First, let me start by saying that yes, without a doubt, I believe the argument AGAINST vaccinations no longer holds water. I could list all the reasons why, but the bottom line is that research does NOT support the main arguments that are presented. Let me squash a few:
These outbreaks of diseases like measles are not being spread just by people who are exercising their right to not vaccinate their kids.
For decades there have been people refusing vaccinations either for religious reasons or because their children were in a medical situation that put them at a high risk for complications arising from the administration of vaccines. Yet somehow, in the last 6 months, those diseases have reached a fever pitch in our country. So what the heck has changed?? I would venture to guess that the children who are unable to get vaccinated for health reasons and the children whose religious backgrounds dictate that they cannot get vaccinated has not changed much if at all. What HAS changed is the number of people who have "jumped ship" on vaccinations for their children because of this asinine "anti-vaxxer" movement. THAT number has increased in the past few years. Seems to me that the evidence is clear where the problem is. No, these unvaccinated kids aren't "carrying around diseases". But there are people coming in and out of this country who ARE and when there is no longer a herd immunity because all these parents are "exercising their right not to vaccinate", that's when these diseases start getting spread. Brought in from places that have little to no access to vaccines (or no expectations therein), spread to the "exercisers", who then spread it to others who cannot be vaccinated. Seems logical to me...
Vaccinations are all about the big drug companies making money. Fight the man!
Um...no. Just no. Have you ever worked in a medical clinic? How about a free medical clinic? My husband has. Just before school started every year there was a line out the door for weeks at a time all day long with people bringing their children to get vaccinated. FOR FREE! Have you ever seen a ledger from a general practice clinic outlining the cost of vaccinations? I have. And neither the government, the drug companies, nor the clinic are making much of anything off these vaccinations. That is most certainly true about regular clinics too...not just free clinics. And you're "exercising your right not to vaccinate" is not really doing much to "stick it to the man". Especially since you're STILL paying for healthcare FROM THE GOVERNMENT anyway. Let me ALSO say that deciding that doctors don't know enough really pisses me off. These people have to go to 4 years of medical school, at least 3 years of a residency, usually several years of a fellowship after that, etc. etc. in order to credibly put M.D. behind their name. They are EXPERTS. Imagine if you had been trained in your profession that long and working in your field for even longer and someone who was completely untrained tried to accuse you of not knowing what you're talking about. So why do we disrespect doctors in this way?? I agree with being informed. I DISAGREE with being informed and still refusing to take the learned advice of a professional because you've decided the "have it out for you"...
Vaccines put children at risk.
Yes. This argument is *slightly* true. There are certain genetic make ups that can interact with vaccinations and cause brain damage and loss of motor control. Is this a reason NOT to vaccinate your children? Absolutely and positively NO. Here's a thought. If you're that concerned that your child might be at risk, use that government issued healthcare, go to a geneticist, get some blood drawn, and see for yourself whether your child is truly at risk. If they're not, get them vaccinated. Because if you're so concerned with putting them at risk, seems to me that your odds of picking up a communicable disease are much, MUCH higher than they are that your child has a rare genetic make up that makes getting a vaccination deadly. And that's true whether you get genetic testing or not.
The healthcare industry and the government use scare tactics about communicable diseases to freak people out. People got those illnesses for years without vaccinations and they survived. These diseases are not as bad as they're made out to be.
Again...this is ignorant. Ask someone who had measles, or someone who had mumps. Heck...I had chicken pox and I know there have been people whose children have died or been severely disabled from a bad case of them. These diseases are no joke! Do you know what tetanus does to your body when you contract it? It makes you convulse and seize to the point that your muscles snap your bones and they tear through your skin. Personally...just the thought of my Greysen having even the slightest tinge of something like that, even if it wasn't to the full extent, terrifies me. Not because someone "used a scare tactic", but because MEDICAL RESEARCH shows these things to be true. It's not fair for me to put him at risk like that. Why would I?? If there is a way to prevent a disease, no matter what that disease is, you better believe I will be making the choice to give my child his best fighting chance. There are certainly plenty of other crappy things in this world that I don't have control over how they effect my child.
I have the right to make decisions about my child's health.
Yes. Yes you do. And so do I. I have the right to decide whether my son will be circumcised or not. I have the right to decide whether my child is well enough to go to school on any given day. I have the right to decide what medicines I will and will not be giving my son. Etc., etc., etc. You are correct that as a parent, the decisions about your child's health fall into your hands alone until he/she is able to make those decisions soundly for themselves. However (this is a big however), you exercising your right not to vaccinate your child does not give you the right to put my child at risk. If you choose not to vaccinate your child, you choose to give up other rights. Or you should. Your child shouldn't be allowed to go to public school with my child, you should give up the right to take your child who presents with measles (or any other disease that can be passed to other children) to the doctors you refused to listen to, you should give up the right to go to places like Disneyland where there are thousands of children who are put at risk but your child's lack of immunity. I HAVE THE RIGHT to deliver my baby boy in a hospital in a few weeks and NOT be terrified that his tiny little infant body could contract one of these diseases in the hospital before he is old enough to be vaccinated. Explain to me how that is at all right??
I could probably go on for hours and hours about this, but I won't. The bottom line is that vaccinations are not a scare tactic, they are not as risky as "anti-vaxxers" would have you believe, and doctors are not just a bunch of moron lemmings. Yes, please inform yourself of BOTH sides of the fence. Hit up www.snopes.com and double check on all those "anti-vaccination" articles you see floating around Facebook. For that matter, hit it up about the articles you see about those unvaccinated children who have died from contracting preventable diseases. Be sure to prepare yourself though. The truth about both of those sides of the fence might shock you. Please be informed, but PLEASE listen to sound logic from trained professionals. And trust me when I tell you that doctors have no vested interest in "duping" you. Frankly, what they gain from encouraging you to vaccinate your children is that they don't have to try desperately to save YOUR child from the crippling effects of these diseases. They want to go home to their families without the black cloud of the death of YOUR child on their hearts and minds. So from the wife of a soon-to-be doctor, vaccinate your children. If not for all the logical reasons, then for the emotional reason of keeping my husband from having to experience a failed attempt at saving a child or an adult from a disease that could have easily been prevented...
