"Vaccine refusals fuel measles outbreak" - Page 2

[california_mom]

Originally Posted by MCKH

I have a question about this, because my grandmother was born in 1922 and was a nurse in a hospital from 1940-1949. She said when a family had measles, the house was quarantined much the way it was with scarlet fever or polio. The house had a big sign out front and no one was to go in our out. Then, when the illness had run its course, everything in the house was burned (bedding, rugs, clothing, toys) and all the wallpaper was stripped off the walls, etc. She said measles was scary, people died, etc. She said mumps and rubella were considered "not a big deal" except for pregnant women (for the rubella) but that measles was.

I hear on this board that measles is a no-big-deal childhood illness, but her experience with it as a child and as a nurse says otherwise and I'm just wondering where the truth lies.

I found this online, an article from Time magazine in 1924. I think it gives a little more info about what people thought of measles way back when. Plus it says that people were trying to figure out how to prevent measles by means of a serum developed from people "convalescing from measles."

I have a friend who was born 70 years ago... oh, I can't do the math right now - born 1930-something. She would have been a child in the 1940's. Anyway, she told me her experience re. measles when I first started researching vaccines. She knew people who died as a result of measles (don't know the specifics and I doubt she would know; she was a kid and only knows what she was told), and that she blames her heart problems on getting measles when she was young.

So, was it fear-mongering back then and that's what her stories are based on, or is there truth/fact in her words? Or is it somewhere inbetween?

[beka1977]

Am I reading the same article? I see nothing about homeschoolers or 50%...

[beka1977]

Okay, found the right article. I really like how they have managed to go after un-vaxers AND homeschoolers. Talk about bang for your buck!

Also there was this: "It's unclear why the parents rejected the vaccine." Let me say now that God forbid this is my kid, I am going to have a hard time keeping my mouth shut.

[Mama~Love]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080821/...GNWh2J7VcR.3QA

Here's the other article. Ugh.

[honeybunch2k8]

Pediatricians are frustrated, saying they are having to spend more time convincing parents the shot is safe.

"This year, we certainly have had parents asking more questions,"

.



"Just trust us, our word is the Gospel."


If the vax is so effective, why are 50% of the infected vaxed? Or am I not reading that right?

[prancie]

Thinking some more about this issue. I don't think that this measles "outbreak" has anything to do with non-vaxers. I have a theory: that a weak dollar = measles outbreaks. When the dollar is weak, more people travel for tourism in america, bringing measles with them. The article said the last time there was a serious outbreak was 1989-1991, another time that the dollar was very weak.

[taterbug1999]

MCKH and California mom,
My grandparents ( 94 and 87, both living) both had measles and said all the kids their age got it. You were sick and crappy for a week or so but have never mentioned the signs and buring bed linens. But point to ponder. Many people here believe running water and better sewer systems did more toward reducing disease than any vaccine. In the time you mentioned, most people wouldn't have had running water or washing machines that they could bleach bed linens. Burning would have been the most appropriate option.

Also my family were from rural areas where they were not close together. In a city environment I would assume seclusion would keep down an outbreak. I.e.: Chicken pox. Until the vax, if you got 'em you stayed inside til you weren't contagious. Any time you are sick it is wise not to prance around sharing the wealth. Seclusion would have made alot of sense.

Measles is also a viscious Vitamin A depleter. This is why many people in third world countries still get so sick and die from measles. Vit. A depletion increases the risk of complications. A study was actually done recently giving high high (100,000 iu/day for several days) doses of Vitamin A to these kids in the early days of the measles. It dramatically reduced the fatality numbers. Even in the the early 1900's we didn't have easy access to foods and veggies. If it didn't grow near you, you didn't get it like you do today. So if you weren't eating Vitamin A rich foods and veggies there would have been higher complication rates. They also would not have known to eat said Vitamin at the time to boost the immune system.

My grandma also tells how after you gave birth they kept you in the hospital until you had a BM. Sometimes 10 days or more...... That was the early 40's. Lots of advances have happened in just the past 60 to 80 years. Lots of weird stuff happened back then. It's all in perspective. My grandpa remembers pooping out worms in the barn yard when he was a little boy... par for the lifestyle then. Doesn't happen so much now........ ( thank goodness!)

