One of the perils of living in the information age is the ready availability of so much misinformation. Want to hear how the moon landing was faked or how Obama was born in Africa? Just punch a few keywords into your browser and – Poof! – you’ve got confirmation of your worst fears and insecurities. Such is the case with the anti-vaccination movement that stoked fears among parents about the safety of giving their children the once-routine shots to prevent diseases like mumps, measles and whooping cough. Twenty years ago, the idea of voluntarily putting your child at risk of diseases that have killed more people than any natural disaster or all accidents combined would have been unthinkable.
That all started changing about a decade ago when a British researcher published a paper linking childhood vaccinations to autism. The author, Andrew Wakefield, claimed that he had studied a group of children who had developed symptoms of autism after being given routine vaccinations. The study has since been thoroughly discredited and Wakefield stripped of his medical license in his native England. Last year, the journal that published his paper, The Lancet, retracted the piece, and almost all of his coauthors have renounced the work. Recently it was reported that Wakefield had actually faked some of his data to support his hypothesis. Of course, all follow up studies and analysis failed to find any information to support Wakefield’s assertion. Never mind, though. The damage had been done. Wakefield’s bogus studies set off an entire anti-vaccine movement in England and around the globe. In Great Britain, vaccination rates dropped from over 90 percent to below 70 percent in the past decade.
Thanks in part to the endorsement of celebrities like actress and former Playmate model Jenny McCarthy – who, by the way, is not a doctor – Americans, too, jumped on the anti-vaccine bandwagon. Regrettably, Oregon nearly leads the nation in unvaccinated children as a percentage of our population, with 5.2 percent of all kindergartners opting out of vaccinations for non-medical reasons. Of course, children don’t opt of vaccinations – their parents do. In Deschutes County, parents are doing so in an alarming number, nearly double the state average, according to the Oregon Health Authority. That makes Deschutes County one of the least vaccinated places in a state that’s already at the bottom of the national vaccination statistics.
The recent drop-off in vaccinations has been accompanied by an increase in diseases like measles and whooping cough that have been suppressed or, in some cases nearly, eradicated by vaccines. That’s frightening considering these are extremely deadly diseases that still claim hundreds of thousands of lives per year, particularly in less-developed countries.
Parents who opt out of vaccinations would like us to believe that this is a personal choice. And Oregon makes it easy for them to do so by simply checking a religious exemption. But refusing to vaccinate your children for bogus religious reasons is only a step removed from denying your sick child the right to see a doctor. But this isn’t just about the government telling us how to parent, vaccines work only when an entire population is vaccinated. That’s why the approach has been so effective at keeping these deadly diseases at bay for more than a century. When small groups of people break away, it allows diseases like rubella to re-establish and puts everyone at risk. Of course, Oregon isn’t alone. The state of Washington leads the nation in the percentage of unvaccinated children. But Washington is addressing the issue by stiffening its vaccination laws. In the future, Washington parents who want to opt out of shots will need a doctor’s signature. Given Oregon’s dismal vaccination rates, lawmakers here ought to do the same. In the meantime, we’re giving the Boot to parents who duped the state and their neighbors by claiming a bogus exemption based on bogus science.
This article appears in Jun 9-15, 2011.
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6 things I would have to KNOW befor vaccinating my kids:
http://lifeonthefrancofarm.blogspot.com/2011/06/6-points-i-would-have-to-believe-before.html
Really? Looking at the disease rates according to the CDC’s own website, where exactly are you seeing that whooping cough was “nearly eradicated by vaccines?” People like Andrew Wakefield and Jenny McCarthy surely have zero influence in my decision not to vaccinate my children. Autism is the very least of my worries. If you’re so afraid of all of these diseases (I’m not; not at all) and so confident that your vaccines work, why worry about those who choose not to vaccinate and keep our immune systems intact? If your vaccines are so effective and safe, then why are you worried about the unvaccinated? Herd immunity is obviously a myth; upwards of 75% of adults are not up-to-date with recommended boosters. Funny, we haven’t vaccinated the population for smallpox in how many years? Yet I don’t see a massive resurgence of wild smallpox due to non-vaccination. Please feel free to argue that vaccines eradicated smallpox (and also feel free to browse the CDC statistics to see what SMALL percentage of the population was actually vaccinated). I’m sorry, but I do not believe vaccines are safe or effective. My exemption isn’t bogus; have you actually looked into how these vaccines are tested for safety and efficacy? Do you have a degree in bioinformatics? You are aware of the difference between correlation and causation, yes? It’s a two-way street.
