In 1998 a paper published in the journal The Lancet connected measles, mumps, and rubella vaccinations with the development of autism. Though the paper was later retracted, the myth persists and has led to a movement encouraging parents to reject MMR vaccinations for their children (while also encouraging lawsuits against the vaccine makers).

And that movement has led to both a waste of funds that could be used to research the disorder and likely even the loss of real human lives.

“I do not deny that we need to do more about autism,” pediatrician and health researcher Aaron Carroll said in the latest episode of his Healthcare Triage web series, where he reviews the history of the controversy, “but it has nothing to do with vaccines.”

Screenshot via Healthcare Triage YouTube channel