Lest anyone forget, vaccines were what got rid of polio. Measles used to kill people and pertussis kills babies. The flu shot saves people like me from ending up in the hospital with pneumonia because of my asthma. Everyone is so opinionated against vaccines, I figured I'd throw that out there. There are children who can't get vaccinated because of medical treatments that weaken their immune system or histories in their families that make the risk outweigh the benefit. Not only do my vaccinated children benefit from their vaccines, but so do those kids that can't have them. So before we arbitrarily stop vaccinating our kids on a what if, let's look at some cold hard facts.
For nearly a hundred years polio plagued the world. Not our country, not our hemisphere, but the world! Vaccines have practically eliminated its presence. But not completely. There are still unvaccinated populations in Africa and Asia. That means its still possible for someone traveling from Africa to expose your unvaccinated kid to polio. Check out a little info about polio symptoms and long lasting effects here. Polio
Mumps are more miserable than anything else. In 2009 to 2010 there was an outbreak of mumps in New York and New Jersey. 1500 kids contracted mumps. So yeah, that is still around too.
Measles can be deadly. "Measles causes fever, runny nose, cough and a rash all over the body. About one out of 10 children with measles also gets an ear infection, and up to one out of 20 gets pneumonia. For every 1,000 children who get measles, one or two will die." - CDC ( Which I know some people will have an issue merely with the source of this statistic. Conspiracy theories or measles vaccine? I don't like the numbers on measles, so I'm going with the vaccine.
Hepatits B can damage your liver leaving you scarred and unable to take Tylenol or drink alcohol. It can end with a liver transplant or death. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/hepatitis-b/DS00398
I am very much in support of the herd effect for children that are unable to be vaccinated. If my healthy child can keep them healthier, then I am all for it. I'm not judging people who don't vaccinate, but hopefully my kids will help keep them safe too. What I don't understand is the faulty logic and flawed studies used to support the argument against them. Isn't it kind of suspicious that the very founders of the cornerstone study on the correlation between vaccines and autism have renounced their original conclusion? Why?
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/checkup/2011/01/autismvaccine_link_another_nai.html
Do what you want to do with your kids. Say what you want to say. But I'll do the same. I'm in full support of vaccinations for healthy children. And for as much as I hear against it, at least I will feel better knowing I said how I feel.