[quelindo]

Originally Posted by taterbug1999

Measles is also a viscious Vitamin A depleter. This is why many people in third world countries still get so sick and die from measles. Vit. A depletion increases the risk of complications. A study was actually done recently giving high high (100,000 iu/day for several days) doses of Vitamin A to these kids in the early days of the measles. It dramatically reduced the fatality numbers. Even in the the early 1900's we didn't have easy access to foods and veggies. If it didn't grow near you, you didn't get it like you do today. So if you weren't eating Vitamin A rich foods and veggies there would have been higher complication rates. They also would not have known to eat said Vitamin at the time to boost the immune system.

Sorry if this is OT, but I've been thinking about the vitamin A thing and your post caught my eye. I exposed my son to chickenpox this summer so I was doing some reading on what to do to help his body through it, and I read that viruses really deplete one's body of vitamin A. Since vitamin A is also important for healing skin, I figured I would spike my son's water with vitamin A drops while he was sick.

He did get chicken pox, and I did give him the A, and he had an AMAZINGLY mild case. Absolutely no itching or pain from the pox, one half-day of a 100-degree fever, and that's it. Lots of pox, but that's all. And I'm wondering if the vitamin A had anything to do with that.

[riverscout]

Originally Posted by honeybunch2k8

If the vax is so effective, why are 50% of the infected vaxed? Or am I not reading that right?

The articles state nearly half of the cases were in children whose parents chose not to vaccinate. That doesn't translate to mean that the other half were vaccinated.

Both articles have a breakdown, but basically about 90% of cases were in people who were not vaccinated, some because they were too young, or had no record of being vaccinated.

[quelindo]

Also, the person who said that diagnoses are subjective --

I have a friend who is a family practitioner and well-known among my AP community for being okay with not-vaxxing. She thinks people should vax, and she vaxes her kids, but she won't give her patients a hard time if they choose not to.

Her daughter broke out with something last fall that sure sounded like measles, and SHE thought was measles, but when she sent a sample into the lab she had an impossible time getting results back. It almost seemed like they were hiding something. Ultimately they decided it was NOT measles, but I have my suspicions.

Also, how accurate are the statistics if diseases are not reported? For example, I didn't report that my son had chickenpox. He never goes to the doctor and we're exempt from our state's vaccination registry. So that's one case of incredibly mild CP with no complications that won't get counted. (And if he got measles I wouldn't bother reporting it, either.)

[angelachristin]

I saw this on the news tonight. the title should be "vaccine refusals fuel new fearmongering campaign," because that is exactly what is going on. Pathetic.

[honeybunch2k8]

Originally Posted by riverscout

The articles state nearly half of the cases were in children whose parents chose not to vaccinate. That doesn't translate to mean that the other half were vaccinated.

Both articles have a breakdown, but basically about 90% of cases were in people who were not vaccinated, some because they were too young, or had no record of being vaccinated.

OK gotcha

[honeybunch2k8]

Originally Posted by HeatherRD

I don't have kids yet. I haven't done a lot of research on vaccinations. So I don't know much. Can someone please refute some of the points this article makes? What about the outbreaks of measles the article talks about? If unvaccinated children are not causing a resurgence of these illnesses, then what is?

Thank you!

Neither do I, but I've gained a lot of interest in vaxes since I learned there is one for chicken pox.

[Mama Poot]

Meh. Even my mainstream RN mom doesn't see why we need a vaccine for measles. She had measles twice (not sure how but she says she had it twice) and yeah it wasn't pleasant but she survived, like most people who got measles. And even that nasty article had to tell the truth that NO ONE died from the measles this year (no big surprise there. This is the 21st century, we have much more sophisticated meds for things!) I'm not scared one bit for my kids to get measles or mumps or anything else for that matter. They'll have immunity for life if they do get the disease, something that cannot and will never be achieved by vaccines.

[california_mom]

Originally Posted by taterbug1999

MCKH and California mom,
My grandparents ( 94 and 87, both living) both had measles...Doesn't happen so much now........ ( thank goodness!)

Interesting, esp about the Vitamin A. Thanks! And gross about the worms!

[mamakay]

Originally Posted by MCKH

I have a question about this, because my grandmother was born in 1922 and was a nurse in a hospital from 1940-1949. She said when a family had measles, the house was quarantined much the way it was with scarlet fever or polio. The house had a big sign out front and no one was to go in our out. Then, when the illness had run its course, everything in the house was burned (bedding, rugs, clothing, toys) and all the wallpaper was stripped off the walls, etc. She said measles was scary, people died, etc. She said mumps and rubella were considered "not a big deal" except for pregnant women (for the rubella) but that measles was.

