In the late 1990s, a theory gripped parents around the world: What if childhood vaccines — particularly the combined measles-mumps-rubella vaccine — cause autism? Nearly three decades later, the debunked theory has gained renewed prominence in parallel with the rise of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a long-time anti-vaccine activist who now serves as the US health secretary.
Scientists, medical providers and medical researchers are clear on this: Vaccines do not cause autism.
To those tuning into the vaccine debate now, it can feel like scientists are dismissing the theory without considering it. Bu