Tag Archives: autism

Vaccines and autism: A thorough review of the evidence (2019 update)

Posted on March 12, 2019 by

One of the most common concerns that people have about vaccines is that they might cause (or exacerbate) autism. This idea is perpetuated by celebrities and innumerable websites, and it has become one of the cornerstone arguments of the anti-vaccine … Continue reading →

Posted in Vaccines/Alternative Medicine | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Anti-vaccers, climate change deniers, and anti-GMO activists are all the same

Posted on May 23, 2017 by

I imagine that quite a few people were upset by the title for this post, so let me explain what I mean, and please hear me out before you sharpen your pitchforks. The arguments used by all three of these … Continue reading →

Posted in Global Warming, GMO, Nature of Science, Vaccines/Alternative Medicine | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 82 Comments

Measles is not better than autism: Debunking anti-vaccine arguments

Posted on August 23, 2016 by

Over the weekend, I was unfortunate enough to come across an article by Jaclyn Harwell at “Modern Alternative Health” called “5 Reasons That Measles is Better Than Autism.” Unsurprisingly, it was full of misinformation and shoddy arguments. Indeed, it was … Continue reading →

Posted in Vaccines/Alternative Medicine | Tagged , , , , | 106 Comments

Vaccines and autism: A thorough review of the evidence

Posted on April 28, 2016 by

UPDATE March 2019: Since writing this post, anti-vaccer’s lists have grown and several new studies have been published. Therefore, I wrote an updated version of this article which you can read here. The evidence that vaccines don’t cause autism has … Continue reading →

Posted in Vaccines/Alternative Medicine | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 125 Comments

Silencing opinions vs. managing misinformation: Do skeptics suppress opposing viewpoints?

Posted on March 29, 2016 by

If you have spent any time debating those who deny the well established science of vaccines, climate change, global warming, evolution, etc., then you have likely encountered the accusation that scientists/skeptics try to silence and suppress opposing viewpoints. This claim … Continue reading →

Posted in Nature of Science | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

5 reasons why anecdotes are totally worthless

Posted on February 10, 2016 by

Personal anecdotes are often the primary ammunition of those who deny science. If you ask anyone in the alternative medicine or anti-vaccine movements for their evidence, you will almost certainly get flooded with anecdotes. A quick internet search will reveal … Continue reading →

Posted in GMO, Nature of Science, Rules of Logic, Vaccines/Alternative Medicine | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

100 bad arguments against vaccines

Posted on October 12, 2015 by

From time to time, I get directed to an article titled “One Hundred Arguments Against Vaccines” which was written by Natural Health Warriors and is nothing more than a Gish Gallop of anti-vaccine tropes. I have been loath to address … Continue reading →

Posted in Vaccines/Alternative Medicine | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 36 Comments