The following link scrolled through my FB feed today:
http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/whooping-cough-reaches-epidemic-proportions-california
Whooping cough is not fun - I had it as a child and remember a house call from our family physician and steam treatments in an effort to help me breath (I was likely 3-5 years old at
the time). I'm not sure if I had received the vaccine. I don't blame parents (or anyone else)
who wants to avoid getting ill - and there is reason to believe that vaccines reduce risk of
disease. But even the best intended interventions can have unintended consequences (many
of which are discovered after the fact) - and for this reason we should be free to determine
whether or not to receive, or decline, vaccination for anything.
In Cali, of those for whom they had a vaccination history (almost 3/4 of peds cases), only 9% had never had a pertussis containing vaccine, so at least 2/3 of cases had had at least 1 dose of pertussis vaccine.
This link was provided in the article above:
http://www.cdph.ca.gov/programs/immunize/Documents/Pertussis_Report_6-10-2014.pdf
If most cases have been vaccinated (to one degree or another) it begs the question of effectiveness (see below about b. parapertussis) - but there is also research implying that any risk reduction (I won't call it "protection" - we try to consider these two, different concepts equivalent when they are not) wanes farely quickly (within a few years of receipt of the vaccine) so it may be necessary to re-vaccinate frequently in order to maintain whatever benefit of risk reduction you may obtain from vaccine use.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/19/whooping-cough-vaccine-three-years_n_970139.html
There is research linking pertussis vaccine with the rise of b. parapertussis, a related organism producing nearly identical symptoms; I suspect this is like anti-biotic resistance, a lessen we are only beginning to learn.
http://www.cidd.psu.edu/research/synopses/acellular-vaccine-enhancement-b.-parapertussis
Also, the recently vaccinated may well be reservoirs for infection (and so they may also play a role in the spread of the infection, not just the unvaccinated) - here's a link to a study that showed this in baboons:
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2013/11/20/1314688110
Lastly, there are reports (both anecdotal and in the medical/scientific literature) of the use of high doses of Vit C as a treatment modality for pertussis ... seems to have a direct action against the bacteria as well as against the toxin it produces. It's been given either orally or intravenously.
http://drsuzanne.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Japanese-vit-C-whooping-cough.pdf
http://drsuzanne.net/dr-suzanne-humphries-oral-intravenous-vitamin-c/
Vaccination isn't without risks ... the decision to vaccinate (or not) should be made freely, without coercion or manipulation. Each parent/adult should decide for themselves which risk/benefit ratio they wish to accept.
A blog to discuss vaccines, and to promote personal choice in the decision to accept, or decline vaccination.
I don't know which vacations & boosters I've received over the years. When I joined the Navy 30+ years ago, I was given a lot! And b4 I moved to Arkansas for college in '89, I was required by state law to provide proof of MMR vaccination. (I don't know the laws now, but at the time, ALL students, regardless of age or education level - including college - had to provide this before they could enroll.) I personally believe all vaccines are for my own good, and I don't hesitate when they're recommended.
ReplyDeleteYet as a gay man (abstinenate 5+ years now, thus not at any risk), I know many people in various stages of HIV/AIDS. And of course any type of disease entering their bodies could potentially kill them. Thus I believe it would be foolish at best for them to partake of *any* vaccine that contains the disease, such as the ones mentioned above. (I've been told repeatedly that the HIV/AIDS vaccine contains no virus at all, which makes me wonder how the body knows when to fight & resist it.)
Hi Tim - the primary position of my blog is that vaccination should not be coerced/forced/manipulated ... it should be voluntary b/c it is not risk free;
DeleteIt has been controversial since it began (ie: w/Jenner, ? ~1700's?);
I'm not sure how far along an HIV vaccine is in development, but I predict it won't work well - I expect it will give a false sense of security, much like the use of condoms; And the vaccine is really not necessary as the disease
can be avoided by reserving sex for marriage (ie: between men and women);
Thanks for reading!