Needling Questions: Immunizing Kids
If you choose not to have your child vaccinated against measles, mumps, chicken pox, and other infectious diseases, does your responsibility end there?
It’s a debate that continues as the trend for not vaccinating children increases.
Parents who believe that vaccinations are linked to autism, or who object for religious or other reasons, balk at government regulations that bar their unvaccinated children from attending school if they don’t have the required shots. One anti-vaccination group calls forced vaccination “a violation of human rights.”
But those on the opposite side of the argument say not vaccinating violates the rights of others. According to officials at the Centers for Disease Control, “The decision not to vaccinate is a decision for your child but also a decision for society.” They say that unlike other medical issues where refusing treatment affects only the patient, refusing vaccinations puts others at risk as well, including newborns and people with suppressed immune systems.
Parents of unimmunized children rely on the vast majority of kids who do get their shots, figuring there’s little polio, measles, chicken pox or other pathogens to be found among so many protected kids. But with recent measles outbreaks in four states, that protection may not be enough. “We are seeing outbreaks that look different, concentrated among intentionally unimmunized people,” says an immunization official. “I hope they’re not the beginning of a worse trend.”
Tell us what you think: When it comes to vaccinations, do parents have a responsibility beyond their own children?
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Idk Its Up To You
I mean, if you wanna not have your kids — have none of them. Then, well, you can call the shots.
HaHa | 1 year, 5 months ago
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Responsibility & Common Sense
From the perspective of moral responsibility, parents have an obligation to have their children vaccinated in order to protect other kids from getting life-threatening illnesses. But to those who argue that vaccinations cause other health issues like autism, I have just one thing to say: you are just crazy. Period. Whether or not that sounds harsh, there is absolutely no scientific evidence whatsoever which even hints at a link between vaccinations and autism. However this half-baked rumor got started, it needs to stop; parents who buy into it are only putting their on children in danger.
—“The Moral Guy”
The Moral Guy | 1 year, 5 months ago
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The grass isn't green on the other side...
I used to be a strong proponent on picking and choosing my future children’s vaccinations. With all the discussion on 1 in 150 children having autism, I have to admit that I’m a little freaked out. About a month ago, my feelings changed on this subject. “Time” Magazine had an article on this issue that delved into the hard evidence. The truth is there is no scientific evidence suggesting that shots cause autism. However, there is evidence that without immunizations children could die of very horrible diseases. People who have autism do not die because of it, but 1 in 10 people with Diphtheria will. Looking at those odds and also knowing that the “measles” of yesteryear have had decades to mutate into “Measles 2.0”, I’m not taking any chances.
Courtney | 1 year, 5 months ago
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The system...
I have a huge problem with the fact that doctors are trained to give multiple immunizations to our children as infants. Because of this, my oldest child had a terrible reaction and I didn’t know which injection was the culprit. Afterwards, I chose a family doctor who would work with me by giving only 1 or 2 injections at a time and schedule a follow-up for the next one so we wouldn’t have this problem again. We parents have a responsibility to protect our kids.
Joyce B. | 1 year, 5 months ago
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You DO call the shots...
I would say it’s up to individual parent but they should think of others and your children. If you don’t get them vaccinated, is that putting them in danger? Is it putting other kids in danger? You call the shots-just think about the ones you love.
d.s. | 1 year, 5 months ago
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Living in community
We all live together on a planet that shrinks with every new innovation in transportation. We do have a responsibility to our neighbors, the children who attend school with our kids — and the person sitting next to us on an airplane.
I read the “Time” article Courtney mentioned. There may be risk in a vaccination, as there is in crossing the street. There is also a payoff: good health for our immunized children and our neighbors’ children — and that guy on the plane.
Jim Blischke | 1 year, 5 months ago
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Difficult decision
I am among those who believe that there is no evidence of a link between vaccination and autism. Until there is a proven link, you could just as easily say that learning to walk causes autism. Autism is on the rise but vaccination does not appear to be the culprit. I believe that the culprit will be found sooner or later, but it is not vaccination.
