The Vaccine Debate

To Vaccinate or Not To Vaccinate?  That is the question.

I recently got embroiled in a bit of a vaccine debate.  A blog I peruse occassionally posited to debunk the idea that "vaccines cause food allergies." I pointed out that while there aren't any direct cause studies linking vaccines to food allergy - there is enough circumstantial evidence that one must ask questions.
Let me just say that my son, unfortunately, is completely vaccinated.  I obediently followed the doctor's recommendations and schedule shooting up my son every month to two months throughout his first year of life and we concurrently strode along the atopic march.  I thoroughly regret the decision to, at the very least delay and spread out shots, if not pass the whole thing off altogether.  And while I cannot "prove" that the vaccines caused him to have food allergies and asthma, my maternal intuition tells me that it was a signficant contributing factor.

But why?  I'm posting below our banter feedback.  I've kept it anonymous for a variety of reasons.  Most importantly, I feel like "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink."  Also, I wanted you to be able to read links and discern for yourself.  It's important to examine both sides because for some people it is possible that the current vaccine schedule does work.  For our family, I believe,  it did more harm than good.  We are potentially the outliers and I would suggest that all medicine would be better if things were handled on an individual basis.

Me:  If this is second post - disregard. I hit publish and nothing happened. At any rate - here is link
Delay in diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus vaccination is associated with a reduced risk of childhood asthma.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18207561Plus vaccines go into the body without going in through a mucus membrane - there is study that discussed children encountering food first through skin (especially eczematic skin) generating allergic sensitization versus first encountering said food through mouth, throat, stomach route... It is in book Epidemic of Absence (must read in my mind for anyone in allergy circles)I would ask the same of you - can you provide links to peer-reviewed, well constructed study that's been validated by others that proves that skipping vaccines can (probably better word is does) lead to death.I am always open to learning. I am not doctor or med professional - only arm chair scientist. Are you a medical professional? How do you discern whether or not the study is well constructed and valid? I am curious.This is a complicated discussion that polarizes people on both sides. I am always open to learning. In my opinion, vaccines should be evaluated on an individual basis.
Thanks
Denise

Blog I occasionally peruse:  Nope. Not getting lured into the vaccine debate. I read four years of vaccine research when my kids were little.  The only thing I will say is that I thought of you today when I read this Slate article:http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2013/02/will_computers_eventually_make_scientific_discoveries_we_can_t_comprehend.html“[W]hen people thought the Earth was flat, they were wrong. When people thought the Earth was spherical, they were wrong. But if you think that thinking the Earth is spherical is just as wrong as thinking the Earth is flat, then your view is wronger than both of them put together.P.S. This is a cohort study that was done a year later than the one you cited. Far more comprehensive; totally different conclusion:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19255024
Me:  Not into a debate, just food for thought.There were also doctors recommending smoking in the mid 1900s, and I'm sure opponents of that were hit with "the earth was flat."At any rate, all I'm saying is that it is more complex. And the areas with low vaccination rates have low to no allergies & asthma. Just makes you wonder. I'm sure it's part of a spectrum of modern things that add up into askew immunity.Also, look at infant mortality rates across the globe - significant portion of them are not from the things we vaccinate for. I did.Food for thought.
Another mother poster:  I personally do not think that we need to have a new study that shows that skipping vaccines leads to death. We need only look at our history and the many, many people who did die of diseases for which we now have vaccines (and a lower death toll) and look into the world to areas with lower vaccination rates (and higher death tolls).
Anonymous poster:  to each their own.
Blog I occasionally peruse:  I don't agree with that when there's potential for harm to others. We don't just shrug and say "to each their own" when we're talking about drunk drivers...or smokers...or guns in public places...Texas excluded, of course. ;)

This debate got me thinking.  I really do not like talking in generalizations - or regurgitations.  I also can't stand with others do it with the conviction that marketers refer to as "drinking the kool-aid."  So I briefly read some other resources to look at vaccine rates and infant mortality rates (IMR).    I think that it is quite possible, if not probable, that most, if not all, the decrease in IMRs that we credit vaccines for isn't really due to other factors, such as:  improved nutrition, sanitation, and access to healthcare when it is needed.
Here is information that I feel supports this argument:
"Infant morality rates regressed against number of vaccine doses routinely given: Is there a biochemical or synergistic toxicity?"     This study or retrospective used data through 2009, but it is still signficant.  I cannot vouch for its validity - but it is food for thought.  I also think it's fascinating

"For example, Gambia requires its infants to receive 22 vaccine
doses during infancy and has a 91%–97% national
vaccine coverage rate, yet its IMR is 68.8. Mongolia
requires 22 vaccine doses during infancy, has a
95%–98% coverage rate, and an IMR of 39.9."