Chicken Pox Vaccine

The problem with the chicken pox vaccine is that it does not protect the child for life from chicken pox(at least from what I have been told). They can then get it as an adult with is much worse. Two friends of mine ended up in the hospital as adults with the chicken pox and it was very bad. I , myself, did not get chicken pox as a kid and now I am scared to death every time that I hear about someone having them because I don't want to get them now. When my kids got the vaccine I did not know anything about it not lasting and the chance that they could get them as an adult.

Hi N....I often wondered this myself but when I asked the doctor I was told that Chicken pox kills a lot of kids every year. I know that many people you know and I know had mild cases of it but there are stats stating that a lot of kids die from it. I didn't want to take that risk and put my child through it so, I went ahead and had my child vacinated. Good luck in making your decision.

I would NOT get the chicken pox vaccine for my child. Although there is a small risk of getting the form of chicken pox that is more serious (about 1 in 65,000), it is still possible to have that happen even with getting the vaccine. Most cases of chicken pox are minor and then they get it overwith. Many children who go though the vaccine still get chicken pox, which means they got the vaccine unnecessarily. The vaccine is given at about 12 months then reboosted at age 5 to give 'added protection' although it is only suspected to last until the teen years. Ths is a major concern because then you have created a situation in which your teen has not yet had chicken pox, and it is known to be far worse and more painful to have the disease as a teen or adult, especially for a female that plans to have children.

Other concerns for many parents are that the vaccine is now suspected of causing infertility issues (the vaccine is so new that the side-effects have yet to all fully emerge...) as well as parental concerns over the way the vaccine is made and the ingredients that are in the vaccine. It is not simply the chicken pox virus, it also contains MSG, cow fetus serum, neomycin, residual components of human diploid cells, potassium, sucrose, gelatin....The virus for the vaccine was created from the infected lung cells of human embryos.

Additionally, other known/documented side effects of the vaccine include rash and flu like symptoms to bleeding, pneumonia, severe life threatening rash, skin infections, and nervous system effects including encephalitis (brain inflammation), seizures, stroke and Guillain-Barre syndrome.

It is definately a controversial vaccine, as many are these days. Weigh out the benefits vs the risks (on your own family's opinion) and make an educated decision.... I highly suggest reading up on this vaccine, and all the others so that you are well informed before injecting your little one with anything.... education is very important with such a serious decision...

I recommend Dr. Sears Vaccine book..it is not anti-vaccine, but rather reccomends unbundling those combo vacines, delaying certain vaccines until the child immune system is more mature to process it safer, provides all the info as to what is in each shot and what the potential benefits and risks to each...then you make the choice! There are many others as well and a full highly informative site at www.mothering.com

Good luck!

Hi N.. I have worked in the medical field for years now and most specifically in Pediatrics. I can tell you this about the Varicella vaccine. It is the same thing as the disease itself. It has no chemicals in it. It is a live vaccine which means they are the same antibodies as the virus. It is the virus, just not as potent. Once you either get the vaccine or the virus, the antibodies are left in the body. If it tries to attack again, if there are enough antibodies, the body will fight it off. If not, you will have them again. It makes no difference if you get the vaccine or the virus itself, you still have a chance of contracting it again. There are many factors on whether or not there are enough of the antibodies in your system. This is one vaccine I wouldn't worry about. There are worse formulated ones out there. I hope this helps.

N.,

I decided not to vaccinate my daughter against the Chicken Pox vaccine. The Drs say that they are more likely to end up in the hospital these days. I am 40 & I had chicken pox when I was 6, and shingles when I was 12 & 40. (Shingles is the same virus). For her to go to school you may need a medical or religious waiver. They do require it for school. I just did not feel it was as serious disease as Hib, or hepatitis.

antiviral drugs are now available. I don't know if the prescribe them for chicken pox, but I took them with my last bout of shingles. WHAT A DIFFERENCE!!!! I had considerably less pain, & cleared up in 2 weeks (previous outbreak cleared up in 4 weeks). The thing with antiviral drugs is you have to catch it early. I also took L-Lysine, which is an amino acid. People take this that have cold sores. Chicken pox is a type os herpes virus. I found this to be helpful as well.

Like someone else mentioned. No vaccine is 100%.

I am not much for some of the vaccines either, but I did have both of my boys vaccinated for the chicken pox. However, I can tell you this - it does not prevent them from getting it!!!! My 4 1/2 year old had them a few months back and also gave it to my 2 1/2 year old. My oldest's case was pretty mild, but my youngest was FULL FLEDGED!!!! I just don't get it!

I had chicken pox as a kid twice. I also had the measles & rubella and none of that killed me!

I am not sure if this is a vaccine that you have to have for daycare or school purposes, but if I knew then what I know now - I would not have done it. It is just introducing a chemical into their body that doesn't do anything!

Good luck.
Sam

Hey N., the created the vaccine because it is something that can cause death. Yeah most kids that get it just get it and are ok, but sometimes the infection became so bad that children were hospitalized and some for some it was fatal....I think that I will stick to keeping my kids from getting sick as much as I can-I remember how bad the chicken pox were-and if one little shot can prevent them then I am all for it.

And about some of the moms saying that the kids still get it, it is true some people can be non-converters to ANY vaccine, your child gets a booster at age 4 or 5 to help prevent it in case they were either a non converter before or if the effectiveness is wearing off. and I believe you get another booster later around the teenage years-but they can draw a titer that tells weather or not your child has become immune to the disease or not if you wanted that later-

Again-Im all for preventing things that can be uncomfortable- and if you are worried about the # of vaccines given at a time, your dr should be willing to spread them out. My 4 year old needed 5 shots and we are spreading them out between now and age 5.

Hi N., I had the same dillema with the chicken pox shot.My biggest fear and wondering was how much do they really know about the shot. How long had it been tested to work?What is the true percentages of it keeping my daughter from getting chicken pox in her lifetime. My ex-mother in-law was an LPN and she worried that if it dosen't always work ,how bad chicken pox are when you're an adult and even worse what would happen (and has happened with very bad side effects to an unborn child) if she would get the pox while being pregnant as an adult.When my 1st daughter was about 5 she got the chicken pox and I did everything in my power for her 3 years younger sister to contact them as well. Sleeping together,sharing sippy cups,etc and nothing. I myself wanted to wait for my youngest to get them naturally,but by the time she was 9 or 10 our wonderful government called for children to have this shot to be able to get into school the next year.This was N.Y...Undoubtedly I still have my same concerns but I do suggest you to talk with your pediatrition and ask lots of questions.Good luck with your daughter and the new one on the way. It is so true when they say we wish babies came with instructions...lol

Though rare, chicken pox can be deadly and it can leave horrible scars. Your child might get a mild case of it, or he/she could be covered head to toe and very ill. If you are worried about your child receiving too many vaccines at once, you can ask your ped to spread out the vaccines and only administer one or two at a time. Because of concerns with the MMR, I had the ped wait until my child was 2 to adminster it.
P.