What Every Behavior Analyst Should Know About the "MMR Causes Autism" Hypothesis.

Cook (2010) looked at every major paper that claimed the MMR shot causes autism. The author also checked studies that said special diets cure autism.

The review pulled data from large registries like the Danish Psychiatric Central Register. That register tracks every autism diagnosis in the country.

The paper found no link between MMR vaccine and autism. It also found no solid proof that gluten-free or casein-free diets help autistic children.

Danish registry data, covered in Bailey et al. (2010), backs this up. The registry correctly flags autism 94% of the time, so its huge samples are trustworthy.

Bailey et al. (2010) gives the strong numbers behind the myth-busting. Their case series showed the same registry Cook (2010) relies on is highly accurate.

Hickey et al. (2021) shift the focus from cause to screening harms. They warn that even good tools can scare families with false positives.

Hwang et al. (2019) remind us that autistic people die younger, mostly from epilepsy and mental-health issues—not from shots. Their data fit the same autism cohort but ask a different question.

You will meet parents who still fear shots or who want to try the latest diet. Keep this paper handy. Show them that huge, high-quality registries found no vaccine link and no diet benefit. Save your session time for teaching skills, not chasing myths.