Autism's False Prophets
Encyclopedia
Autism's False Prophets: Bad Science, Risky Medicine, and the Search for a Cure is a 2008 book by Paul Offit
, a vaccine expert and chief of infectious diseases at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
. The book focuses on the controversy
surrounding the now discredited link between vaccine
s and autism
.
and the vaccine preservative thiomersal
, as well as subsequent scientific evidence
which has disproved a link with autism. The book discusses possible explanations for the persistence of these claims in the face of scientific evidence to the contrary, as well as the proliferation of potentially risky and unproven treatments for autism. The author takes a critical view of several advocates of a vaccine–autism link, including Andrew Wakefield
, David Kirby, Mark Geier
, and Boyd Haley
, raising scientific and, in some cases, ethical and legal concerns. The book also explores divisions within the autism community on the topic of vaccines, as some parents consider the ongoing narrow focus on vaccines a distraction from more scientifically promising avenues of research. In this vein, Offit interviews Kathleen Seidel, a mother of an autistic child who has published investigations critical of those who profit from promoting vaccine–autism claims.
Offit also touches on the heated and bitter debate surrounding vaccine claims. He describes receiving death threats, hate mail
, and threats against his children as a result of his advocacy for vaccine safety. Offit declined to do a book tour for Autism's False Prophets, citing concerns about his physical safety and comparing the intensity of hatred and threats directed at him to that experienced by abortion
providers. Author's royalties
from the book are being donated to the Center for Autism Research at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
.
and The Philadelphia Inquirer
. The New York Post
reviewed the book positively, concluding: "Although arguably the most courageous and most knowledgeable scientist about vaccines in the United States, Offit lives in fear for his life and that of his family." The Wall Street Journal
also praised the book as "an invaluable chronicle that relates some of the many ways in which the vulnerabilities of anxious parents have been exploited."
The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote that the book "names names and calls nonsense nonsense", and provides "important insight into the fatal flaws of the key arguments of vaccine alarmists." The Inquirer applauded Offit's focus on slanted and sensationalist media coverage of the vaccine–autism issue, but faulted Offit for not holding scientists themselves sufficiently accountable for their failure to communicate the facts to the public.
The Rocky Mountain News
noted that the book "turned the tables" on those who see a pharmaceutical-industry conspiracy behind vaccination, by pointing out that the advocates of the autism–vaccine link receive large sums of money from lawyers and lobbyists. The News applauded the book's deconstruction of "misinformation" from Don Imus
, Jenny McCarthy
, Joseph Lieberman, and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
, among others, but found Offit's "sarcasm and brow-beating of those he disagrees with" to be "grating".
Salon
reviewed the book as an "enlightening, highly readable, and ... timely" work which "deconstruct[s] the anti-vaccine movement as one driven by bad science, litigious greed, hype and ego." Salon faulted Offit for minimizing the work that autism advocacy groups have done to raise awareness, create support networks, and obtain research funding; the review noted that Offit focuses instead on aggressive and scientifically "slanted" groups like Defeat Autism Now! and Generation Rescue
. The review concluded that the book "effectively pulls back the curtain on the anti-vaccine movement to reveal a crusade grounded less in fact and more in greed and opportunism".
Science
called the book "forceful" and "an easy-to-read medical thriller about the consequences of greed, hubris, and intellectual sloppiness." The review noted that Offit did not discuss the irrationality of human decision-making in the presence of relative risk and both anecdotal and empirical evidence, and mentioned that Offit did not carefully discuss the role of regression. In conclusion, the review observed that the book has emboldened the media to apply scientific principles, and called for using the book's momentum to shift resources from the autism–vaccination debate to research into causes and treatments.
The Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders said the book "makes an important contribution to popular debates about the etiology and treatment of autism spectrum disorders. The book is arguably the most detailed and thorough history available of the current anti-vaccine movement". The review noted one possible weakness: the book gives light coverage to the public's fundamental misunderstanding of the epidemiology of autism
, in that the public fears an "autism epidemic" that may not in fact be occurring. The review concluded with a call to scientists and physicians to follow Offit's lead in communicating to the public even uncomfortable truths about autism.
