To wonder why on earth you would not vaccinate your DCs?

[olimpia]

I hear from another thread that some people choose not to vaccinate their DCs at all and I'm genuinely interested to hear why because I can't think of a single reason not to. I can perhaps understand opting out of the MMR if someone believes the bad press (not that I do) but all the other vaccinations? Why, oh why?
(not a troll! Just relatively new to MN)

Stuff like this is why it can be hard to take anti-vaxers seriously. The idea that the medical profession are out to get them.

And if the anti-vaxers are themselves members of the medical profession? What then?

I worded it poorly. I'm sure there are medical professionals who feel this but it's a worrying attitude. I'm not saying we should take everything we're told at face value but I don't like conspiracy theories either.

When will people understand that herd immunity is not a yes or no concept. The more people who are immunized the less the probability of transmission. We don't have perfect herd immunity to measles in the uk so you can have localized outbreaks in some communities but it won't become endemic or a widespread epidemic. You can have some herd immunity which for someone who can't be immized is better than none.

'It must be dreadful not to have access to vaccines, or to be forced into vaccinating your child.'

Yes it IS awful. And prevalent in this country. What if you wanted to vaccinate your Ds against mumps and measles but not rubella?

You have to choose between not vaccinating or being forced to vaccinate against rubella!

When DD was in Yr2 (she's in Yr 7 now), there was an outbreak of measles at her school (5 cases). Someone from the Health Protection Agency called me to offer the MMR as there were no records of DD being vaccinated (for reasons I have explained somewhere on this thread).

As I knew the 5 children involved, I calmly told the lady that we would not be taking up the offer, as there was no guarantee that my DCs would not develop the illness anyway.

All 5 children had previously received the MMR at the usual time.

Someone somewhere on this thread asked those of us concerned about the MMR triggering certain conditions (bowel issues in our case) in our children, whether something else may have triggered these issues at a different time. It is possible, but why would we take a risk with the MMR triggering a life-long condition. My mum suffers terribly from her bowel condition and no way would I want my DCs to have to suffer that.

Is there any evidence for the MMR in particular triggering certain illnesses such as; autoimmune disorders?

How do you know that measles itself won't trigger even worse bowel disease?

"All 5 children had previously received the MMR at the usual time."

This is what scares me.

Having opted to vaccinate I want a guarantee my children won't catch what they have been vaccinated against.

Lunettes, vaccines can't offer you that guarantee I'm afraid. No vaccine is 100% effective.

Lynette - sorry! I'm not sure what autocorrect did there!

I don't personally think there is a conspiracy but too many medical people are too dogmatic. Hence people's expectancy that vaccines are 100% safe/effective because that is the impression they have been given.

I also think there is confusion about who the benefit is for and if you tried to ask, you get muddled responses, e.g. measles may be serious so the benefit is for the individual, but this is lumped with the rubella vaccine, which will be of no conceivable benefit to half the population, or to the other half before puberty or after the menopause, but here the benefit is herd immunity?Which is not needed for rubella because the disease is mild. Yes, it's serious for a pregnant woman to catch rubella - I suspect when the baby is at a certain stage of gestation, but to vaccinate all infants against rubella seems like taking a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

Ironically one of the identified risk factors for autism is having been exposed to rubella in utero

Ironically one of the identified risk factors for autism is having been exposed to rubella in utero

Yes, but it's the logic of vaccinating babies against it that beats me, and no one can really explain why it's done. The vast majority of children attend school in this country, so why not continue with the old policy of the rubella vaccination sometime towards the end of junior school?

I believe that the rates of autism are rocketing - I have no personal experience so I can't say. I very much doubt that these are as a result of the mother catching rubella when she was pregnant.

If your child got mumps/measles, and a few weeks later regressed into autism, I think the majority would suspect that the disease was the trigger. When this happens with children who have had the MMR jab it's just a coincidence apparently. I don't know why the powers that be are determined to say it's not due to vaccination, or is it simple a question of money, they don't want to pay for vaccine damaged children?

"Do you think i would write it on this thread if there weren't reams of evidence to back it up? I can dig up links if you need to be convinced.

I would have worsened the girls' autism and bowel problems and possibly made other health issues worse had i messed about with their immature immune system by injecting chemicals and heavy metals designed to stimulate and force a reaction..."

Yes, if it were to suit your own agenda. I don't need links. In your situation, then not vaxing was probably the right reason but many people with autoimmune disorders require vaccinations more than most. People should take proper medical from specialists who understand the person's medical history. Making statements like that is dangerous and stupid.

^"All 5 children had previously received the MMR at the usual time."

This is what scares me.

Having opted to vaccinate I want a guarantee my children won't catch what they have been vaccinated against.^

There is no guarantee, but I think the fact that only 5 children caught the disease in an entire school suggests that vaccination is pretty effective. Seems strange only children who had been vaccinated caught it and not those who hadn't been.

To put it in perspective Lyn, I never heard of a child catching measles at either of, now grown up, DS's schools.

Yes, but it's the logic of vaccinating babies against it that beats me, and no one can really explain why it's done.

I would imagine someone can; though not a random group of mums in a chatroom.

^"Seems strange only children who had been vaccinated caught it and not those who hadn't been."

My opinion is because the kids who have not been compromised by vaccines are stronger.^

Sorry, but this is nonsense; in the days before measles vaccine, just about everyone caught it.

this is a huge, huge fallacy and contributes to a lot of chronic disease.

If I didn't get the flu jab, I might catch flu and die. What dieases will I get from the jab then? I want to ask my rheumatology nurse when I see her tomorrow.