there is it's caused by environment.

The simple fact that both my parents had displayed autistic behavior, I am autistic, and so is my daughter, tells me that it's genetic.

-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer

Actually, I read an article recently that they are begining to prove that there is a link between deleted and duplicated chromosome sequences and autism. Which leads me to believe that it is hereditary and also related to genetic mutation. The cause of the mutation is questionable, but it could be related to environmental factors. So, I think you may both be right to an extent.

P.S. I think I got it from my Moms side, she's a horder with social disorders, but... there is schizophrenia on my Dad's side.

I'm confused. I thought this was over?

Nope, there will always be people that believe that environment causes autism as long as there are people that don't know anything about genetics or don't want to believe they have traits too. Random genetic mutations are a common cause of autism as well, but it with schizophrenia too and nobody's looking for a scapegoat for that!

Okay,... now I'm confused. Are you saying that you don't believe that environmental factors can cause genetic mutations? Because I don't think that anyone would try to make that arguement. As well, all that I said was that environment may have played a role in some of the mutations in our ancestors, but no one has proven any of that either way. The fact of the matter is that somewhere along the way our ancestors' or our DNA mutated and that caused our autism. I don't think that there is anything controversal about that statement.

Genetic mutations are well known as a cause of autism, but no environmental factors have been established by anybody you would want to lend your car or money to.

The current prevailing opinion, among mainstream reputable scientists, is that there may also an environmental element, either as a trigger or as something that increases the severity of the symptoms. I buy that: My son is impaired in ways that no one in the family has been, despite the clear genetics of ASD in the family (undiagnosed, but obvious). This doesn't have to be an either / or proposition, genetic or environmental. There are plenty ways they could feed into each other, and reputable science has to consider all the possible combinations.

As for mercury, they have disproved the link between the thimerisol vaccines and AS. That does not mean they have disproved the possibility of mercury a few generations back affecting the sperm and eggs in a way that acts as a trigger. This is an entirely new idea and theory. Pretty far out there, if you ask me, but not yet disproved.

It's possible there may be an environmental component, but none have been conclusively identified. There are no scientists or doctors that those lawyers can put on a witness stand whose credibility can withstand cross examination.

I looked into this study a bit further - it did NOT directly link mercury exposure and autism (and didn't really claim to - their press release was edited)

What it did link was a history of Pink's disease in grandparents and higher incidence of autism in their grandchildren. Pink's disease does have a mercury link, but is basically genetic - the disease was only present in children who had been exposed to mercury, but only 1 in 500 children exposed to mercury developed it.

This would seem to sit well with the current thinking that autism is largely genetic, but has environmental triggers. Perhaps the same genes that cause Pink's disease in a child exposed to mercury lead to autism in a child exposed to something else, either in the womb or in early childhood?

Genetic and environmental influences are correlated with Autism. We have genetic markers and correlations, but no definitive genes that cause Autism. Some of the same genetic markers are associated with other conditions like Schizophrenia, ADHD, and Bi-Polar disorder.

Abused, isolated children, sometimes called feral children, exhibit almost identical behaviors to autistic children, while they may have little genetic basis for their behaviors. We don't call it autism, because we know the behaviors are caused by environmental factors.

There are many situations in life that approximate what these children experience; it influences behavior, and Autism is determined by observing behavior, as well as testing for it.

Many adults living today found ways to adapt and survive before there was a group of traits classified as a disorder called Aspergers syndrome. There are many gray areas here that may be influenced just by the social environment one lands in, particulary among those that are higher functioning.

Mercury is known to adversely impact the nervous system. The tiny amounts available in Vaccines to preserve them, never seemed rational to me, considering almost the entire population received them.

Imagine the numbers of people that used contact lenses and solutions that contained thirmesol over the course of decades. It it gone and forgotten from the solutions; I'm surprised given all the concern over a vaccine that no one tried to suggest that FDA approved usage of thirmesol was a problem, for people that were exposed to it for decades.

I think if anything it would be another factor associated with vaccines that could trigger underlying issues related to Autism. They are still studying that potential factor, but the tiny amounts of mercury have been ruled out.

An impairment of the nervous system exposed to much higher levels of mercury in one that has mild traits of autism, could certainly make the difference in whether or not one sought a diagnosis, but would not necessarily be the underlying cause of the condition.

We understand Autism as a neurological condition, so we shouldn't discount a factor we already know can negatively impact the nervous system of anyone exposed to it, in high levels.