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Publication: The Commentator, Yeshiva University, New York NY.
There is no question that vaccinations are a positive result of the medical advances in the modern era. As a result of vaccinations, diseases such as smallpox and measles have respectively been eradicated and receded significantly in the U.S. However, in certain Jewish communities, measles is resurfacing due to a lack of children being vaccinated. I believe that this proliferation is the result of certain prominent religious leaders being opposed to vaccination.
The modern anti-vaccine movement began with a study published by Andrew Wakefield in The Lancet , (a prestigious peer-reviewed medical journal) which suggested that the combined vaccine of measles, mumps and rubella directly correlates to the development of autism in young children. He therefore urged parents and physicians not to administer the vaccine to children.
In 2010, Wakefield was stripped of his medical license by the General Medical Council of the UK because of his irresponsible research methods. As a result, The Lancet retracted the study published by Wakefield. In addition, a vast majority of the co-authors of the study withdrew their support of the findings. Credible organizations, such as the Center for Disease Control and Prevention , Food and Drug Administration , American Academy of Pediatrics and World Health Organization , have confirmed the relative safety of vaccine use. Unfortunately, Wakefield’s inaccurate findings were still able to sway masses of scientifically illiterate individuals through social media, documentaries and the advocacy of pop-culture icons...