THE AMISH AND AUTISM

"One of the defining contributions to autism journalism in recent years has been our colleague Dan Olmsted’s pioneering work with the Amish. Dan made the simple observation that, given the controversy over autism and vaccines, it would make sense to compare autism rates in vaccinated populations with populations in which vaccination was less common. If autism was less common among less vaccinated populations, that would lend support to the concerns of many parents over the link between their child’s regression and the intensive early childhood vaccination schedule now recommended by the CDC.
The easy accessibility of the Amish made them an obvious population to focus on. There have been numerous studies over the years on the Amish and their vaccination practices, all of which support the idea that the Amish often don’t vaccinate their children and, when they do, they vaccinate less frequently than nearby populations. The studies also show that this tendency is not an integral part of the religious beliefs of the Amish, but rather an outcome of their lifestyle and traditional approach to most common practices, including health care. Nevertheless, when encouraged to vaccinate in order to provide health benefits to their children, many Amish parents do choose to vaccinate their children.
So Dan undertook his work on autism with an early focus on the Amish starting with a column, “The Amish Anomaly”, in April 2005. Over the last three years he has continued his work in the area: he has now written close to 20 columns spanning his time as consumer health editor at UPI and as editor-in-chief at Age of Autism. Along the way, he has visited one of the country’s largest concentrations of Old Order Amish in Lancaster Country on numerous occasions and interviewed a wide range of doctors who serve the Amish all over the country, from chiropractors to family physicians to clinics that specialize in special needs children. More to the point, he has interviewed numerous Amish families and has even had the opportunity, with a small group of families, to actually conduct on camera interviews with parents and their disabled children. The opportunity to pursue this topic for an extended period of time has been an investment few journalists make today. Dan’s continued investment in this work is one of the hallmark contributions of his “Age of Autism” franchise and we’re proud of him for it."
Part One
Part Two