I Just read..Vaccines-When Is It Enough from Christina H.

Instead of attacking each other over who vacinates and who doesn't why are we not asking the drug companies to find alternatives to some of the ingrediants in the vaccines. 30 years ago the polio vaccine had like three ingrediants and it had to be kept in the fridge. Now it has like 20 ingrediants and it can sit on the shelf for much longer. Why can't they explain why these ingrediants are necessary and calm peoples fears?

I liked the Dr. Sears alternative vaccination schedule. Try reading that book, it is very good. They still get vaccines, but they don't get them all together like the normal schedule. It is spread out. We had to make a few extra trips in, but it was worth it.

" I applaud you moms who refused to vaccinate ..."
Shame on you. You are right- there are more vaccines than when you (or your children) were younger because science has continued to move forward in order to protect against diseases that would have killed years before.
Mothers- please educate yourselved objectively. I have a background in microbiology and understand intimately the reasons behind vaccines. Yes- we do not see many of these illnesses anymore (polio, whooping cough, diptheria) because there have been successful public health campains for vaccinating against them. Your children are being protected by the greater population, but you are also putting your child AND MY CHILD at risk if they become infected because you chose not to vaccinate. Are you aware that the amount of dead virus or bacteria they recieve in a vaccine is about 100 times LESS than what they are normally exposed to EVERY DAY in their environment???? Vaccines provide an effective way to expose your child to a tiny dose of the virus/bacteria in order to gain immunity. Yes, your child may have a mild immune reaction which is normal. If you are trying to go about the 'natural way' of exposing your child to things like chicken pox you run the risk of a raging infection with terrible consequences. If you feel that you do not want to vaccinate your child- why not keep them home away from other children? The CDC website has a great deal of information. This is a hot topic and lines are usually pretty drawn on one side or the other. I understand that mothers feel the need to protect their children, but you have to understand that these actions are usually poorly informed and put others at risk.

In response to the post asking how vaccinated children are put at risk from unvaccinated children (T.J.)- It is called herd immunity. You should have learned all about this when you were educating yourself about the pros and cons of vaccination. The lower the vaccination threshold of a population- the greater risk of epidemic breakthrough. As stated by others, infants and children who are unable to get vaccinated are put at risk by those who choose not to vaccinate. For the record- we are both highly educated (my husband is a surgeon and I do medical research) and we chose to vaccinate. Your statement about the level of education have nothing to do with this debate and lends little credence to your argument against vaccination.

U shouldn't be naive when it comes to ur childs health and well being, i would suggest u visit the pros and cons. There are a few diseases that have been completely irradicated by everyone receiving vaccines for them........we didn't have as many of the shots and boosters that babies are getting now days but people have been living much longer without some of the health issues that we use to have in the past. If everyone stopped vaccinating i think we would definitely see a rise in some of the diseases that have been gone or under control for a long time. Have people gotten sick or died from vaccinations yes they sure have. With that being said there are risks in everything we choose to do. There are risks in taking aspirin, riding a bike, having a baby.........i think the point is that we have too choose the lesser of two evils whatever that may be for each individual. Just make sure u make a choice based on ALL the facts, good and bad.

Instead of avoiding vaccines for religious reasons, I recommend you have your 3-year-old blood tested before entering school to see if your child has maintained immunization. This is called getting the Titers tested. The reason kids have to have boosters is because sometimes vaccines wear off in some kids, and blood tests are expensive and often not covered by insurance, plus it can be difficult for some parents to have their child's blood drawn. I'm sure that, as another poster put it, vaccines being a big business also plays a role. However, if you have medical proof that your child is still immune to the diseases he was vaccinated against as an infant/toddler, he does not have to get the boosters again before entering school.

I agree in some cases that there are too many vaccines given to young children. Why does my child need to be vaccinated against HepB (a sexually-transmitted bodily-fluids disease) before entering kindergarten? I received the HepB shot when I was in high school, and I think it is a good vaccine - I'm just not sure why my little baby needs it. I also personally believe the shots should not be given all at once the way the CDC recommends. I suspect the CDC likes to group shots together for a couple of reasons - parents are more likely to get their kids the shots if they don't have to go into the doctor's office every month, and by having everyone on the same schedule, it is easier for everyone to organize, including the doctors. I dislike this, though, because in the RARE occasion that a child has a severe reaction, it can be extremely difficult to tell which shot (and which ingredient in which shot) triggered the reaction.

