Concerns about vaccines are making headlines in our society but promoting little in terms of constructive dialogue on the subject. It seems that opposite sides are entrenched in contrarian positions and there is nothing to make them change their minds. Furthermore, although immunizations take the brunt of complaints in this polemic, people are generalizing their concerns to any type of injection, including vitamin K at birth (used to prevent hemorrhagic disease of the newborn) and vitamin B12 shots to treat pernicious anemia. Misinformation runs rampant and may play into the minds of parents as they take health care decisions for their children. There is a popular blog advertising a tea meant to be given twice a day in order to get rid of the toxins a child may have received from his/hers vaccinations. Alternatively some people advocate a “detoxification bath” using 5 drops of lavender with ¼ cup of Epsom salt. A children’s book, Melanie’s Marvelous Measles proposes that having the illness (measles) is wonderful for the body. A review of the book in Amazon has some biting criticisms:
“Thanks to Melanie’s Marvelous Measles I now have an easy reader guide that makes mey eldest feel less down about the fact he’s been crippled from Polio. Apparently telling him”Your grandfather had it in the 1920’s and he lived to be 52 thanks to a weakened heart” just hasn’t cheered him like it should.”
“Chloe, my 3-year was worried about the horrible scaring that came along with her case of Rubella. “Don’t worry dear,” I told her, “Remember Melanie’s Marvelous Measles? Melanie is more beautiful for her scars. If you kids don’t get sick, how else are we going to go on to build a glorious master race?”
“Think of the unique life experience the bubonic plague could bring? To bad Small Pox is so hard to get, those horrifying blemishes they leave would be a real conversation starter for myself and my horribly misshapen children.”
In an American Academy of Pediatrics survey on immunization administration practices (2006), 75% of pediatricians had encountered a parent who refused a vaccine. A follow up survey in 2013 revealed that this figure had increased to 87% of pediatricians. Indeed, an increasing number of people are requesting alternative vaccination schedules, and postponing or declining vaccination.
Recent years have seen a marked increase in the availability and use of “philosophical” or “personal belief” exemptions from vaccination. From 2005 through 2011, rates for non-medical exemptions in states that allowed it were 2.5X higher than in states that allowed only religious exemptions. Use of “personal belief exemptions” from vaccinations has grown to rates in excess of 5% of the school-aged population.
Dr. Edward Jenner is credited with the modern concept of vaccination from his observation that milkmaids with cowpox were immune t0 smallpox. . Since then, immunization has been credited with the eradication of smallpox in 1979, the elimination of measles (documented in 2000), rubella and congenital rubella syndrome (documented in 2004). In addition, poliomyelitis was eliminated in the US in 1979 and 99% worldwide (37 reported cases in 2016 in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria).
Jimmy Kimmel has provided his own personal views on the subject. The YouTube video provided in the attached link has Jimmy asking his audience to take vaccination seriously.
I think both sides of the debate should be heard and this could start when parents visit their doctors. They should be given full attention and physicians should have a willingness to listen. Physicians should not multitask while listening to the concerns of parents, and if they are busy at that moment, schedule a visit just to discuss these concerns with open ended questions. Parents and physicians should make the point that they are all on the same team. Indeed, physicians should have the mindset that parents, more than anyone else, want to do the best for their children. Physicians should therefore present information in a non-confrontational manner. Also, of importance, physicians should address the most common side effects of vaccinations. It is all too common for physicians to provide only one side of the story and represent themselves as trying to sell the vaccines to the parents. Parents can research vaccine safety by accessing Vaccine Information Statements (VIS) compiled by the CDC. These reports are available online for each particular immunization (see example below). Physicians should make parents aware of their own personal choice as to whether they have immunized their own children. Additional personal accounts can be found in Immunize.org/reports (check Real-Life Stories at the very top of the right hand column). For those parent who pursue their right not to vaccinate, the legal form to peruse and examine before taking any decision is available from the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Cortical Chauvinism 
I think it’s important to recognise (at least) three distinct “debates”/wars here.
– did vaccines cause the/an autism increase?
– have vaccines caused any autism cases?
– are vaccines good or bad in other respects?
Part of the problem is very strong commercial motives, which may or may not cause harms to be denied and benefits to be blown up.
People then resort to just disbelieving what they don’t prefer.
I have seen a lack of clear adequate review of the vax-autism controversies. For that reason I included in my Experts Catastrophe book a chapter on that, Chapter 6 at http://www.pseudoexpertise.com I think it resolutely answers the first question above, while concluding that we do not have clear enough data to answer the second. As for the idea of pharma companies sending me any money, I can only dream….
