Vaccines and SIDS
| Claims | Vaccines are claimed to cause sudden infant death syndrome |
|---|---|
| Year proposed | 1991 |
| Original proponents | Attributed to Robert Mendelsohn |
| Subsequent proponents | Viera Scheibner, Kelly Brogan |
| (Overview of pseudoscientific concepts) | |
A speculated link between vaccines and SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) has been refuted,[1] but remains a common anti-vaccine claim.[2] The claim, attributed to Robert Mendelsohn in 1991[3][non-primary source needed] and promoted by anti-vaccination activists such as Viera Scheibner in the early 1990s, is that vaccines, especially the DTP vaccine that protects against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis, sometimes causes sudden infant death syndrome. The World Health Organization has classified this as a "common misconception".[4]
Some also claim that a vaccine court case, Boatmon v. Secretary of Health and Human Services, 13-611 (Fed. Cl. 2017), proves this link. While compensation was awarded to Boatmon, this did not prove any link,[5] and the award was in any case vacated in July 2018 as the Special master had applied too low a standard of proof.[6]
Multiple studies and meta-analyses have shown that vaccinated children are less likely to die of SIDS.[7]
In 2026, Elsevier retracted a 2021 study by longtime vaccine critic Neil Z. Miller published in Toxicology Reports claiming SIDS is linked to vaccines.[8][9]
References
[edit]- ↑ "Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and Vaccines". U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. 14 August 2020.
Vaccines have not been shown to cause sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
- ↑ "Antivaccine propaganda from Dr. W. Gifford-Jones in The Toronto Sun". Science-Based Medicine. 2018-10-29. Retrieved 2019-02-05.
- ↑ Overell, Bette (1993). Animal Research Takes Lives: Humans and Animals Both Suffer. NZ Anti-Vivisection Society Inc. ISBN 9780473018467. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
- ↑ "Six common misconceptions about immunization". WHO. Archived from the original on May 1, 2014. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
- ↑ "No, a Vaccine Court ruling does not show that vaccines cause SIDS". Science-Based Medicine. 2017-08-21. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
- ↑ Judge, THOMAS C. WHEELER. "BOATMON v. SECRETARY OF HHS". Leagle. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
- ↑ "Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and Vaccines". www.cdc.gov. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. December 20, 2024. Retrieved August 6, 2026.
- ↑ "Removal notice to "Vaccines and sudden infant death: An analysis of the VAERS database 1990–2019 and review of the medical literature" [Toxicol. Rep. 8 (2021) 1324–1335]". ScienceDirect. Elsevier B.V. June 2026. Retrieved August 19, 2026.
- ↑ Gallegos, Alicia (May 26, 2026). "Elsevier retracts study tying sudden infant death syndrome to vaccinations". Retraction Watch. Retrieved August 19, 2026.
