Robert De Niro says vaccines are dangerous

Actor Robert De Niro has joined vaccine sceptic Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. at a press conference warning against vaccines which they claim contain a dangerous level of mercury and links to autism.

Kennedy, chairman of the World Mercury Project, announced the group would pay hundreds of thousands to any individual who can prove them otherwise. The group is concerned with thimerosal, which is a preservative containing ethylmercury. Low doses in vaccine have been proved to cause no harm, however it was taken out of childhood vaccines in 2001 as a precaution.

In conjunction with the press conference held at the National Press Club in Washington, the World Mercury Project released a statement confirming: "The WMP will pay $100,000 to the first journalist, or other individual, who can find a peer-reviewed scientific study demonstrating that thimerosal is safe in the amounts contained in vaccines currently being administered to American children and pregnant women."

Kennedy would not call himself "anti-vax" at the press conference, he said he just wanted safe vaccines instead. He believes even a "meagre effort at homework" will expose thimerosal as unsafe.

"He says the science is unequivocal that mercury is a serious health hazard and exposure is linked to many different diseases and conditions (ADHD, Alzheimer's, Acrodynia and Autism)", the statement said.

At the press conference on Wednesday, Kennedy and De Niro were joined by one of the producers of the anti-vaccine film, Vaxxed. Last year, De Niro had pushed for the film to be shown at the Tribeca Film Festival, which he co-founded, however it was removed following a public backlash.

De Niro, whose son has autism, remained quiet at the press conference but agreed with Kennedy when asked about his stance on the issue.

"I'm glad I'm here. I thought what Bobby said was great. It was eloquent. I couldn’t have said it better myself. I agree with him 100 percent. Thank you."

After U.S. President Donald Tru,p linked vaccines to autism last year, Kennedy has been in contact with the Trump administration. And, reports circulating say he could be appointed chair of a vaccine safety commission.

When asked about Trump, De Niro said "I am only concerned about this. Trump I don't care about."

"If he does the right thing, he does the right thing. I don’t have to be connected with him."

Talking to 9Mums earlier this year, Aussie General Practitioner, author and former political advisor, Dr Ginni Mansberg, said she doesn’t mind reviews – but insists they should be led by an unbiased academic.

“What we know is when someone comes into any project with a pre-conceived idea, they subconsciously cherry-pick data to support their closely-held beliefs", she said.