Nice.....

Ottoluv,

There was a huge article in one of my Mom magazines either this month or last about how parents are putting their children at risks when they don't vaccinate.  I was so happy to see it since this is the HOT topic among newer moms.  I have several friends that chose not to vaccinate and then had to go back and to play catch up (which I think is 1000% worse).  I don't think people realize that by not vaccinating their children they are hurting everyone, not just their children.  I am a couple weeks behind on Riley's 15 month vaccinations and I get worried about it (we had to wait for new insurance).  It's sad, parent's think they are superior by ignore the sound good advice of doctor's that have been doing this for years because of some "study" they read on the internet, but then pump their kids full of saturated fat and high fructose corn syrup and think they are doing the right thing.

OK - I am off my soapbox now.  :)

I guess I really don't see what the big deal is. It's MEASLES, not polio or something. 131 people have gotten it, big deal..and out of them, only 15 were hospitalized? Wow, that's almost as many as are hospitalized for...nothing at all! And none died. So why exactly is everyone freaking out over it?

NO ONE should have to inject their children with something they're uncomfortable with...especially not "for the good of" anyone else. Seriously...that's so wrong. Everyone needs to do what they're comfortable doing. Sorry if that somehow puts you at risk, but...tough cookies. That's the danger of living, I guess.

So it is worth the deaths and deafness that can and do result from not being vaccinated.  There are trials enough for kids in life, a preventable disease with life threatening and life altering consequences does not need to be one of them.  I have  had children in my professional life who had normal hearing and then became deaf, all before they learned language......Made their whole lives tougher than they needed to be.

Chelsea - if in the future if you want your child to go to school outside the home, I think you will find that it is a HUGE deal.  Diseases that were once nearly erradicated because of vaccines are coming back and coming back worse than ever.  Have you ever seen pictures of what these other diseases (not just the measles) that they vaccinate for do to children whose parents thought it would be best to ignore years and years of research??  I am sure Ottoluv could describe a few of her patients for you.

You are right that every parent has a right to not vaccinate their child (unless they go to school); however, if you want that child to be a part of everyone else, you have a responsibility.  Also, some of these parents aren't vaccinating for sound reasons, in my opinion.  I have spoken to a lot of new moms and many aren't doing it because frankly, its the trendy thing to do.  Not because they did years of research regarding the topic and made sound, informed medical decisions on the fact.

Also, you are a big proponent of car seats to keep a child safe, right.  Well, how would you feel if you chose not to vaccinate your child for whatever reason and they came down with a disease leaving them scarred for life that was 100% preventable if you would have just vaccinated like the medical profession told you to do.  Kind of like putting your child in a car seat to keep them safe, right.

mrstjohnson

Well, how would you feel if you chose not to vaccinate your child for whatever reason and they came down with a disease leaving them scarred for life that was 100% preventable if you would have just vaccinated like the medical profession told you to do.  Kind of like putting your child in a car seat to keep them safe, right.

No, because putting them in a car seat has no discernable risk involved. Injecting them with foreign substances, I'm sorry, just DOES. Ever read the possible side effects of those things you inject your beautiful little girl with? A lot of them include death (all have that risk from allergies...some not from allergies), and if not, things like paralysis, seizures, coma, brain damage, etc. Is that really worth the risk of possibly contracting measles, which usually is not terribly harmful?

I'm not saying don't vaccinate your kids. I'm not convinced either way (though I definitely will be by the time I have kids), so I'm NOT a proponant of no vaccines. I'm on the fence, and that's okay. I am however a BIG proponant of THINKING about things, and not doing something because everyone else does, or blindly following your doctor (doctors are a GREAT source of info obviously, and should definitely be part of your decision, I just don't think they're God, especially since only a few graduate top of their class...just sayin';).

No vaccine is 100%, so nothing is ever 100% preventable. Kelly, a doctor, just told us despite being vax'd multiple times she hasn't developed immunity to measles. Does that sound 100% to you? And no, if my invaccinated kid came down with something a vaccine could have possibly prevented, I wouldn't be crushed or hate myself, because I know there's that risk, and if I decide not to vax, I'll be okay with that risk. Plus something like measles.. I just don't see the big deal. It's almost like chicken pox, which I will DEFINITELY not be vax'ing for.

But yeah, school definitely does NOT play into my decision making process. Because even if for some bizarre reason my kids end up in school, I'll find loopholes if they're not vax'd. Not worried about it.

chelsea_b

No vaccine is 100%, so nothing is ever 100% preventable. Kelly, a doctor, just told us despite being vax'd multiple times she hasn't developed immunity to measles.

 

Sounds like ottoluv... and these are folks that are put directly at risk by people not vaxing and allowing the diseases to spread.

William is vax'ed.  I can't think why anyone would want to return to the bad old days when no vaccine was available and harmful diseases were rife, most kids not even surviving past their 5th birthday.

Chuffy

I can't think why anyone would want to return to the bad old days when no vaccine was available and harmful diseases were rife, most kids not even surviving past their 5th birthday.

Here's the thing. Vaccines, good nutrition, good hygiene, etc., all came about around the same time. Who's to say which caused the dramatic fall in these illnesses? In fact, it's proven that measles at least dropped by like ninety some % BEFORE the vaccine was around. And yet most of the medical community suggests it was due to the vaccine. How convenient.