Thanks for posting my comments against vaccination…too many truths in there for you to post it? National Vaccine Information Center has ALL of the correct info you need.
I’m assuming you’re playing the Rush Limbaugh card choosing to piss parents like me off with tired old regurgitated pro-vaccine propaganda (The Boot 6-9-11) that’s no better than the supposed pseudo-science of the one doctor you highlight who screwed up and became the poster child of the pro-vaccine pharmaceutical industry and their media thugs. Didn’t think the Source was in bed with this bunch. What a disappointment! Your Boot piece reads an awful lot like the Bulletin’s editorials of 12/4/09 and 2/4/10, and pretty much every other pundit’s rant against parents who make the time to research and think critically about the health of our children choosing better ways toward optimal health.
It is clear you spent zero time learning about vaccines before kicking me with your judgment. Really? Jenny McCarthy? Is that your best weapon? She is not the issue or the reason why I, or most others, refuse to vaccinate our kids. Do your homework! Open your mind! Do you really believe vaccines only work if everyone does it? Consider acknowledging the conclusions drawn by reputable doctors and scientists that question the wisdom of mandated herd-immunization, which, much like the overuse of antibiotics, could do more harm than good.
All of your assumptions are tired and warn out. You fail to consider the more recent science and analysis of public records that lead one to the conclusion that improved personal hygiene, indoor plumbing and expanded public works and behavioral changes were the true causes of the demise of polio, whooping cough, and other viral epidemics of the recent past, not vaccines or policy mandates (see http://www.drtenpenny.com). Dr. Tenpenny is, well . . ., a doctor – one of many doctors who do not vaccinate their own children. Why is that? Here’s some more info to get you going: http://www.fourteenstudies.org . Might also read Viral Immunity by J.E. Williams, OMD.
You state that the recent drop-off in vaccines has been accompanied by an increase in diseases like measles and whooping cough. Where is your science? You’ve got to back this up sir. Bogus is parroting the media’s fear messaging as fact. Parents who choose not to vaccinate their kids are not irresponsible. We instead pay close attention to what they eat, their physical activity, their hygiene, and their emotional health. We believe through these decisions we are strengthening their immune systems such that their bodies can fight off the many viruses that will inevitably invade their bodies. My son is a very healthy child who has only been to see a doctor three times in his seven years of life, and never for any serious illness. And his good health is hardly a threat to his vaccinated playmates.
I am grateful the state of Oregon chooses to offer an exemption to mandated vaccines. In fact, it is one of the reasons I choose to live in Oregon. Were the policy to be forced upon my son, we would likely leave and go elsewhere, or expend energy in protest.
I ask you to consider this when analyzing the costs and benefits of our public health policy and before marginalizing me as a bogus freak bent on duping his neighbors. What will be lost by turning to more draconian measures, and what will be gained? We parents are an asset, not a liability to our community. We’re not witches. We're not commies. Leave the discriminatory rhetoric to hate radio. Use your words responsibly and do not go blindly forward. Our world is evolving and so must we.
Pro-vaccine commentators who fail to moderate their arguments fail the public and lay into the hands of the vaccine industry which spends enormous amounts of money – refunded by the public purse – to propagandize their products. Even a few references to the reality vaccines demonstrate in African studies would help balance their argument. For example, get the titre wrong with measles vaccines and children die, especially females, skewing the male-female population rate for future generations; put DTP before MV and many more children will die, again also skewing the geneder for the population. remove Measles infection from a population and you remove a survival advantage children gain through that infection. Give Vitamin A supplements (eg cod liver oil) instead of measles vaccine and provide a survival advantage as good and probably better than the vaccine, with none of the vaccine side effects. Do not give pharma marketed Vitamin A injections as these cause greater mortality than none at certain concentrations, especially when given with booster vaccines. These realities have been reported by vaccine researchers in Africa for over a decade, where are the pro-vaccinators responses on this?
