And open discussion........I hope
This Sunday night, Dateline on NBC is airing a show titled "A Dose of Controversy." The topic is vaccines, and the controversy of whether they do, or do not, cause brain injury. (I refer to "brain injury" because I think too many people turn off the information when you refer only to autism as "this-doesn't-apply-to-me." We are barraged by so much information from the media that we can't absorb it all. But vaccines and brain injuries.........that applies everyone. Even if you don't have a child or loved one afflicted with a brain injury, as a taxpayer, you are going to be supporting millions of children in the future that are afflicted with brain injuries. Like it or not. Okay........getting off my soapbox.)
I encourage everyone to tune in. This is a highly-emotional issue for some, and a non-issue for many others. I find that many people are aware that there IS a controversy, but don't know the details behind it. I also find that a lot of a people with children born prior to the mid-1990's, or people that just blindly do whatever the doctor tells them to do, don't realize how the sheer number of recommended vaccines sky-rocketed around 1993. And then there is the issue of common sense (and I myself am at fault for this one). Why are we giving newborn babies a vaccination on their first day of life for a sexually-transmitted disease when their mother tests negative? Hmmmm.........We all need to be asking these questions!!???
I hope that Dateline presents the issue in an open manner. I feel strongly that the American public needs to be provided with both sides of the issue, and allowed to make their own decision.
If you have children or grandchildren, or hope to have children or grandchildren at some point in the future, please tune in. Follow this link for more information: //insidedateline.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/08/25/2044554.aspx
2 comments:
In regards to newborns, are you talking about Hepatitis B vaccine? I am grateful for that vaccine. It is not only sexually transmitted - in fact I have rarely heard it as such. It is blood and bodily fluids transmitted. It could be transmitted from sharing sharp objects like razors, toothbrushes, earrings, ect. not only that, but if an object (the counter) has been contaminated, it can last a few weeks before it dies and will no longer infect you. Then you wipe the counter with a cut finger and BINGO. Okay, maybe I am a little too ramped up about this, but I work in labor and delivery and you have no idea how many Hep B cases I see. Maybe newborn is a little early, but it takes a while to get the whole series and I still would do it.
I support vaccinations.
Yes......I was definitely referring to Hepatitis B. And, I agree with you....Hep B is an important vaccination. But NOT on Day 1 of life if the mother tests negative. I know that my stance is a little confusing, but I am also a supporter of vaccinating. What I am NOT a supporter of is "one-size-fits-all" medicine, which is what the AAP currently recommends. "Hear ye Hear ye, give your child these vaccines at such and such dates in their lives and all will be good!" That is no longer acceptable to me. There is currently no system in place regarding vaccines that addresses family history for risk of developmental disabilities, gastrointestinal disorders, allergies, and yes....autism. Our medical society embraces the idea that women with a higher risk of developing breast cancer due to family history should have a different schedule for mammograms than women with a lower risk. I would like to see a similar type of questionnaire and following schedule developed for infants PRIOR to shoving them full of vaccines. If you don't have any risk factors in your genetic history, than maybe your child is okay to proceed with the current schedule. (Three of my children fit that bill and are fully vaccinated.) My youngest daughter is an adopted child with a genetic history FULL of developmental disorders. If I knew then what I know now, we would not have vaccinated her, or would have vaccinated at a much slower pace. She's one of the lucky ones.....she has Sensory Processing Disorder and is very high-functioning, but has a whole host of gastrointestinal and malabsorption issues that are co-morbid. Did vaccines cause them? I don't know......but she was already at high risk for DD, lacks the amino acids in her body that flush toxins from the human system, and I wish I would have had the information in front of me to have made an informed choice. The current "one-size-fits-all" vaccine schedule needs to be eliminated. Let's start fitting healthcare to the individual.
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