— Last week, a British medical publication deemed the link between autism and childhood vaccinations to be a “hoax.”

Now, the news has left some area parents and educators feeling a little unsettled.

“I don’t know if this will change people’s thinking patterns,” said Becky Fredericks, a parent of twin boys diagnosed with an autism-related disorder and vice-chairwoman of the Southern Minnesota Autism Coalition.

“I have not figured it out, and I don’t know if anyone ever will.”

Ever since 1998, when Andrew Wakefield published a story in the medical journal The Lancet, many educators and parents believed his assertion that vaccines — and especially those with a mercury-based preservative called Thimerasol — were among the root causes of autism.

After reviewing Wakefield’s original study, the British Medical Journal called it an “elaborate fraud.” The study has now been retracted by The Lancet and Wakefield himself has been stripped of his medical license.

Despite the harsh criticism, many parents continue to defend Wakefield’s work and believe that large pharmaceutical companies have long attempted to discredit the link while conspiring to keep it from public knowledge.

Linda Wilson, of Mankato, is the mother of a 26-year-old son with autism and said she believes the build-up of a variety of toxins at an early age — including those found in some vaccines — may have contributed to her son’s diagnosis.

Wilson’s son was just 2 years old when he experienced a severe seizure and began regressing developmentally. He lost language skills, retreated socially and developed a stomach condition that caused constant indigestion.

Several months ago, Wilson put her son on a gluten-free diet, an increasingly popular treatment for individuals with autism (as well as several other maladies) that helps rid the body of unnatural toxins by eliminating a protein found primarily in wheat and food additives. She said the diet change improved her son’s mood and quieted his constantly upset stomach.

Wilson adds that, although she supports Wakefield’s conclusions, she doesn’t discount the importance of vaccines. Mercury-free versions of vaccines are available from most health care providers; and Wilson said some parents of autistic children space the vaccinations out to minimize risk.

“There are so many more vaccines today than when I was in school,” said Wilson, who has helped coordinate a long-running support group for area parents of autistic children. “I just think it’s way too much for those little bodies to handle.”

Recent research on autism has produced several possible insights into the mysterious disorder. One study released this week concluded that babies born within one year of their siblings are three times more likely to be diagnosed with autism. Other studies have pointed to genetic causes for some cases; still others attribute autism to genetic mutations or complications from illness and infectious disease during pregnancy.

Megan Weerts, an autism specialist at Monroe Elementary, said she thinks there may be multiple underlying causes of autism.

Weerts said each autistic child is different and that it is within the realm of possibility that some cases could be prompted by an allergic-type reaction to chemicals contained in vaccines. She likened such a scenario to those autistic kids who see improvements in mental functioning and social behavior after switching to a gluten-free diet.

Weerts also said that, in her experience, most parents in the autism community don’t believe in the vaccine link; but those that do, she said, are emphatic.

“There is no known cause for autism,” said Weerts, adding that she herself was nervous before receiving an H1N1 vaccine while pregnant last fall. “It could be different for every child.”

Researchers have yet to prove a definitive cause of autism, or its related disorders (collectively known as autism spectrum disorders). Though, research continues to intensify as the number of children born with autism continues to increase. The Autism Society of America estimates that 1 in every 110 is now born with an autism spectrum disorder.