My understanding is that the diseases I got as a kid (no vaccines then) like measles, mumps, chicken pox, whooping cough etc. can have can have far reaching, even deadly, consequences ... especially if someone gets them as an older teen or adult. A lot of people don't vaccinate because "we don't have those diseases now" totally forgetting that the reason we don't have them is because of vaccinations. If enough people stop vaccinating, we could certainly see a return of those diseases in epidemic proportions.

Joyce

Both my brother and I had our full sets of vaccines - with no ill effects to either one of us.

Would you not do your puppies vaccine set? After all..... it's just parvo.

Nothing is every 100%. NOTHING.

chelsea_b

blindly following your doctor (doctors are a GREAT source of info obviously, and should definitely be part of your decision, I just don't think they're God, especially since only a few graduate top of their class...just sayin';).

I'd rather follow my doctor, rather than believe everything I read on the internet. They've been to school for that, not me.

chelsea_b

I just don't see the big deal.

Death isn't a big deal to you??? Because people believe everything they read online, we now are seeing a reoccurance of a horribly contagious disease. Over 450 people died, and 4000 people were left with permanent dissablilties becuase of this virus - this was before the vaccine illiminated it.

Both of my boys are fully vaxed, and got them all on a traditional schedule.

I'm not so sure if I had another child that I would do it the same way.  At the least I think I'd insist on single vaccines being given at a time so that they were a lot more spread out.  I don't think giving four, five or more vaccines to a tiny baby all at one time can be a good thing.

My kids got all the vaccines (except the chicken pox) I did space them out so that they never received more than 1 at a visit. If I had to do it all over again I would still do it the same way.

Luckily my kids got the chicken pox all together when they were little so they didn't need the vaccine. Their Dr. wasn't keen on giving it anyway. It was new back then and I don't think they were too sure if a booster was needed. I wouldn't have given them the vaccine for chicken pox until they got older, I would be afraid of them getting chicken pox as adults.

I know a woman who got chicken pox while pregnant and her baby had problems.

 

ottoluv, as a Dr. do you get tested regularly for immunity to certain diseases? My daughter gets tested yearly for tuberculosis (she's taking nursing) but nothing else. Just curious.

I'm with Kelly.  For my personal health, I pick a Dr. that is recommended, pick one I feel good about and trust and then do what she says (same for my vet).  After all, she went through med school, not me.  Maybe if there is some reason for an individual NOT to be vaccinated or the Dr. can produce appropriate studies against it, I will listen, but I won't make health decisions about myself or future children based on .com articles.  The studies (in professional journals, peer reviewed sources) that really matter are so technical I can't even read and understand them myself, that's what the Dr. is for.  If it is something serious, I would seek a second or third opinion just to be sure.  I've learned from my husband's epilepsy and my chronic joint inflammation that not everything is black and white and sometimes it takes a long time to narrow down the cause or it is simply never found, but we're definitely way better off trying what the Dr's have recommended rather than making our own decisions based on WebMD.

erica1989

I'd rather follow my doctor, rather than believe everything I read on the internet. They've been to school for that, not me.

But I don't trust ANY other person 100%, let alone some doctor I hardly even know. I don't know how much they actually paid attention in school.. I don't know if they keep up with current information. I don't know if they believe in vaccinating for things that aren't even an issue. Yeah, in an ideal world I would know all this about my kid's doctor, but it's not an ideal world, is it?  I'm just saying, I'm going to form my own opinions on it, and not blindly follow ONE doctor when I don't think any two doctors on the planet agree on everything. And no, that doesn't mean I trust random websites over doctors, but I guess I do tend to trust other people's experiences and my own instincts over science sometimes. Imagine that, me, who's been the "science girl" my whole life.

erica1989

Death isn't a big deal to you??? Because people believe everything they read online, we now are seeing a reoccurance of a horribly contagious disease. Over 450 people died, and 4000 people were left with permanent dissablilties becuase of this virus - this was before the vaccine illiminated it.

What on Earth are we even talking about here? This thread was originally about MEASLES, because there's been a couple outbreaks..but uhm, no one has died. So yep, death is a big deal to me...measles, most of the time, isn't. And chicken pox isn't either if they get it when they're young (which the vax is preventing, and then people are getting it when they're older, when it actually IS dangerous..great idea, medical community!!).

Maybe one day we'll all live in a bubble. Won't that be fun??

Honestly Chelsea, you are really proving your ignorance on the subject by saying something like "it's only measles". The fact that the vaccine is not 100% is even more reason to vaccinate so that the disease transmission stops. I'm not sure how you have any idea what the outcome is of the 100+ mostly children that have contracted it. And remember, measles is one disease. These people don't vaccinate against any of them. Do you know why they vaccinate against H. Influenzae? Do you know why they vaccinate against Hep B? Do you think most people who contract these things die? I'm glad that you feel able to fully understand the issue and the public health nightmare after a quick google search lol. I think you are the one living in a bubble if you think this is no big deal. WHat it proves is that these diseases are out there still. How do you think small pox was eliminated? Why dont' you google search that. It's clear you also need to read more about varicella zoster. There are fears that the people will get it older which have spread as expected via the internet, but they have not been substantiated.

dubilpie, you are required by most hospitals to not only check your TB test yearly, but on your initial hiring you must get titers done for a few diseases for which you are vaccinated including measles, chicken pox, and hepatitis B. That's the only reason why I know because I had to have all that done when I started my first rotation in medical school :)

Here is some links for your learning "science girl"

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/measles/DS00331/DSECTION=complications

http://www.measlesinitiative.org/problem.asp

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varicella_zoster_virus