In addition to not providing your readers with sources which support your scientific and statistical claims you go on to bash the religious reasons of parents for not vaccinating, calling it “bogus” religious reasons. Here is a source I provide you which explains the religious reason for exemptions. If you choose to call this bogus, that is “your” right and opinion. But please don’t step on my religious freedoms and right of consent to “unproven” hypothetical medical procedures for my family.
http://poisonevercure.150m.com/from_a_christian_view_point.htm
Seriously?! Let me say that my decision to stop vaccinating our children has absolutely nothing to do with the autism debate involving Jenny McCarthy or the bunk study released all those years ago. I poured over all the information I could find before making my decision. Fact is, I still re-evaluate my stance on a regular basis. Truthfully, before I looked into vaccines I consider myself far more ignorant than you are trying to paint the non-vaccinating crowd. Seems they are some of the most educated and widely read bunch out there. This piece is pure propaganda. Nice work, TSWeekly.
You absolutely have no grasp of the “anti vaccination crowd”.
You have to get up pretty early in the morning to outwit nature. Here is an experiment that says it all http://myxo.css.msu.edu/ecoli/summdata.html . Evolution reproduced in the lab.
With 3 billion base pairs in our own genome we do have the genetic fortitude as a species to stay one step ahead of bacteria but only in a naturally occurring evolutionary loop. What this basically means is that whenever an outbreak occurs those people who are susceptible will die and those who have a natural resistance will survive and multiple therefor increasing the species resistance up until further benificial mutations occur in the bacteria/virus and the process starts over. That was the way it has worked for millions of years; getting stronger together. But, in our modern world we could never accept this sort of mortality rate (and rightly so) and we interfere with chemicals (a game we can not win). It holds the advances of disease for now but it is an unstoppable rising tide and we can only build a wall so high. Each generation of bacteria becomes stronger and every generation of human, weaker. That is the mathematically demonstrable reality of the adaptability of genes and DNA (or evolution). It’s both fascinating and terrifying to watch the blow and counter blow with medical science always on the ropes.
Cases of a life-threatening form of pneumonia that affects the young are rising rapidly in Britain. It now affects around 1,000 children a year. The cause of the increase is unknown but experts fear a vaccine in the immunisation programme could be contributing.
This severe pneumonia infects the lining of the lungs called the pleura, making it hard to breathe. It requires hospital admission to drain the chest cavity. The children affected are frightened and in pain and many undergo surgery to scrape out the contents of the pleura – a process called surgical debridement.
Child health specialists say cases of the pneumonia, known as serotype 1, have risen tenfold in a dec-ade. They warn that a vaccine against pneumococcal disease called Prevenar, introduced in 2006, could be fuelling the rise.
Increase in severe pneumonia in children may be caused by vaccine – Health News
http://www.independent.co.uk http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/increase-in-severe-pneumonia-in-children-may-be-caused-by-vaccine-808633.html&h=ac728
A range of doctors and researchers have consequently suggested based upon the above evidence, that Polio continues to exists in the modern era under a range of different titles, including, but not limited to Aseptic Meningitis. In another bizarre twist geneticists have confirmed the link between polio viruses, and a further two groups called the Coxsackie and Echo viruses, of which there are at least 72 strains all of which are reported to be able to cause polio-like diseases. Associated with the emergence of these viruses was the poorly named 'Chronic Fatigue Syndrome' epidemic, which according to Dr. William Campbell Douglas in 'Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: The Hidden Polio Epidemic' was originally labelled “Myalgic Encephalomyelitis”, (as opposed to Polio Myelitis) “Post-polio Syndrome” or “Non-Paralytic Polio Myelitis” and is a vaccine induced mutation or chronic form of wild polio. The terms 'abortive' or 'atypical' Polio have consequently been dropped from use in favour of CFS, but as with 'Atypical Measles' suggest the ability of vaccines to introduce new and chronic forms of a naturally existing infectious disease.
Pertussis : Our findings suggest that the use of the acellular vaccine may be one factor contributing to these genetic changes.”
The research team analysed more than 200 samples of the bacterium collected over the past 40 years in Australia, and these were compared with samples from Japan, Canada, USA and Finland.
They found while the vaccine now in use was effective against some of the strains circulating in Australia it may no longer protect against two strains, known as MT27 and MT70.
Dr Lan said more research was needed to confirm the results but health authorities may need to modify the vaccine to broaden the protection it offered, “or over time it could lose effectiveness as the organism evolves”. Read more: http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/whooping-cough-vaccine-may-need-to-change-say-researchers/story-e6frfku0-1225828831142#ixzz1P3ETCpSA
cont from above …
Pertussis and vax vs unvaxed : slovenia case history http://escaide2009.ecdc.europa.eu/download.cfm-SAVE=2526&LG=1.pdf
I really could go on – proving these mutations to you.. but cannot due to limitations of space. The science is there published in reputable medical journals. Start investigating!
Antibiotic use may have driven the development of Europe’s deadly E. coli. http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110609/full/news.2011.360.html
“… the largest historical decrease in morbidity and mortality caused by infectious disease was experienced not with the modern antibiotic and vaccine era, but after the introduction of clean water and effective sewer systems.” –Journal of Pediatrics, December 1999, Volume 135, No. 6, p. 663
A fully vaccinated child will not lend any maternal immunity to their offspring. Do you understand where this will take humanity?
If the vaccines conferred a true immunity, as the natural illnesses do, then the unvaccinated people would pose a risk only to the unvaccinated. Children recovering from the measles or polio or whooping cough need never fear getting them again, no matter how often they are reexposed in the future. So, the reports of large-scale pertussis outbreaks in the United Kingdom since the vaccine was made optional seem to me a convincing argument against vaccinating anybody, even those who desire it, because if the vaccine produces authentic immunity, then this rebound phenomenon should not occur.
Furthermore, we should be skeptical about the “outbreaks” that are reported to have occurred. Pertussis, or “whooping cough,” is actually rather difficult to diagnose conclusively, as it requires special cultures or antibody tests that many laboratories cannot perform and that many doctors, in the presence of suggestive symptoms, rarely take the trouble to order. Conversely, there are other cases of pertussis with typical signs and symptoms but negative cultures and no detectable antibodies. In other words, whooping cough as a clinical syndrome need not be associated with the organism Bordetella pertussis, against which the vaccine is prepared, or indeed with any microorganism whatsoever.
Reservoirs of people unvaccinated against measles, mumps, or diphtheria, on the other hand, should result in periodic outbreaks of these diseases. But again, authentic immunity, would insure that only the unvaccinated would fall ill, which has never proved to be the case. All known out breaks of these diseases in the post vaccine era have included large numbers of vaccinated people as well; an. in many instances a large majority of the cases had previously been vaccinated, some of them quite recently.
The argument that parents should vaccinate their children to protect society as a whole from epidemic does not make sense. Such epidemic argue rather against vaccinating the ones who were vaccinated but still came down with the disease as soon as they were exposed to it. Likewise, if we accept partial or temporary immunity–conceding that the vaccine are not that effective, but that we have no other alternative to these rebound epidemics–then are we not simply throwing good lives after bad, rather like acknowledging that our patients are addicted to dangerous drugs yet fearing to withdraw them or even withhold them from others, lest the original error be fully or frankly exposed?
This brings us to the question of the long-term impact of mass vaccination programs on individual and community health. Parents refusing to vaccinate their children deserve to be congratulated for making such research possible.
Kiwi babies are among the least vaccinated in the developed world, a new international report reveals.
The Unicef report, the State of the World’s Children, showed New Zealand was on a par or ahead of the world on several counts for child wellbeing, including infant mortality, but it exposed the nation’s low ranking for immunisations.
Of the six immunisations for one-year-old babies, New Zealand was well below the developed world average for four of them. It equalled the others.
In the worst example, only 79 per cent of one-year-olds had received immunisation against measles. In the developed world, 98 per cent had received it by that age and in the least developed countries, 76 per cent had received it.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/4829150a4621.html
Smart parents know the truth when they hear it.
Parents, you will know the truth when you start reviewing the public health history of vaccines, disease, along with the rates of mortality, adhd, allergies, asthma, and all falling one ‘the’ spectrum. You will know when you begin to understand each and every disease – their course and natural treatments which most often prevent complications. You will know that reducing the up to 200 chemicals in your body currently, healing, and avoiding more pollutants while eating fresh whole foods, that your immune system (and fetus) is ready to take on those illnesses – not the pharmaceutical companies. You will see that top medical centers in the US started moving toward integrative (complementary)care and research in the last 2 decades because they recognized the benefits of natural treatment. (Paid vaccine advocates often enjoy bashing just about anything natural in their writings – the reason why I like to point that out).
Parents, YOU will know the truth, but first you must hear it. There are very smart and hard working people out there telling it who have put in countless hours to prevent more children from being harmed.
RIGHT ON! So glad there are so many well-educated people in this town!!
here’s a website by doctors (real, practicing doctors) who don’t support vaccines and give tons of health info on this issue.
http://www.vaccinationcouncil.org/
I don’t think you can say that these diseases have been eradicated for a century, I was fully immunised & had whooping cough when I was 10 years old, that was 29 years ago – my younger sister also contracted it 13 years after I did – so 16 years ago – can’t see how that fits in the past century without the disease. I have 5 unvaccinated children who have been a picture of health their whole lives – my oldest is 13 years old (more than the 10 years since the Wakefield document was published & I definitely wasn’t alone not vaccinating then). Some of my children had chicken pox & 4 out of the 5 just had whooping cough – at least now they have had it I know they will not get it again as they have a natural immunity to the disease – not a fabricated one that may last between 2-10 years. The problem with vaccines is that we are all guinea pigs – the schedule keeps changing as they discover new facts about the vaccines – basically that they don’t last like they should. There will always be people that can’t be vaccinated for medical reasons so working on the basis that the whole population needs to be vaccinated for it to work is’t going to happen anyway! I would prefer my children to contract the disease & manage it with personal, natural & medical help if needed rather than inject them with a concoction of formaldehyde, acetone & a mixture of other chemicals!
I have found the pro-vaccine CHOICE crowd to be very well informed. Most have read studies, (not internet banter) most can tell you how many children have been injured from a vaccination vs. how many children were sick from the illness. Most have spent countless hours reading government documents which frankly, are scarier than anything else you can find on the internet on the subject. What is terrifying is the amount of pro-vaccine misinformation that circulates and the questionable motives of those behind it. If everyone took their time time read the package insert on these vile vials, there would be even fewer vaccinating.
You really should seriously consider investigating your stories before you publish garbage such as this. tsk tsk tsk The main man the CDC relied on to debunk Andrew Wakefield has since been indicted on 13 counts of embezzlement from the CDC and for filing FRAUDULENT STUDIES (including, but not limited to, the one that allegedly debunked Wakefield). His name is Poul Thorsen. Feel free to Google that story… it happened March/April 2011.
Oh, but how convenient it is for you vaccine supporters to overlook that fact, huh?
And I don’t rely on celebrities to convince me of anything. I’m basing my PERSONAL DECISION to not vaccinate on the grounds that my oldest child was vaccine injured when he was 18mos old! Not just my personal observation or opinion on the subject either… I had SIX doctors write that down in my child’s medical charts… and I didn’t just have SIX doctors to back me up, I have the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Courts back me up with a settlement.
Personally, I just find it funny (odd) that parents are more than willing to do their research on the best TV to buy for their money, best car to buy, best airline fares for travel, best restaurants to eat at, etc until they’re “blue in the face” but yet can’t be bothered to do their research on the toxins being injected into their own children or the damages they can cause… They just blindly accept what their doctors tell them as the gospel truth of things…
Just goes to show you where your priorities truly are and it’s not where they should be – the health of your child.
It’s time to stop letting the labels such as anti vax, divide us & pay attention to right over wrong.
The following is overwhelming & undeniable. The cover up is coming to its end.
The truth is out there as these comments prove.
“News reports and studies exploding the whooping cough vaccine myth”
http://wwwยญ.dailypaulยญ.com/16793ยญ1/a-collecยญtion-of-maยญinstream-nยญews-reportยญs-and-studยญies-explodยญing-the-whยญooping-couยญgh-vaccineยญ-myth
If the first link gets inactivated as it has been, try this one.
http://tinyurl.com/3byxsrb
The “anti-vaccination crowd” is neither a crowd nor a group. The common denominator is that we are, to various extents, critical regarding vaccines and vaccination.
Some of us are critical regarding one specific ingredient or vaccine, others are against vaccination as a whole.
Some, though not all of us believe that the manufacturers of medicines,including vaccines have a culture of criminality and corruption.
Some of us have become dubious about vaccines because we or our nearest suffer from vaccine injuries.
Many of us have not received satisfactory answers to our questions when we have asked doctors or other vaccine promoters about vaccine ingredients, interactions between ingredients, risks etc.
The reason is that many doctors do not know the answers and it is disconcerting when we realise that many are not interested in finding the answers.
It is wise to investigate thoroughly for ourselves before considering each vaccine. Package inserts may be obtained from internet. Most of the ingredients, side effects, contra-indications, etc are listed there.
Many vaccine critics have conscientiously studied the vaccine issue for years. Some of us have worked in professional fields, for example pharmacy, pharmacology, microbiology, vaccine formulation, production and control.
It is unwise to under-estimate vaccine critics. Information and points presented by both vaccine critics and vaccine promoters may well be equally serious, and discussions are fruitful when both sides treat each other with respect.