Overview
- The WHO Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety concluded that available evidence shows no causal link between vaccines and autism spectrum disorders.
- The analysis covered 31 primary studies from 2010 to August 2025, including multi‑country data and assessments of thiomersal and aluminum‑adjuvanted vaccines.
- A large Danish cohort using nationwide registry data for children born between 1997 and 2018 found no association between vaccination and autism.
- WHO reaffirmed its 2002, 2004 and 2012 conclusions and urged national authorities to base vaccine policies on the strongest current evidence.
- WHO Director‑General Tedros said vaccines can cause side effects but autism is not one, as debate intensified after the CDC’s November webpage revision reportedly directed by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.