soon-to-be mom seeks research

[mckittre]

My first child is due in about a month. I knew, vaguely, that some people had problems with vaccines and didn't want to vaccinate their kids. I didn't have any reasons to think there were any problems with vaccines, but I figured, as part of being a responsible parent, I should do a little research.

So the first thing I looked up is the vaccine they give to newborns -- Hep B. I was surprised by what I found: namely that there seems to be no public health reason at all to give that shot to a newborn whose mother isn't infected. Even the pro vaccine websites just said that it was good in case maternal infection was missed, and that it helps "ensure compliance" with the whole series of shots. Seems like a sketchy reason to inject something into a very new baby.

Now, this makes me wonder about the trustworthiness of the rest of the vaccine recommendations, and I need some help making good decisions.

Can you point me to links of studies looking at long term impacts comparing vaccinated to unvaccinated populations? (for any of the vaccines, any country, whatever's out there in terms of peer-reviewed research).

Thanks

[Fyrestorm]

Originally Posted by mckittre

Can you point me to links of studies looking at long term impacts comparing vaccinated to unvaccinated populations? (for any of the vaccines, any country, whatever's out there in terms of peer-reviewed research).

Thanks

Congrats on the babe to be!

Good for you for looking into the whole vaccine thing. It's interesting that the Hep B vax was the one that made you scratch your head, for most people it's the chicken pox vaccine.

There are no studies to link you to. There has never been a long term study done, let alone a study comparing vaccinated to vaccine free children.

People will be along with MANY MANY links for you...but you might want to start with the stickies in the top of this forum and check out INSIDE VACCINES...lots of great digestible and well researched, sited info there.

[tanyalynn]

There's finally a really good website discussing vaccines.

http://insidevaccines.com/wordpress/

They've got articles and links to useful places like the CDC Pink Books and vaccine manufacturer inserts.

There aren't a lot of studies on vaccinated and unvaccinated populations.

eta--posted at the same time as the above poster. and ditto:

[Sileree]

Not a perfect study (Not a RCT), but interesting:

http://www.vaccination.inoz.com/Vacc...s%20survey.pdf

[Gitti]

Originally Posted by mckittre

Can you point me to links of studies looking at long term impacts comparing vaccinated to unvaccinated populations? (for any of the vaccines, any country, whatever's out there in terms of peer-reviewed research).

Thanks

Vaccinated vs. Vaccine-free kids. That is the type of study the anti-vaccine movement has been calling for in the last 20 years.
Why do you suppose there are none?

Surely if vaccines are such a great health giving drug, pharma would have done study after study to prove it to one and all. But no, instead they argue that it is unethical to withhold vaccines from a child and therefore no such study can ever be done. We say, there are thousands, if not millions of children in the US already, who are vaccine free and will remain so. Use them as the control group. No answer.


Several private groups have conducted studies but big pharma will not allow those to be considered valid information.


Here are a couple of studies done by various people. One of them, the Salzburg Study, is (still in progress) done by a group of parents.


Here is an article that ran in The Economist.


You have to realize that people who don't vaccinate their kids have learned a lot about the so called "VPD" (Vaccine Preventable Diseases) and have learned (this may sound weired to you in the early stages of research) that the infections may actually offer some benefits to the child's health.

Those people who don't vaccinate are not afraid of the diseases. They welcome most of them.
I am not afraid because I actually had most of them and so did my three kids.

So here is a little information about that subject -


Anthroposophic Lifestyle Reduces Risk Of Allergic Disease In Children


Childhood exposure to Infections and risk of adult onset of wheeze and atopy


Good for you for researching. If you read long enough and come to see the corruption behind the whole issue, you will be so glad you waited. So, please, don't vaccinate your child until you are absolutely, 100% sure your child needs vaccine.

You can always vaccinate but you can never get that drug back out of your little child's body again.

And welcome to the forum!

[mamakah]

When I was pregnant, I started my research with Dr. Sears "The Vaccine Book" a book that is somewhat biased towards vaccination, but offers clear, straightforward explanations of each vaccine, disease it is "preventing", whether disease is serious or not, pros and cons of each vax, plus his opinion on whether it is an important one. After reading that book, I decided I would go with his selective/delayed schedule. However, after doing more research, I realized that there was no way I was even doing that schedule!
One thing you need to be prepared about is the pressure you will receive to stick to the CDC schedule.
The sticky above has some great references.
"Vaccine Nation" was an interesting watch...you can see it on google videos.
Read the threads in here MDC and you will always find good stuff.
Most of my favorite websites are from the vaccination stickys in MDC.
Good luck with all your research!
::

[taterbug1999]

I personally think Sheri Tenpenny and her videos are a must watch. She is an MD a former ER doc and is one of the most respected no- vax voices on the subject. She is also the unvaxed child of a chiro. Her information is sound and backed by science and hours of her own research. She has testified before the CDC several times. Her site is NMAseminars.com, but on occasion you can get her vids on ebay cheaply or on youtube for free. Seriously her information is excellent, non- sensationalized, and really just well, I can't say enough. She helped give me alot of peace in our decision to go no-vax. I have loaned my copies to my friends who were on the fence and they have felt the same as well. I now this is not an actual "study" reply but as PPs have said vax vs non vax doesn't exist and I doubt it ever will. Also Stephanie Caves (MD) book "What your doctor may NOT tell you about vaccines" is very good too. Good luck! Use this last month to sponge up as much info as you can and prepare if you choose to deviate from the norm. It is not always easy but it is always worth it IMHO. Also search for a ped or Family Pract. doc who will support any alternative choice you may make. FP doc are usually more accepting of parents who delay, selective or do not vax.

[mckittre]

thanks!

Thank you all for the great links. It is a pity there aren't more of those direct comparison studies I was looking for, but I suppose no company has much motivation to do them.

I hope, in starting to look into this before my child is born, I'll have enough time to make good decisions.

One of my biggest worries is that if those decisions aren't "mainstream" then it'll be difficult to ever get the kid into school. But I can deal with that later.

[FernG]

Originally Posted by mckittre

One of my biggest worries is that if those decisions aren't "mainstream" then it'll be difficult to ever get the kid into school. But I can deal with that later.

Don't let anyone tell you that. Every state has religious exemptions except for Mississippi and West Virginia (and those states have a much more limited number of vaccines required for school attendance than are on the CDC recommended schedule). The courts have defined a "religious" reason for not vaccinating as sincere religious beliefs that you should not vaccinate. You do not need to belong to any specific religion to claim a religious exemption. The courts have defined "religious" so narrowly and so ambiguously that I have no ethical problems claiming a religious exemption.

[tanyalynn]

Originally Posted by mckittre

One of my biggest worries is that if those decisions aren't "mainstream" then it'll be difficult to ever get the kid into school. But I can deal with that later.

The exemption process is more straightforward than it seems at first glance. As the PP said, only two states are truly problematic, in every other you can work around the system--I mean, be in compliance with the law but still do what you think is best for your child. The more immediate problem may be finding a healthcare provider for your little one--I tend to like family practitioners, in general they seem more comfortable with the fact that it's the parent's responsibility to make medical decisions for their child(ren). I often get great recommendations from the Finding Your Tribe sub-forum here at MDC.

[alegna]

Religious exemptions are easy So school is not a problem.

I suggest researching each vaccine and disease to decide which, if any, vaccines you want for your children.

Also, remember there is no time-crunch. You can always vax later. You can never take them back.

-Angela