Four months after its release, the New York Times reported that the book had been endorsed widely by pediatricians, autism researchers, vaccine companies, and medical journalists, and was "galvanizing a backlash against the antivaccine movement in the United States." Many doctors are critical of "false equivalence" in media coverage of the vaccine issue, and now argue that reporters should treat the antivaccine lobby with the same level of indifference as AIDS denialism and other fringe theories.
Later in 2009, the New England Journal of Medicine
reported that the book effectively advocated for vaccines and refuted the vaccine–autism myth. It noted that a particular strength of the book is its outline of the scientific method and the basic principles of probability and causality, and its coverage of the difficulty of explaining science to the public, such as the difference between causality and coincidence. It noted as a weakness the book's several diversions into topics such as breast implants.
Other largely favorable reviews appeared in BioScience
, in Health Affairs
, and in the Journal of Child Neurology.
Paul Offit
Paul A. Offit, M.D., is an American pediatrician specializing in infectious diseases and an expert on vaccines, immunology, and virology. He is the co-inventor of a rotavirus vaccine that has been credited with saving hundreds of lives every day. Offit is the Maurice R...
, a vaccine expert and chief of infectious diseases at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is one of the largest and oldest children's hospitals in the world. CHOP has been ranked as the best children's hospital in the United States by U.S. News & World Report and Parents Magazine in recent years. As of 2008, it was ranked #1 in the nation for...
. The book focuses on the controversy
Vaccine controversy
A vaccine controversy is a dispute over the morality, ethics, effectiveness, or safety of vaccinations. Medical and scientific evidence surrounding vaccinations generally demonstrate that the benefits of preventing suffering and death from infectious diseases outweigh rare adverse effects of...
surrounding the now discredited link between vaccine
Vaccine
A vaccine is a biological preparation that improves immunity to a particular disease. A vaccine typically contains an agent that resembles a disease-causing microorganism, and is often made from weakened or killed forms of the microbe or its toxins...
s and autism
Autism
Autism is a disorder of neural development characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior. These signs all begin before a child is three years old. Autism affects information processing in the brain by altering how nerve cells and their...
.
Summary
Offit describes the origins and development of claims regarding the MMR vaccineMMR vaccine
The MMR vaccine is an immunization shot against measles, mumps, and rubella . It was first developed by Maurice Hilleman while at Merck in the late 1960s....
and the vaccine preservative thiomersal
Thiomersal
Thiomersal , and commonly known in the US as thimerosal, is an organomercury compound. This compound is a well established antiseptic and antifungal agent....
, as well as subsequent scientific evidence
Scientific evidence
Scientific evidence has no universally accepted definition but generally refers to evidence which serves to either support or counter a scientific theory or hypothesis. Such evidence is generally expected to be empirical and properly documented in accordance with scientific method such as is...
which has disproved a link with autism. The book discusses possible explanations for the persistence of these claims in the face of scientific evidence to the contrary, as well as the proliferation of potentially risky and unproven treatments for autism. The author takes a critical view of several advocates of a vaccine–autism link, including Andrew Wakefield
Andrew Wakefield
Andrew Wakefield is a British former surgeon and medical researcher, known as an advocate for the discredited claim that there is a link between the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, autism and bowel disease, and for his fraudulent 1998 research paper in support of that claim.Four years after...
, David Kirby, Mark Geier
Mark Geier
Mark R. Geier is a self-employed American physician and controversial professional witness who has testified in more than 90 cases regarding allegations of injury or illness caused by vaccines....
, and Boyd Haley
Boyd Haley
Boyd E. Haley, PhD , is a retired professor of chemistry at the University of Kentucky. The basic research interest of his laboratory centered on biochemical and biomedical problems involving control at the molecular level, particularly in biological systems regulated by protein–nucleotide...