Having said that, though, please keep in mind that vaccines save lives, and that those who choose not to vaccinate at all are depending on the rest of us to do so to keep their children safe. Not only that, but children with weakened immune systems who cannot be vaccinated for health reasons are often dependent on a healthy population to keep them safe. There is no known cure for Polio once a child catches it, Hepatitis A is often mild in children but can be very severe in teenagers and adults, and a pregnant mother who is exposed to the German Measles runs a high risk of having a baby with severe birth defects. We ARE, I think, over vaccinating in this country, but in our fear of vaccines, we forget that they are an important part of a healthy society.

Good luck.

The vaccine debate is a tough one that has received a lot of attention lately.

One word of caution about printed materials (books, particularly) is that medical information often changes before they're printed, so they may not have the most accurate information.

As I included in Christina's message, the physician who'd written the article in the 1990's questioning the safety of vaccines has lost his medical license indefinitely for falsifying much of his information. I'd strongly encourage you to research the most current evidence (AAP.org is a good start as well as Google.com/scholar and search childhood or pediatric vaccines).
Have a candid conversation with your pediatrician and see why they have the position they do.

Good luck with your decision and finding the answers regarding your local school system's requirements.

Also for boosters you can draw blood and get titers which show if your child is already immune. 95% are already immune if they have received the first shot. Vaccinations are a very big business.

A few hundred years ago life expectancy was much shorter, and infant mortality was enourmous. More families than not expereiced at least one infant death, and we have all benefited from the expansion of medical science. Modernity has granted us a great gift of long life and probable live birth for the vast majority of children. Most children survive infancy and childhood without facing a life threatining illness, and we have an expectation that our children will all grow up to be adults and out live us. We are just the 4th or 5th generation in history for whom this is true and we owe some of that to vaccines.

We could go back. We could elimninate vaccinations for all children becaue we do not want to take a risk of putting something harmful into their bodies, because there are unknowns, because a few children suffered side effects, because a few books have been written, because there is fear and hysteria, and because within our own collective memory, we do not comprehend what high infant and child mortality feels like anymore.

The golden rule applies here, or more specifically Kant's categorical emperative. If everyone cannot do something, then it is wrong for one to do it. If everyone can cut in line, there is no line left and you have chaos. The fact is, if you do not vaccine, you depend on those of us who do to keep your children safe, but if we all did as you do, we would see a return to life as it was over 100 years ago. Why do you want to convice those of us who do vaccinate of the validity of your argument? The more you convince to whithold vaccine, the more danger you present to your own unvaccinated children. We can't all do as you do.

There is a window into our future going on right now with Pertusis. This dessease requires more boosters than was previously known, as appears to be the case with many of the vaccinations we all recieved as children. Adults are now passing this on to infants before parents can even make the choice to vaccinate or not. Thank goodness that medical science has evolved and adults can now protect those little babies by getting a booster for pertussis so that we can continue to protect those who cannot, or will not, protect themselves and their children. You will continue to be fine, if you get the booster yourself...just like the children.

M.

Just to chime in . . . my children were born in the 90's (when all this was really taking off). I was NEVER told by my ped that you could get vaccine exemptions (not that I would have done them necessarily, but I would have liked to have known about the option). And for my younger child (born three years after my first) I don't recall being asked if he could receive HepB in the hospital when he was BORN! A NEWBORN! What changed in that three years after my oldest was born (who started at 4 months) ? Nothing that I know of!

It also angers me that - while I lived in a predominately Catholic area - I never knew that there are certain vaccines that contain ingredients made from aborted fetal cell lines.

As far as I know there are only two states where you cannot get exemptions. The other 48 have exemptions of some sort - be they medical, religious or philosophical (I think only 12 have philosophical). You may want to check www.nvic.org for info specific to your state.

Good luck and bless you for being aware.

And ps: there is NO SHAME in informed consent, which is what you appear to be asking for!

