There is a great debate in the "crunchy world" over something that has been a very common thing for children for several hundred years. Vaccinations! There is a lot of argument over whether to vaccinate completely, selectively, delayed or no-vax at all. In fact, a lot of schools will tell you that the child cannot attend unless they have all the required vaccinations (not true, which I will get into later).
Lets first go into the different types of vaccinations that the AAP and CDC requires of your children. Please note that this schedule has just been updated effective Feb 1, 2011:
Hep B: Hepatitis B given at birth and then 0,1 and 6 following that (3 or 4 doses)
Rotavirus: first dose given between weeks 6-14. The final dose should be completed BEFORE 8 months
DTaP: Diptheria and tetanus toxoids and acellular pertussis- 4 doses starting at 6 weeks and ending anywhere between 12 and 18 months
Hib: Haemophilus Influenzae type b- 4 doses given at 2,4 and 6 months and then between 12-15 months (depending on the brand of vaccine)
PCV: Pneumococcal Vaccine- Given between the ages of 12-15 months and a PPSV given if there are underlying medical issues
IPV: Poliovirus- 5 doses given between the ages of 6 weeks and 4 years
MMR: Measels, mumps, rubella- 2 doses between the ages of 12 months and 4 yrs
Varicella: 2 doses at 12 months and 4 years
HepA: Hepatitis A vaccine- 2 doses between 12 months and 4 years
MCV4: Meningococcal conjugate vaccine, quadrivalent- 2 doses, at least 8 week apart, beginning at age 2
So this is what the AAP suggest just between the ages of 0-6. There is a whole other schedule for the ages of 7-18. Just right off the bat this seems like a LOT of vaccinations (27 in roughly 5 years) but there are some that are more interesting than others and I want to take a good look at those in particular.
First of all lets talk about mercury in vaccinations. The FDA along with the CDC have been telling alot of us there there is very little mercury in very few vaccinations. And while the latter may be true (only 4 out of many) the AMOUNTS of mercury in each is surprising. The FDA recommends that pregnant women and children consume NO MORE than one 6 oz can of tuna fish per week, which contains 17 micrograms of mercury. However, just ONE shot of DTap, an individual Tetanus, flu shot, or meningococcal vaccine contains 25 micrograms of mercury!!! That is shocking! There has been a link of mercury exposure to Autism but I will not get into that because I believe alot more research needs to be done.
The vaccination Rotavirus. Rotavirus is a virus that attacks the bowels. It causes severe diarrhea among infants and children. What is very surprising is that almost all children will become infected with Rotavirus by their third birthday. The main reason for complications due to Rotavirus is dehydration. Although the vaccination is the MOST effective way shown to possibly prevent the virus, the chances that your child will still catch the virus are high. It just might not be as bad. I found this very interesting. So in MY opinion (not the opinion that I am trying to push on you) is that if you choose not to give your child this vax and they get rotavirus, keep them hydrated! Popcicles, water, pedialyte, high water content fruits, ect. That will keep them out of the hospital.
Hepatitis B. This vaccination is to prevent a sexually transmitted disease. I"m sorry but I don't know of any 2 year old that is having sex or using IV drugs. This vaccination, again, in my opinion, is not so much dangerous as it is unnecessary at such a YOUNG age. Unless the child is born to a HepB infected mother, there is no need until the child is much older, possibly even into adulthood.
Varicella. This vaccination is to prevent chicken pox. Chicken pox in an of itself is not a dangerous virus. In fact the vaccination can cause chicken pox! The way that this shot works is by injecting a live virus into the child's body. The reason why I believe that this is unnecessary is because most children will get the actual virus by 5th grade and the chances of a severe case are slim. I suggest bringing your kids around the virus so that they get it and allow their immune systems to grow and fight it off on their own. Once they have had it they are immune to it! (However if your child has not had the chicken pox by 5th grade I WOULD recommend giving them the vaccine as catching chicken pox- or shingles as an adult could be dangerous)
One more unnecessary immunization (in my opinion) is the FLU shot. Everyone seems to push the flu shot. But the crazy thing is that the there are hundreds of different strains of the flu. Each year, the strain with the highest known incidence from the year before, along with (recently) a variant of H1N1, and a strain of H3N2 are farm raised in the "best of the best" eggs around. The egg is fertilized and checked out by the FDA for pathogens and infections. There is 1 strain per egg and 3 eggs per dose. So now the flu vaccine can cause an issue if the child has an egg allergy. But the reason it is unnecessary is because it will not always prevent you from getting the flu!
Dr. Sears has said that the best way to keep your kids healthy is to expose them to germs early on in life. The more germs they are exposed to the more immunities they will naturally produce in their body.
Ok.. those are all the vaccinations I can handle right now! Haha... I'm tired!
But really quick... my crunchy item of the week is..... Coconut Oil. This can be used for absolutely everything, cooking, lotion, chapstick, conditioner, diaper rash ointment ect. You can get it at almost any health food store and it can even sometimes be found at Walmart!
I would love to know how you feel about vaccinations or if you have every used coconut oil! Thanks! :)