, raising scientific and, in some cases, ethical and legal concerns. The book also explores divisions within the autism community on the topic of vaccines, as some parents consider the ongoing narrow focus on vaccines a distraction from more scientifically promising avenues of research. In this vein, Offit interviews Kathleen Seidel, a mother of an autistic child who has published investigations critical of those who profit from promoting vaccine–autism claims.
Offit also touches on the heated and bitter debate surrounding vaccine claims. He describes receiving death threats, hate mail
Hate mail
Hate mail is a form of harassment, usually consisting of invective and potentially intimidating or threatening comments towards the recipient...
, and threats against his children as a result of his advocacy for vaccine safety. Offit declined to do a book tour for Autism's False Prophets, citing concerns about his physical safety and comparing the intensity of hatred and threats directed at him to that experienced by abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
providers. Author's royalties
Royalties
Royalties are usage-based payments made by one party to another for the right to ongoing use of an asset, sometimes an intellectual property...
from the book are being donated to the Center for Autism Research at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is one of the largest and oldest children's hospitals in the world. CHOP has been ranked as the best children's hospital in the United States by U.S. News & World Report and Parents Magazine in recent years. As of 2008, it was ranked #1 in the nation for...
.
Reception
The book was the nucleus of profiles of Offit in NewsweekNewsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
and The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer is a morning daily newspaper that serves the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, metropolitan area of the United States. The newspaper was founded by John R. Walker and John Norvell in June 1829 as The Pennsylvania Inquirer and is the third-oldest surviving daily newspaper in the...
. The New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
reviewed the book positively, concluding: "Although arguably the most courageous and most knowledgeable scientist about vaccines in the United States, Offit lives in fear for his life and that of his family." The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
also praised the book as "an invaluable chronicle that relates some of the many ways in which the vulnerabilities of anxious parents have been exploited."
The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote that the book "names names and calls nonsense nonsense", and provides "important insight into the fatal flaws of the key arguments of vaccine alarmists." The Inquirer applauded Offit's focus on slanted and sensationalist media coverage of the vaccine–autism issue, but faulted Offit for not holding scientists themselves sufficiently accountable for their failure to communicate the facts to the public.
The Rocky Mountain News
Rocky Mountain News
The Rocky Mountain News was a daily newspaper published in Denver, Colorado, United States from April 23, 1859, until February 27, 2009. It was owned by the E. W. Scripps Company from 1926 until its closing. As of March 2006, the Monday-Friday circulation was 255,427...
noted that the book "turned the tables" on those who see a pharmaceutical-industry conspiracy behind vaccination, by pointing out that the advocates of the autism–vaccine link receive large sums of money from lawyers and lobbyists. The News applauded the book's deconstruction of "misinformation" from Don Imus
Don Imus
John Donald "Don" Imus, Jr. is an American radio host, humorist, philanthropist and writer. His nationally-syndicated talk show, Imus in the Morning, is broadcast throughout the United States by Citadel Media and relayed on television by the Fox Business Network.-Personal life:Imus was born in...
, Jenny McCarthy
Jenny McCarthy
Jennifer Ann "Jenny" McCarthy is an American model, comedian, actress, author, activist, and game show host. She began her career in 1993 as a nude model for Playboy magazine and was later named their Playmate of the Year. McCarthy then parlayed her Playboy fame into a successful television and...
, Joseph Lieberman, and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
Robert Francis Kennedy, Jr. is an American radio host, activist, and attorney specializing in environmental law. He is the third of eleven children born to Ethel Skakel Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy and is the nephew of John F. Kennedy and Edward M. Kennedy...
, among others, but found Offit's "sarcasm and brow-beating of those he disagrees with" to be "grating".
