what are your feelings on the MMR jab??

[doodypud]

My DD has an appt for her jab on the 3rd of April, i am still really concerned about the possible links with Autism, has anyone else had concerns or any bad experiences?

Also there are cases of Vacine Damaged cases which are accepted by the manufacturers and compensation is paid out. Don't know the details but I did hear the American figures once and that Hilary Clinton is the head of the Vacine damage organisation in America.

Somebody posted something interesting recently about a law that was passed that would absolve a drug company of any responsibility if it was discovered that there is a link between MMR and autism - will try to find it.

I just love the last line of the excerpt below. The whole thing is barmy. In my case I don't even think it was the actual bit of the jab that was doing the immune bit that that screwed ds1- I think it was the mercury in it given at 8, 12 and 16 weeks. I get told I'm mad for thinking that. Yet a few years after ds1 was born pregnant women were adviced to go easy on the tuna because of mercury. So hmmm let me get this straight, it's not OK for me to eat tuna when pregnant in case some mercury passes into the foetus, but it is ok to inject thimerosal straight into the bood stream of said foetus 8 weeks later when he's a baby. Oh but its a different form of mercury - it hasn;t had any safety tests carried out on it but its defintely OK. Right. With logic like that no wonder no-one trusts them. And oh how funny that lots of autistic children seem to have problems excreting heavy metals. Ho ho, is there a link- I think we should be told!

Common sense goes out the window when discussing vaccines. My friend's autistic dd had lead poisoning - her levels were over 100 at the should have been dead level. She was chelated on the NHS- so obviously taken very seriously and she wasn;t allowed back home until all the lead paint had been stipped and floors selaed. Her baby brother had higher than normal lead levels as well - but around the 10 mark. Oh so my goodness could that indicate she has problems getting rid of heavy metals. - Well the powers that be were more than happy to say yes with regard to lead, but with regard to mercury???? oh no that's a step too far. Same happened to me- ds1's lead levels were checked by the paed, but he refused to check mercury levels (it is hard to get an accurate measurement- he said there was no reason to think that he would have high mercury levels. Yeah- unless he can't excrete it).

"Now, a new study from the University of Washington documents regression using videotapes of children's behaviour during their first and second birthday parties.

"We were pretty sure there was a phenomenon of regression, but this (study) documents it ... in a much more objective way," said Dr Sally Ozonoff, an autism researcher at the MIND Institute at the University of California-Davis.

Researchers reviewed homemade videotapes and talked to the parents of 56 children: 15 with regression, 21 with early onset and 20 children without autism.

On their first birthday, the children later diagnosed with autism had reached the same developmental milestones as those never diagnosed. They babbled in long strings of sounds, used single words, pointed out objects and people and responded to their names.

By their second birthdays, the same children looked very different when compared with their peers without autism.

"We found that what parents have been telling us all along was true," said Dr Dawson, the lead author of the study."

the US does it much better than here (or did until the recent legislation). For every jab given the manufacturers had to pay into a compensation fund to fund vaccine damage. It is a sensible way to do it. They had to give more per jab if that jab was thought to be more dangerous. The DTP was quite pricey $1.50 per shot or something (whilst the DT was 7cents or something). OIf the regular standard jabs the MMR was the next most pricey (ie risky),

It will be interesting to see what happens to incidence levels now the mercury's been taken out of the 2/3/4 month jabs -- especially with the US to act as a control since they still have it in theirs, I think.

The US w/drew mercury from their 2/3/4 months years before the UK did, Leah. That's why I had no idea it was still being used here.

They've also given the MMR for nearly 40 years. I'm 35 and had it as an infant.

Purely selfish question here - when did they take the mercury out and presumably it would be phased out (ie only new batches would be without mercury)?

Jimjams knows definitely, but IIRC they ordered it out in 1995 but used up existing stock.

Thanks.

OK -- I have friends in the US who were under the impression that it was still being used, so I thought they were right. It'll still provide an interesting comparison, though.

It was removed from the DTPs in Oz and USA in 2001. End of 2004 here (after using up existing stocks). I think it came out of the Oz jabs quite quickly but was still used here and there in the States. Was also on the hep B jabs given at birth until very recently (maybe even now?), and is in some flu jabs etc.

I believe my ds was damaged by dtp. I had no idea that my baby was being injected with mercury or that he could be more at risk than little Johnnie down the road. Looking back I can't believe I was so trusting (or stupid)but I wish I'd discovered mumsnet then! Anyway, he didn't have MMR but single vaccines because by then we had read enough to be worried but still wanted to do our 'duty'. That's all worn off now! Ds hasn't had any boosters and he's not going to.

