Hellobee Boards

@Silva: team LC all the way.

This seems fitting: http://howdovaccinescauseautism.com/

@ChelseaRose: hilarious!

@Mrs. Twine: OMG THIS! I am a special education teacher of students who are on the spectrum and can not handle general education all day. I LOVE it and I love them. It makes me so sad that people are trying to avoid having children like them and are willing to go as far as risking their child's life to do so.

Well, I don't vaccinate my kids and my mom didn't finish the vaccine series for us kids, either. I'm a little afraid to respond openly in this thread for fear I may just be jumped on but I just wanted to say -- celebrities and ridiculous statements such as these have had NO bearing on my decision. The majority of my friends and family do not vaccinate and I have never heard anyone cite Jenny McCarthy as their source and reason for not vaccinating. I also have my degree in speech language pathology and have worked with many children on the autism spectrum and have absolutely no reason to believe that autism is caused by vaccinations.

That said, I do have educated, factual reasons for not vaccinating (as of yet) and to be honest -- do not in the least bit fear diseases such as measles or whooping cough. Down the road we will likely make a few decisions on selective vaccines but as long as we live in the US vaccinating for measles, pertussis, flu, or chicken pox will not be one of them.

I just didn't want anyone to assume that the vast majority of non-vaccinators are doing so because they are listening to some talking head seeking to sensationalize an issue. It's really unfortunate (and maddening) some celebs think they should have a platform to discuss issues like these.

@Anagram: I'm well aware of the measles "outbreak" in both NYC and Orange County -- I stay very well read on these subjects. (This outbreak, fwiw, comes nowhere near close to the outbreak that took place in 2011. Not one person suffered long term effects, encephalitis, or death because of that outbreak.)

My post wasn't an attempt to ask for input into my decisions or an attempt to give input into anyone else's. I'm sure we are all trying to make the best decision for our kids. I just wanted to point out that not all of us who don't choose to vaccinate are doing so because of clowns like Kristin Cavallari. Far from it.

@coopsmama: I am very pro vaccination, so we obviously have different beliefs. I appreciate you sharing your view point though, which takes guts when you're in the minority, especially over such a heated topic.

@coopsmama: it's easy to say you don't fear measles and whooping cough when you live in the U.S. where unvaccinated kids are protected (so far) by herd immunity. Before measles vaccinations became widespread worldwide, a couple million died of the measles every year. Unvaccinated kids are safe in the U.S. because other people vaccinate, not because vaccinations aren't necessary.

@Lindsay05: are you thinking this was a conspiracy?

@MrsSCB: Yep. If you don't vaccinate and your child doesn't get sick, honestly I think you should be thanking those of us who made the responsible decision to vaccinate. I know a lot of people who don't vaccinate and are furious to hear it basically being called irresponsible, but sorry, I think it is! It's not just their child they're putting in danger - it's the kids who truly can't be vaccinated that should be protected by herd immunity, and the newborns who are too young to have received all their vaccines.

@Boogs: Our daycare requires proof of vaccination. There are religious exemptions allowed for vaccinations for public schools in our area.

@JoyfulKiwi: yes! I was trying to remember that article. It's liberating, in a way, to feel free from trying to change someone's mind. I do think if someone watched an infant stop breathing and turn blue from pertussis, that might change their minds.

@Mrs. Pen: @JoyfulKiwi: @littlek: Ah didn't know, but now I do, thanks!

@JoyfulKiwi: This was a small snippet of something she said to the media (and we all know how accurate they always are...), so yeah she mentioned the autism thing. But, we don't know that is her only reason for choosing to not vaccinate, so to say that she is, "...uniformed, senseless, & foolish," and therefore an idiot might be an assumption on your part. Or do you feel that way about all people that don't vaccinate, no matter the reason? If the latter, it might make all of the intelligent things you have to say harder to hear for the non-vaccinators because they might not be able to see past the name calling. Just my thinking, anyway.

@swedishfish: Yeah I read that, but I'm saying we all might be making assumptions that is her only reason for not vaccinating. She was also quoted as saying that she was caught off guard by the question, so maybe she didn't fully answer it how she wanted?