Salon
Salon.com
Salon.com, part of Salon Media Group , often just called Salon, is an online liberal magazine, with content updated each weekday. Salon was founded by David Talbot and launched on November 20, 1995. It was the internet's first online-only commercial publication. The magazine focuses on U.S...
reviewed the book as an "enlightening, highly readable, and ... timely" work which "deconstruct[s] the anti-vaccine movement as one driven by bad science, litigious greed, hype and ego." Salon faulted Offit for minimizing the work that autism advocacy groups have done to raise awareness, create support networks, and obtain research funding; the review noted that Offit focuses instead on aggressive and scientifically "slanted" groups like Defeat Autism Now! and Generation Rescue
Generation Rescue
Generation Rescue is a nonprofit organization that advocates the view that autism and related disorders are primarily caused by environmental factors, particularly vaccines. These claims are biologically implausible and lack convincing scientific evidence...
. The review concluded that the book "effectively pulls back the curtain on the anti-vaccine movement to reveal a crusade grounded less in fact and more in greed and opportunism".
Science
Science (journal)
Science is the academic journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and is one of the world's top scientific journals....
called the book "forceful" and "an easy-to-read medical thriller about the consequences of greed, hubris, and intellectual sloppiness." The review noted that Offit did not discuss the irrationality of human decision-making in the presence of relative risk and both anecdotal and empirical evidence, and mentioned that Offit did not carefully discuss the role of regression. In conclusion, the review observed that the book has emboldened the media to apply scientific principles, and called for using the book's momentum to shift resources from the autism–vaccination debate to research into causes and treatments.
The Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders said the book "makes an important contribution to popular debates about the etiology and treatment of autism spectrum disorders. The book is arguably the most detailed and thorough history available of the current anti-vaccine movement". The review noted one possible weakness: the book gives light coverage to the public's fundamental misunderstanding of the epidemiology of autism
Epidemiology of autism
The epidemiology of autism is the study of factors affecting autism spectrum disorders . Most recent reviews of epidemiology estimate a prevalence of one to two cases per 2,000 people for autism, and about six per 1,000 for ASD; because of inadequate data, these numbers may underestimate ASD's true...
, in that the public fears an "autism epidemic" that may not in fact be occurring. The review concluded with a call to scientists and physicians to follow Offit's lead in communicating to the public even uncomfortable truths about autism.
Four months after its release, the New York Times reported that the book had been endorsed widely by pediatricians, autism researchers, vaccine companies, and medical journalists, and was "galvanizing a backlash against the antivaccine movement in the United States." Many doctors are critical of "false equivalence" in media coverage of the vaccine issue, and now argue that reporters should treat the antivaccine lobby with the same level of indifference as AIDS denialism and other fringe theories.
Later in 2009, the New England Journal of Medicine
New England Journal of Medicine
The New England Journal of Medicine is an English-language peer-reviewed medical journal published by the Massachusetts Medical Society. It describes itself as the oldest continuously published medical journal in the world.-History:...
reported that the book effectively advocated for vaccines and refuted the vaccine–autism myth. It noted that a particular strength of the book is its outline of the scientific method and the basic principles of probability and causality, and its coverage of the difficulty of explaining science to the public, such as the difference between causality and coincidence. It noted as a weakness the book's several diversions into topics such as breast implants.
Other largely favorable reviews appeared in BioScience
BioScience
BioScience is a peer-reviewed monthly sometimes daily scientific journal that is published by the American Institute of Biological Sciences . The content is written and edited for accessibility to researchers, educators, and students alike...
, in Health Affairs
Health Affairs
Health Affairs is a peer-reviewed healthcare journal established in 1981 by John K. Iglehart. It was described by The Washington Post as "the bible of health policy". Health Affairs is indexed and/or abstracted in PubMed, MEDLINE, EBSCO databases, ProQuest, LexisNexis, Current Contents/Health...
, and in the Journal of Child Neurology.
External links
- Columbia University Press web page for Autism's False Prophets
- Excerpt from the book's prologue