Hi T.,

http://www.vaclib.org/exempt/newjersey.htm is the website to read. I am exempted from vaccinations because of religious beliefs. (They can also be exempted for medical reasons as well!) Even in my homeschool umbrella school they ask about the vaccine schedules. I drafted a letter with my religious tenets and I was given no trouble. If you reference law in your letter, it tends to not be argued with at the school district level.

God bless,

M.

My husband works in NJ and we live in PA. The laws are a little different. In Pa you just submit a letter to your school to the nurse expressing your belief. NJ on the other hand is one of the toughest states to live in if your children are not vaccinated. (that is why we do not live there) There is a great book out that I read One is "What your Dr does not tell you" and the other is called a "Shot in the Dark" My husband has made it one of his passions to express his concerns....standing up tour your pediatrician is another hurdle as well. We also have to watch the chemicals and toxins we expose our children to in the home.

One of the moms who responded to one of the other questions mentioned she wrote a letter to the school stating vaccinations were against their religion. However, around here, you have to have PROOF that you a certain religion. HUH???? That's why I ultimately decided to have my girls get ONLY the absolutely demanded vaccinations in order for them to attend. There were 25 total--which included 5 does of DTP, 4 does of polio, 3 does of HepB and 4 does of Hib--all spanning the course of over 5 years. Thankfully, my Ped. is a concerned mom herself, so she doesn't even carry most of the others out there.

I didn't read your prior posts but my 14 yo step dtr is one of those babies who at 18 mo's had a serious reaction to her shot and has ended up with permanent brain damage. So I have not continued to vaccinate my 2 kids. There is a form at the school you can sign, a waiver, that for "religious" reasons (or medical, but you have to list the medical reason and doc info), you are not vaccinating. I got a huge lecture from the nurse going on and on that if there was some "epidemic" I would have to keep my kids home from school...I kept saying, FINE. And she kept saying, it could be for 6 months or more....I said FINE...and then I asked her, where would all the vaccinated kids be? She said...well, they'd be at home too....DUH!!! So I think you are doing the right thing and wish you the best of luck!!!

http://www.nvic.org/Vaccine-Laws/state-vaccine-requiremen...

Here's the website to where you can check your local laws regarding vaccines.

I homeschool and in my state I don't have to, but when my older children were in public schools, I filed for an exemption because of religious reasons. Check with your state and find out what your options are.

I didn't read the answers, someone might have said this already. In my state, you can ask for a waiver form. They have a section for exemption from vaccines due to moral or religious reasons. I would call the school and ask for a waiver.

I'd like to know how those of us that don't vaccinate are endangering those of you who do? I thought you were protected!

Yes you need to research your state's waivers, in my state they're medical, religious, and philosophical. Many of us who have made these decisions are NOT uninformed or stupid, quite the opposite actually. The parents I know who've done it are doctors, doctors wives, highly educated, white collar, upper and middle class families. I've done my research thoroughly. I had to, and had to have my husband do it too because he wasn't sure at first. Now he tells his friends with babies!

My favorite website is www.thedoctorwithin.com, his book is called the sanctity of human blood. It reviews ingredients, vaccine injuries, and likelihood of catching the diseases. Good luck, and I applaud you for considering your options!

I like my alternative schedule. My doctor and I sat down and discussed when we wanted some, some that he and I don't like, spread out some of the combo shots. And you know what, I love going into the doctors office once a month. This way if I have questions I can ask them and not have to wait till his next check up.
Also there was a thing on vaccines on the doctors or dr oz a while ago and it was talking about community health and how people who don't vaccine rely on the bubble of people who do. (If that makes sense) But once that bubble is compromised by someone who isn't vaccinated, then it spreads fast among those who don't. Just a thought.
I applaud you wanting to know about vaccine since it is a huge topic amongst mom's. Just keep doing your research, what you feel is best, is best for your family and none of us call tell you what to think. You can get a religious wave or medical for when entering school. Make sure you have a doctor that supports what you believe. I LOVE my doctor and staff. They love that they get to see O all the time and love that I have done my research as a parent instead of going by what the bigshots say.

States have individual requirements - some allow religious exemptions, some allow philosophical exemptions. I know that in many cases, religious exemption applies only to ALL vaccines, you can't be religiously opposed to just a couple, it's vaccines in general.
Good luck