That said there is still a risk associated with vaccination: risk of short-term bad reaction (resolving), risk of long term bad reaction (causing harm) and risk of death. These risks must be weighed by every parent when those little syringes appear, doctors’ reassurance aside. Every one of us who has done the right thing (vaccination) has had to hold our breath while our beautiful offspring screams from the surprise of the shot – while we weigh the various consequences in our heads.
HOWEVER, the consequences of not vaccinating our children are black and white: children died of diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough. Children died and were maimed by polio. These diseases are not curable by antibiotics, and were our population not vaccinated the death rate from these diseases would rise dramatically.
A Waldorf school in my neighborhood recently had to be closed due to whooping cough outbreak. This is the unplanned but predictable result of following the anti-vaccination dogma of Rudolf Steiner, founder of the Waldorf schools. Most of the affected children were in kindergarten. I am glad my child has been vaccinated.
claire Callahan Goodman | 1 year, 5 months ago
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Do The Right Thing!
Immunizations were the single greatest medical breakthrough of the 20th century from a public health standpoint. Humans are living longer than the have since Bible times – we must be doing something right. When faced with an autistic child, I understand parents want answers, someone or something to blame. Instead they need to focus their energies on how to help their child with his or her difficulties. Autism is horrible, but the etiology is clearly not with immunizations and we all need to be looking elsewhere. One recent study showed that mothers of autistic children were more likely to have used pet shampoos before and during pregnancy – does this mean pet shampoo causes autism?? Maybe? Who knows???? The link was stronger than that of immunizations.
Choosing NOT to immunize your child puts not only your child at risk, but mine also. We cannot afford to stop our immunization program. As with anything there may be room for refinement and improvement. Certainly, the medical community should and will continue to research the efficacy and safety of immunizations. We have to make our decisions based on today’s available information. Today’s generation of young parents have no idea what they are declining. They don’t know of the devastation that polio created – just talk to some of the grandmothers. They haven’t even heard of Hib meningitis because it rarely occurs anymore. Parents in third world nations would give their own lives to have the luxury of immunizations for their children, yet a growing number of American parents decline them when they are free. We are spoiled.
Yes, I am a physician – a pediatrician. I have spent much time reviewing the science surrounding immunizations. Furthermore, I am NOT a part of any governmental conspiracy, and I make very little profit on vaccines. In fact, when the pneumococcal vaccine first became available, my practice actually LOST money each and every time we gave it for the first year. My partners and I felt so strongly about not seeing another child die from pnemococcal meningitis, we gave it anyway. I care for kids – mine and those of the families to place their confidence and trust in me.
Please, do the right thing, immunize your children.
Russell Delaney | 1 year, 5 months ago
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Kathy has no knowledge about vaccines
Anyone that knows anything about vaccines knows that there is no such thing as herd immunity. If there was, then doctors and nurses would be required to receive boosters in their profession (boosters are only good for usually 10 yrs and many healthcare workers haven’t had any since grade school).
Furthermore, I don’t think that Kathy ever read the vaccine package insert for any live-virus vaccine either. It states that the person vaccinated may be contagious to people with compromised immune systems for up to 6 weeks.
As far as the toxic chemicals that go into vaccines are concerned – IF YOU WANT TO SHOOT YOUR PRECIOUS CHILDREN UP with known neurotoxins without a 100% guarantee that it will protect you from any disease – be my guest. I think I’ll take the road less traveled.
Unfortunately, I listened to my doctor last year and my baby and I were both injured by vaccines. I will never vaccinate my loved ones again because I’ve done my homework since then. Vaccines are a very profitable joke and the risks outweigh the benefits for every person and every vaccine. Period.
Dawncrim | 1 year, 5 months ago
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Educate Yourselves
The CDC, AAP, NIH, WHO, FDA – have been lying to society. For “real” facts and studies involving vaccines, purchase the Vaccine Safety Manual by Neil Z. Miller. It was the best $22.00 I ever spent. You will find over 1,000 credible sources to further investigate at the library.
Dawncrim | 1 year, 5 months ago
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