Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

WATCH LIVE: RFK Jr. holds news briefing for CDC findings on the increase of autism prevalence [TRANSCRIPT OF RFK Jr's remarks from VIDEO]
YOUTUBE ^ | 04/16/2025 | PBS NewsHour, Robert F Kennedy Jr.

Posted on 04/16/2025 3:13:24 PM PDT by ransomnote

click here to read article


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021 next last
RFK Jr is getting a lot of hate from the MSM for his report on autism today. I think that means he's over the target. Most of the coverage from the media purported to 'debunk' his information citing Biden era officials in the medical community who portray exasperation and label his thinking broken or steeped in conspiracy theories.
1 posted on 04/16/2025 3:13:24 PM PDT by ransomnote
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: ransomnote

ransomnote: The study (published today on the CDC website) upon which RFK Jr. based his report is linked below

Prevalence and Early Identification of Autism Spectrum Disorder Among Children Aged 4 and 8 Years — ADDM network, 16 Sites, United States, 2022
CDC ^ | April 17, 2025 | Kelly A. Shaw, PhD ; Susan Williams; Mary E. Patrick, MPH ; Miguel Valencia-Prado

Posted on 4/16/2025, 4:20:16 PM by ransomnote


2 posted on 04/16/2025 3:17:46 PM PDT by ransomnote (IN GOD WE TRUST)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ransomnote

Don’t fret. They have a new vaccine to stop this problem.


3 posted on 04/16/2025 3:18:08 PM PDT by blackdog ((Z28.310) Be careful what you say. Your refrigerator may be listening & reporting you.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ransomnote
In the '50s there was no such thing as autism. There was no such thing as people dying of measles. The rise of big pharma meant the rise of diseases.

4 posted on 04/16/2025 3:18:44 PM PDT by Governor Dinwiddie ( O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is gracious, and His mercy endureth forever. — Psalm 106)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Governor Dinwiddie

There are a lot of MFers who know the causes behind this epidemic. They all should be burned at the stake. Start with the Senators and congressmen on big pharma’s payroll.


5 posted on 04/16/2025 3:21:39 PM PDT by HYPOCRACY (Long live The Great MAGA Kangz!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: ransomnote; HYPOCRACY

BUMP!


6 posted on 04/16/2025 3:25:16 PM PDT by PGalt (Past Peak Civilization?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

bookmark


7 posted on 04/16/2025 3:50:05 PM PDT by freds6girlies (many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first. Mt. 19:30. R.I.P. G & J)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ransomnote

The autism explosion began in the late 80s. What new and ubiquitous chemical or process introduced during that period served as the catalyst? That’s the main point I took from the presser. Like Kennedy said, AI could be crucial in process of identifying the problem.

With my 13 grandchildren, I’m guaranteed to have multiple autistic great grandchildren if RFK, Jr. isn’t successful.


8 posted on 04/16/2025 3:51:34 PM PDT by hardspunned (Look for the“Putin Stooge” libel, news from Ukraine you’ve gradually grown to trust over 36 months)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ransomnote

I am reflecting on my high school special Ed class. There were about 1600 students and the sped class was no more than 50 total. These included many with physical issues and the affects of polio.


9 posted on 04/16/2025 3:58:57 PM PDT by Raycpa
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ransomnote

The one child I know that is autistic has a mom who was/is a pot smoker who uses a vape. Coincidence?


10 posted on 04/16/2025 4:02:53 PM PDT by Raycpa
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ransomnote

1 in 12.5 children has autism. Autism is 4 times higher in boys.

Deodorant? Body wash? Sports drinks?


11 posted on 04/16/2025 4:03:11 PM PDT by freepersup (“Those who conceal crimes are preparing to commit new ones.” ~Vuk Draskovic~)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: freepersup

I’ve read that Autism is more difficult to diagnose in girl’s, so that might be part of it.


12 posted on 04/16/2025 4:08:39 PM PDT by 21twelve (Ever Vigilant - Never Fearful)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 11 | View Replies]

To: ransomnote

The RFK press conference video from another source was posted earlier on FR. I watched that video and then I read CNN’s version of the RFK press conference.

CNN criticized almost everything RFK said. No surprise there as one of the ‘unspoken’ causes of autism is likely vaccination and RFK did not want to go there. But as we all know media gets megabucks from the big pharma advertising.

Below is the CNN version—

In first news conference as HHS secretary, Kennedy says autism is an epidemic in the US
By Deidre McPhillips, CNN

Updated: 2:56 PM EDT, Wed April 16, 2025

Source: CNN

In his first news conference as secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said Wednesday that rising rates of autism prevalence in the US reflect a “preventable” crisis-level epidemic that has been caused by an environmental toxin.

Advocates for people with autism have criticized this position as harmful and misleading. Existing research has explained autism as a multifactorial condition that is influenced heavily by genetics.

Experts have largely attributed the steady rise in autism prevalence to better understanding of and screening for the condition, including a US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report this week that indicated a rising rate of autism along with “increased access to identification among previously underserved groups.”

But Kennedy amped up his message on Wednesday, saying that people who accept this explanation are “epidemic deniers” who are playing into an “industry canard.”

“One of the things that I think that we need to move away from today is this ideology that the autism prevalence increases – the relentless increases – are simply artifacts of better diagnoses, better recognition or changing diagnostic criteria,” he said.

He also called for “real-time data” on autism prevalence, likening autism to a measles epidemic.

“We don’t wait two years to react to a measles epidemic … or any kind of infectious disease. We shouldn’t have to do that for diabetes or autism,” he said.