Re: the cost to the NHS of giving single vaccines. The other day in Dd's school I saw a poster appealing for help with vaccinating children in undeveloped countries. I was actually stopped in my tracks by the fact that it said "A child can be vaccinated against measles for as little as 44 pence" Makes you think doesn't it? Ok, private clinics are charging a fortune for single vaccines and who can blame them? They are a business, supply and demand and all that. But how much would it actually cost the NHS?

This subject baffles me, I think i will immunise DD as i can only imagine that the resullt of her getting any of the diseases would be worse than anything the jab could cause??!!?

If only it were so simple Georgiesmum.

i'm with georgesmum on this one. i dont know how how you could forgive yourself if your child caught measels mumps or rubella.

I chose to vaccinate my son with the MMR when he was in good health at 15 months. Forty eight hours after the jab he was extremely unwell and was admitted to hospital with a temperature of nearly 41oC. He had to stay for seven days while they ran all sort of tests. Thankfully he made a full recovery. It was a horrible experience but in the end I accepted that his illness was caused, coincidently, by a virus rather than the jab. He finally had his booster at the age of 8. I delayed his booster to be sure that the initial jab had not caused any problems and that his immune system was ok. He had no problems whatsoever after his 2nd injection and at age 9 is in great health. Despite this experience I'm really glad that he has had his full mmr vaccination.

My feelings on it are that the media hype has frightened a huge % of the population totally unnecessarily and that Dr Wakefield has a lot to answer for.

No issue imo.

I was against mass immunisation long before I read any of the so called media hype. I was going on personal experience and gut feeling. Before making my decision I read both sides of the polarised debate to make sure I was doing what I really thought was the best thing for my children. Which is probably a fairly general strategy, whatever the final result.

Custy, nor could you 'forgive yourself' if the jab causes something nasty.

I've had measles, mumps and rubella and so have all my friends. They never used to be considered a bit deal until the pharmaceuticals realised how much money was to be made out of peoples fears.

"i dont know how how you could forgive yourself if your child caught measels mumps or rubella."

I think this statement shows how the government has suceeded in convincing people that the only outcome of childhood illnesses is something truly dreadful. Mumps and rubella are mild illneses that rarely cause complications. Even measles (though unpleasant) does not usually cause life long complications and can be mild.

I am also irritated that so many people seem to think those of us who are skeptical feel the way we do because of "media hype". I can think for myself. Wakefield has not influenced my thoughts.

oops succeeded

ds1 caught rubella from a vaccinated child. He didn't pass it onto anyone. He wasn't ill (bored because we had to stay in but not ill). I didn't have any problems forgiving myself (and my mum doesn't seem to be too guilty about me having caught measles aged 8). This quote is from The all colour guide to first aid and family health second impression- 1990, edited by a standard orthodox doctor- Trevor Weston MD MRCGP:

"In most countries of the western world (where measles has been established for many centuries) the condition is mild, and hardly ever dangerous"

My my how much more dangerous measles has become in the last 16 years. I could live with the guilt.

I do however feel very guilty for not having read a little more independently before shoving ds1 full of thimerosal. He's paid a pretty high price for my stupidity. I can live with it because I didn't know any better, but if I managed to vaccine damage another child of mine I would find it very hard to live with myself. At the moment ds2 and ds3 are normally developing, I am not about to do anything that changes that.

Incidentally my mum is deaf in one ear from measles complications, but she also deals daily with ds1- she knows which she'd choose.

I always thought it best to immunise and my eldest had the MMR with no problems. But my dd2 after having the MMR at 13 months had a fit and I had to call an ambulance, she then spent 3 days in hospital. 11 days later she fitted again and again was in hospital for 3 days. When she was due for a pre-school booster my practice nurse reccommended I wait til she's 7 or 8.
I now have a 7 month old son and don't know whether to have him immunised as I dont think I could cope with that again.

Do they know which part caused the seizure? (If it had been the DTP you could probably have guessed it was caused by the P). Thank goodness you didn't have long term problems from it. Tjhere's a book by Mary Alexander called "calling the shots" (published by jessicsa Kingsley) who had something similar happen to her dd following the meningitis C vaccine- her daughter had seizures for longer (went on for at least a year iirc) but is no seizure free I think. She talks about the quandry she finds herself in now.