"You know, it's not something that I wanted to publicly come out and say," Cavallari said. "I was in an interview when it came up and it wasn't what I was expecting."

And this is what she had to say for those who vaccinate, she's not on a platform of stopping people from vaccinating, if that's their choice:

"Listen, to each their own," she continued. "I understand both sides of it. It's our personal choice, and, you know, if you're really concerned about your kid get them vaccinated."

ETA: I don't think your second link is going to the story you intended.

@swedishfish: iPhone here, so idk?

@swedishfish: This one and a bunch of others, but not the one you talked about. Was sad to see one of the stories, just started a thread about it.

@MrsSCB: I absolutely think vaccinations are an incredible asset in undeveloped countries. In the US, it was standard for people to get the childhood diseases like mumps and measles. My parents and other older family members all had both (as most people did in the pre-vaccination era) and it was nothing but a blip on their radar. We are fortunate to live with access to clean water, healthy food, good medical care, and antibiotics to help when the need arises. The WHO estimates that in developed countries, complications from measles arise in about 1/10,000-1/100,000 cases. I'm all for vaccines in countries where they are unfortunately not able to access clean water, good foods, etc. I support those countries by spending money on trying to get them those resources as well.

@Boogs: They do allow for medical and religious exemptions in all but a few states. One of the reasons we don't vaccinate is because vaccines use aborted fetal material in some vaccines which is a major religious objection for me so I suppose we could use that to claim religious exemption. They don't in all vaccines -- just some. As for our LO's, I'm a SAHM so we don't have to deal with daycare and the kids that our kids hang around with aren't vaccinated. One cousin of mine does vaccinate and we've talked and she feels totally comfortable with her kids hanging out with mine despite the vaccination differences. I am open and honest with everyone and want people to know upfront about our choices. I still have young enough babies that we honestly don't get out too much between nap time and what not. We will likely selectively vaccinate as the kids get older and we put them in school. I was homeschooled in elementary and have plans to keep my kids at home for the early years. We will reevaluate then. If we were to travel abroad or have them in daycare our choice would likely be somewhat different.

@JoyfulKiwi: Thanks for acknowledging that some of us don't vaccinate for reasons other than the autism "link." That is one of my biggest pet peeves!

@coopsmama: That was an issue of mine as well, but upon further research I discovered this. The Children's Hospital of Philedelphia has excellent, factual-based research that helped me make my decision. According to this information written by Dr. Paul Offit, varicella, rubella and Hep A originally contained fetal cells from elective terminations, however, he states, "These same embryonic cells obtained from the early 1960s have continued to grow in the laboratory and are used to make vaccines today. No further sources of fetal cells are needed to make these vaccines."
http://www.chop.edu/service/vaccine-education-center/vaccine-safety/vaccine-ingredients/fetal-tissues.html

I found that very comforting! What I love about that site is that it goes into the right amount of detail for each concern most non-vaxers have about ingredients. I'm actually planning to buy one of Dr. Offit's books to read more about vaccines in general. I think it will really help me become better educated, especially if I plan to be a nurse! I just want to be able to provide factual and non-scary information

@coopsmama: I agree! I started out anti-vax, and am moving toward pro-vax. Honestly, I kind of view them as a necessary evil. But the fear of the illnesses that could be contracted is greater than my fear of a vaccine. J has had no reactions and for that I am grateful! But I totally understand both sides too - I come from a family that is very anti-vax (they don't know I'm pro-vax) - so it took a lot of self-education to get where I am now. I actually do agree that all those I know who don't vax, never chose to based on celebrities like McCarthy or Cavallari - they chose based on their own research.

It's hard to find unbiased resources though - which is why I highly recommend that CHOP website - easy to read, not fear-based. I'm so sick of the fear-mongering on both sides. My midwife also recommended the National Vaccine Information Center - if you haven't looked into that before.

I'm going for a health sciences degree right now and I find all the information so fascinating. I would be interested in an entire class just on vaccination information!

Ugh. I hate that she is getting media coverage over this.