Dr. Walter Zahorodny, an associate professor at the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and a co-author of the new CDC report, joined Kennedy at Wednesday’s news conference and echoed his claim that the rise in autism prevalence is an “urgent public health crisis” that could not solely be attributed to better awareness.

“I would urge everyone to consider the likelihood that autism – whether we call it an epidemic, a tsunami or a surge of autism – is a real thing that we don’t understand, and it must be triggered or caused by environmental or risk factors,” he said. “We need to address this question seriously because, in my opinion, for the last 20 years, we’ve collected data but not made real progress in understanding what causes autism or how to effectively prevent it or treat it effectively.”

Kennedy said that autism research will fall under the new Administration for Healthy America, in a new chronic disease division. He said that he plans to announce a “series of new studies to identify precisely what the environmental toxins are that are causing it” within a few weeks.

The cause of autism isn’t fully understood, but research has indicated that genetics may play a significant role. But Kennedy said that this line of study is a “dead end,” instead pointing to factors including mold, pesticides, medicines and ultrasounds.

“Genes do not cause epidemics. It can provide a vulnerability. You need an environmental toxin,” Kennedy said.

On Tuesday, the CDC published new data showing that autism rates increased among children in the US. About 1 in every 31 children was diagnosed with autism by age 8 in 2022, up from 1 in 36 in 2020.

Improvements in early identification of autism “have been apparent,” the authors of the CDC report wrote, and “differences in the prevalence of children identified with [autism spectrum disorder] across communities might be due to differences in availability of services for early detection and evaluation and diagnostic practices.”

The new study is based on surveillance data from 16 areas that participate in the CDC’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network. The data is not nationally representative and encompasses a different set of sites than the last report with data from 2020, which captured data from only 11 sites.

Kennedy’s comments on autism have faced sharp criticism from advocates for people with autism, including the Autism Society of America, which said it’s “harmful, misleading, and unrealistic” for HHS to pledge that the cause of autism will be quickly identified and exposures eliminated.

“Claiming that Autism is ‘preventable’ is not science based, and places unnecessary blame on people, parents and families,” Christopher Banks, CEO of the society, said in a statement Tuesday. “Autism is not a chronic disease, nor a childhood disease, it is a lifelong developmental condition; it is not an epidemic, nor should it be compared to the Covid-19 pandemic, and using language like that perpetuates falsehoods, stigma and stereotypes. The prevalence rates tell us that there is progress when it relates to improved screening and diagnostics, AND it emphasizes the need for more robust, comprehensive research and data rooted in credible methodologies.”


13 posted on 04/16/2025 4:28:28 PM PDT by Presbyterian Reporter
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ransomnote

“”””The A.S.D. Prevalence rate in 8-year-olds is now one in 31. Shocking. There’s an extreme risk for boys, overall the risk for boys of getting an autism diagnosis in this country is now one in 20. And as high in California, which has the best data collection, so it probably also reflects the national trend, one in 12.5 boys.””””


Nationwide, 1 out of 20 boys, who were born in 2014, had varying degrees of autism when then were 8 years old in 2022.

One of the things RFK is going to look at is whether either or both of the parents had diabetes or were obese when these boys were conceived in 2013/14.

What if that data shows that say, 50% of either or both parents had diabetes or were obese. That would be one possible cause.

The government has massive data on health. Now they need to use the computer technology to sort out that data to good use.


14 posted on 04/16/2025 4:43:45 PM PDT by Presbyterian Reporter
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Presbyterian Reporter

Neither I nor my wife would be considered heavy let alone obese. We did not consume sugary drink not food containing dyes or loaded with additives.
At one point it was considered that it was family related, level of education or intelligence, engineer type. We both have Stem degrees and great grandparent being an engineer. Also siblings have ailments that are common in families with autism. So I would say it is genetic related, at least a tendency towards autism which might be activated by environmental factors.


15 posted on 04/16/2025 7:21:03 PM PDT by jimfr
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 14 | View Replies]

To: hardspunned

There’s a legal case which collected data on the impact of vaccines on public health. A chart of vaccination status versus chronic illness showed a low horizontal line until the 80’s (chronic illness flat) at which time the chronic illness correlation began to climb continuously to the present.


16 posted on 04/16/2025 8:54:26 PM PDT by ransomnote (IN GOD WE TRUST)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: ransomnote

Paging Jenny McCarthy.


17 posted on 04/17/2025 4:59:01 AM PDT by FES0844
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: ransomnote

What is the environmental toxin that is causing this?


18 posted on 04/17/2025 5:09:07 AM PDT by joe fonebone (And the people said NO!! The end.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: joe fonebone

“””What is the environmental toxin that is causing this?”””


I believe we all know that RFK wanted to say that childhood vaccinations are the likely source. But if he said that, the media would have had a fit.

Instead, RFK is saying they will look at many factors such as-—
1. Age and health of parents at time of conception.
2. Increase in Ultrasound usage.
3. Toxins in food supply such as pesticides, herbicides, steroids, and antibiotics.
4. Illicit drug and alcohol abuse by parents.

When these studies are done and they find very few correlations with the above factors, then the childhood vaccinations become the most likely cause.


19 posted on 04/17/2025 6:12:57 AM PDT by Presbyterian Reporter
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: ransomnote

bump


20 posted on 04/17/2025 7:17:41 AM PDT by Albion Wilde (“Did you ever meet a woke person that’s happy? There’s no such thing.” —Donald J. Trump)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson