[DK615617]

I read an article today on Yahoo news and it got me thinking.
I am just curious about something. I know this might be a little dumb on my behalf, but I don't understand why people say that by people not immunizing there kids that they are putting everyone at risk. If everyone else has the vaccines how can this be true? Wouldn't only newborns be at risk?? ( And those who chose not to be immunized?) If that is the case and someone not giving there kids the vaccines can cause the vaccinated people to get the disease anyway then why get the vaccine if it isn't going to do its job?
I know I am probably just missing something here. But I have always wondered. You hear people say that the people who don't get vaccines are putting everyone at risk, so how is that?
And if you wouldn't want your kids to play with kids because they didn't get the shots and yours did, why is that? Don't you have faith in the shots?
Just a few questions that I have always wondered but never wanted to offend anyone.
Please don't take offense, I am just curious....
(also I am not anti vaccine, just really scared of them. And on a slightly slower schedule for them)

[Alejandros Mommy]

To answer your question...lets say my 8 year old was not immunized and I got PG...then he got measles...My baby would be at risk for blindness and I could m/c if it came into contact with the virus, which it probably would. Also any other kids he came into contact with such as babies could end up with the virus...

And if you wouldn't want your kids to play with kids because they didn't get the shots and yours did, why is that? Don't you have faith in the shots?

Its not that I don't have faith in the shots....its that my 15 month old still hasn't been vacinated against tons of things yet...and an unimunized child could pass on something to them. Say RSV which is a highly dangerous virus that newborns and babes can die from.

[MissyChrissy]

And it is true that vaccines don't work 100% of the time. It's very rare, but not totally unheard of for someone to catch something they were immunized against.

That being said-I delayed all my girls, and am delaying Conner as well. I know more kids (and adults) are now coming down with diseases that were dormant because of the sudden fad of delaying...but I also know there are more instances of autism and adhd (to name a few) than there were before. Vaccines are chemicals, and I believe they "overdose" developing brains with chemicals and cause developmental disturbances. Just my opinion.

[Alejandros Mommy]

Originally Posted by MissyChrissy

And it is true that vaccines don't work 100% of the time. It's very rare

I am one of those people...I have been Vacinated 3 times for measles and I still am not immune..so needless to say I freaked out when i was in my 1st Tri with Aiden....I have to go for shot #4 and hope this time it sticks.

[floridamama]

I agree with what Jenny McCarthy said on Oprah recently...not all vaccines are made for all children. Everybody's body is different, and what works for one child, may not work for another. They need to stop this "one size fits all" mentality, and test the children prior to certain shots. Like the MMR, for example.
That's just my opinion.

[bkallens]

While most vaccines are relatively effective, none are 100% effective. There is a concept called "herd immunity" which which basically means that the more people who are immune to a disease, the less chance there is that the disease will be circulating in the population. People may be immune either through vaccination or because they have already contracted the disease. It's estimated that 80% of the population needs to be immune to a disease to keep a disease from circulating in the population.

There was a case in Indiana a few years ago where a 17 year old unvaccinated girl traveled on a mission trip to Romania and unknowingly brought back measles. She then attended a church gathering of approximately 500 people and the disease was passed on to a total of 33 other people. Of all the people who contracted the disease during the outbreak 32 were not vaccinated and 2 were vaccinated. The overall vaccination rates in the community however were geater than 92%, so there were not enough susceptible people in the larger community to allow the disease to keep spreading. Had the vaccination levels been lower in the community there would have been many more cases, most among unvaccinated people, but also some among vaccinated. In this example, the "herd immunity" of the community contained the disease so it did not spread beyond the concentrated group of unvaccinated individuals.

Essentially those who are not vaccinated are protected by those who do get vaccinated because the herd immunity keeps the diseases out of the population. If 90% of the population gets vaccinated there is a small chance that diseases such as measles or polio will become established or cause severe outbreaks. The 10% of the population who do not get vaccinated are potected by this fact and by the immunity of the others. As more and more people choose to be unvaccinated the herd immunity levels will fall and it will be much easier for infectious diseases to become reestablished in the population.

So, does playing with an unvaccinated child really pose much of a threat to yours? Not very much unless there is an outbreak of a disease like measles in your community. If there are overall high vaccination rates in your community then it is no very likely that these diseases are going to be present to be passed on to your child.

Hope that I made some sense, let me know if I didn't!

[aimeejensen]

i dont agree with shots

[mcmama]

Welcome aimee.

Sounds like you might want to look for a new pediatrician who can answer your questions and work as a partner with you for your child's health.

Your blog and your pics are wonderful. When you get your sweetie tag, please put the bloglink in your sig - that way you don't have to remember it and you will get more people catching up with you.

[twinzplus3]

I agree with Janet. . .time to look for a new pediatrician. I highly recommend interviewing pediatricians before you make your next choice. Sad. . .but true.

As far as immunizations, there really are risks to doing either IMO. I think the decision comes down to which risk you are more comfortable taking and of course that has to do with your situation. It is unlikely in the United States for your child to pick up anything serious like mumps or measles or polio. Chicken pox on the other hand pops up a little more frequently.

A good doctor will go over all of the risks of immunization as well as their relative likelihood of happening vs the likelihood of what could happen if you don't get immunized.

Just know though, that getting into things. . .like day care or classes. . .is virtually impossible w/o vaccinations. I don't know if that's an issue for you but it is something to consider.

[aimeejensen]

I have nothing against daycare. I just will never put my children in daycare.
My mom didn't get shots with any of my siblings but my brother. 3 of us only got it when we had to when we started school. My brother got his at 2 months and his whole personality changed and my mom didn't get the rest until school. I just don't agree with the babies getting them that young.
I have no idea what to do... but i'm defnitetly going to find a new doctor!