Meanwhile I also made some study of the wider vaccination debate, contained in the second half (not free-access) of Chapter 1 of the Experts Catastrophe. The evidence from Susanne Humphreys and Tetyana Obukhanych is damning. There has been a huge falsification of the supposedly heroic history of vaccination. It is the most humungous corrupt pseudo-science, proven so by numerous studies. Especially measles and varicella (chickenpox) vaccines should be considered serious child abuse malpractice. Here’s an excerpt from my chapter:
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“Vaccines appear to fit into the same third-rate paradigm as other issuings from the pharma trade. As with other drugs, first an exclusive patented profitable product is identified and then money is invested in persuading everyone that it is crucially important. I think you should consider a recent book titled “Dissolving Illusions: Disease, Vaccines, and The Forgotten History” (Humphries & Bystrianyk, 2013). And a more recent one by Tetyana Obukhanych, who got a PhD in immunology then on reflection decided her education had been very defective anyway. On the internet you can see some of the fanatical personal attacks such non-conforming authors get subjected to by corporate-aligned people.
You could also consider these comments from a study recently published in a top peer-reviewed journal (Wang et al., 2014).
“The reported coverage of the measles–rubella (MR) or measles–mumps–rubella (MMR) vaccine is greater than 99% in Zhejiang province. However, the incidence of measles, mumps, and rubella remains high. …. measles, mumps, and rubella remain common diseases throughout Zhejiang province. …. Therefore, the elimination of measles and control of mumps and rubella are urgent public health priorities in local regions.”
Note that this report is telling us that not just one but all three famous infections (measles, mumps and rubella) have not been effectively countered even by 99% double-coverage of those vaccin-ations in a population of 50 million. This huge study alone suffices to cast large doubts on the vaccine industry’s scientific credibility.
But maybe you are thinking that that Wang report is just a one-off anomaly, like the famous anecdotal report of men landing on the moon. Well, here are three more I have learned of from Tetyana Obukhanych:
Nkowane et al 1987 Measles outbreak in a vaccinated school population: epidemiology, chains of transmission, and the role of vaccine failures. Am J Public Health.
Boullane et al 1991 Major measles epidemic in the region of Quebec despite a 99% vaccine coverage. Canadian J Public Health.
Sutcliffe et al 1996 Outbreak of measles in a highly vaccinated secondary school population. Canadian Med Assocn.
The evidence highlighted by Dr Obukhanych and others shows that measles vaccines do indeed generate some sort of immunity, but that it usually lasts only a few months or years, in contrast to the lifelong immunity created by having a relatively trivial natural measles infection in childhood. And this has two adverse consequen-ces. Firstly it increases the risk of measles in older people, for whom it can be more harmful. And secondly it prevents mothers passing on their immunity to their babies, with the result that those infants lack that natural protection and are thus at risk of an infection which can be deadly at that unnatural age.
Four further things reflect this dubiousness of vaccine science. Firstly that their manufacturers have been granted some peculiar exemption from the normal legal liability for harm caused. Secondly that they are not required to prove actual effectiveness, but merely that they generate some antibodies, even though there is a lot more to the immune system than those antibodies which clearly don’t have effects equivalent to those of the infections themselves. Thirdly….
[etc…..]
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My kids are 18 and 20 and I stopped vaccinating when my oldest was 5. I saw clear evidence that the vaccine was causing issues (107 degree fever and hospitalization after vaccine) and was told it was just a coincidence, but was offered no other solution – “Must have been some type of a virus or bacteria” was all I got. My younger son repeatedly vomited after his 18 month shots, was so sick and lost so much weight. He didn’t want to eat anything and eventually lost 10 pounds. I was dismissed on both account. Both were given DPT and MMR at the same time so I could not be sure which vaccine it was. My younger son needed therapy following the vaccines – OT and PT as his motor skills were impacted.
We moved, I spoke with my new pediatrician who assured me the shots were safe and said if my sons got sick that easily, they really ought to have the flu shot. They were both sick immediately after and my older son missed two weeks of kindergarten while my younger son was lethargic for a month. We no longer vaccinate. It’s great when a pediatrician listens to you and you have a dialogue, but the end result it they ALWAYS want you to vaccinate, so you are not really heard.
I found a new pediatrician who immediately provided both with vaccine exemptions, so it’s been 15 years since they have had vaccines and I am so grateful. Thank God my kids recovered and are doing fine.
The only issue i have with your reference to getting information from data sheets provided by the CDC is that they own the patents to many of the vaccines. It’s like believing an ad from a company without doing due diligence. I have to go by how my children react and make a decision that’s in their best interest. Just like a person whose child has cancer cannot be immunized, for some reason, my children cannot. I’m hoping one day that researchers discover why and we can do an alternate form of immunization.
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Manuel, I wish to ask, how is your research coming along? Do you have any breakthroughs or leads? Have you managed to gain any support or funding for your TMS method? What are you working on now?
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I have not been lucky with funding. I am presently working on subtyping a group within ASD that has problems with joint hypermobility and immunity. My passion, if I was free from other comitments, would be to develop a better method for neuromodulation through brainwave entrainment (mind you not acoustic or photic). Thanks for asking.
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