References 279indications of immunological dysregulation as potential contributing patho-
genic processes for, at least in certain subgroups of individuals, particularly
regressive ASD. Nevertheless, it is unclear whether the role of inflammation in
ASD induces epigenetic change, via the activation of signaling cascades, or
whether it is a direct result of mercury that causes upregulation of inflamma-
tory cytokines, which makes the recipient’s BBB leaky. While, there is a grow-
ing body of work to support the role of inflammatory cytokines in ASD, future
work is needed to demonstrate how we can prevent regressive ASD associated
with mercury‐containing vaccines.
Furthermore, we strongly recommend that the use of mercury‐containing
vaccines should continue to be curtailed and, if this is not feasible, the amount
of organomercury used must be reduced. In addition, we recommend that chil-
dren under 18 months of age should be monitored for the presence of inflam-
matory cytokine levels that may harm the child upon receiving any type of
thimerosal based vaccine.
Despite potential risks, vaccines save lives and have significantly reduced the
risk of, and even in some cases eliminated, many serious diseases. Decreased
vaccination rates have led to some focused outbreaks in recent years, including
a recent outbreak of measles in Minnesota, USA. Thus, the importance of vac-
cination cannot be overstated. All the known and potential neurotoxic agents
must be eliminated from all vaccines.
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