I hear on this board that measles is a no-big-deal childhood illness, but her experience with it as a child and as a nurse says otherwise and I'm just wondering where the truth lies.

She must be misremembering or lumping measles in with Scarlet Fever...

http://insidevaccines.com/wordpress/?p=149

[taterbug1999]

http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/abstract/323/3/160

This is a link to the study done on Vitamin A. It was done in 1990. Obviously nobody chose to pursue this I guess over agressive vaccine campaigns in third world countries........uggh....

Note that even the kids who didn't appear to be low in A were markedly low when their blood was tested.

"Vitamin A, also known as retinol, is a fat-soluble vitamin essential for human development. Vitamin A was in fact one of the first vitamins to be discovered. In 1913, scientists were already touting the benefits of this vitamin to their patients. Some of the most important functions of vitamin A include:

Vision protection: Vitamin A is best known as "the eye vitamin," since it protects and improves vision. Vitamin A helps with night vision, adaptation to low light, and eye focus. Vitamin A deficiencies are believed to be one of the leading causes of blindness in developing countries.

Resistance to viral infections: A deficiency of vitamin A is often cited as the leading cause an infection takes longer in disappearing. Vitamin A stimulates the immune system and increases the production of antibodies.
The best sources of Vitamin A include animal products such as eggs, cheese and milk, and oily fish. Vegetables are not a good source of vitamin A but they do provide carotenoids, which the body can transform into retinol. The best sources of carotenoids include yellow-red and dark-green plants such as carrots, spinach, bell peppers, kale, and turnip greens.

Because vitamin A is stored in the body, it is possible to consume too much. Toxicity symptoms for vitamin A include vomiting, fatigue, and loss of appetite; in acute cases, it can lead to visual changes, depression, and anemia. All these symptoms usually reverse themselves as soon as the intake of vitamin A is decreased. "

[ishereal]

Originally Posted by taterbug1999

http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/abstract/323/3/160

This is a link to the study done on Vitamin A. It was done in 1990. Obviously nobody chose to pursue this I guess over agressive vaccine campaigns in third world countries........uggh....

Note that even the kids who didn't appear to be low in A were markedly low when their blood was tested.

"Vitamin A, also known as retinol, is a fat-soluble vitamin essential for human development. Vitamin A was in fact one of the first vitamins to be discovered. In 1913, scientists were already touting the benefits of this vitamin to their patients. Some of the most important functions of vitamin A include:

Vision protection: Vitamin A is best known as "the eye vitamin," since it protects and improves vision. Vitamin A helps with night vision, adaptation to low light, and eye focus. Vitamin A deficiencies are believed to be one of the leading causes of blindness in developing countries.

Resistance to viral infections: A deficiency of vitamin A is often cited as the leading cause an infection takes longer in disappearing. Vitamin A stimulates the immune system and increases the production of antibodies.
The best sources of Vitamin A include animal products such as eggs, cheese and milk, and oily fish. Vegetables are not a good source of vitamin A but they do provide carotenoids, which the body can transform into retinol. The best sources of carotenoids include yellow-red and dark-green plants such as carrots, spinach, bell peppers, kale, and turnip greens.

Because vitamin A is stored in the body, it is possible to consume too much. Toxicity symptoms for vitamin A include vomiting, fatigue, and loss of appetite; in acute cases, it can lead to visual changes, depression, and anemia. All these symptoms usually reverse themselves as soon as the intake of vitamin A is decreased. "

off to find what foods are high in vitamin a.....

[nicolebeth]

Originally Posted by california_mom

I have a friend who was born 70 years ago... oh, I can't do the math right now - born 1930-something. She would have been a child in the 1940's. Anyway, she told me her experience re. measles when I first started researching vaccines. She knew people who died as a result of measles (don't know the specifics and I doubt she would know; she was a kid and only knows what she was told), and that she blames her heart problems on getting measles when she was young.
g

mamakay mentioned something about confusion could have been made between Scarlet Fever and Measles. Is that possible here? My dad ended up with mitral valve prolapse (which led to complications and death in his late 40s), from what he said was Scarlet Fever (perhaps rheumatic fever?) Anyway, I haven't read anything about heart ailments being linked to measles, so I thought this might be a possibility here. (My dad was born in 1945, so would have been just a few years younger than your friend.)

[mkmoro311]

It's the VAXed kids who are spreading the Measles with the shedding effect! Vaccines don't protect you from getting the virus they protect from getting the symptomes. Just because x amount of Vaxed kids get Measles doesn't mean that a whole lot more arn't walking around with the disease.