The H1N1 Vaccine: What you need to know

"It’s time to wake up from our advertisement-induced collective slumber and begin to review the folklore of conventional vaccine recommendations with a more critical eye." - Dr. Mercola

When it comes to vaccinations, I don't believe there is an easy answer. I have come to my own personal conclusions about what I will do for my family, but I am not so pig-headed (pun intended!) that I can't see the flip side of the argument for vaccination.

However, I stand pretty strongly against the H1N1 vaccine.

Instead of droning on and on about why I have come to this conclusion, I'm just going to point you in the direction of several articles and videos that I found extremely helpful in making my decision. Below each link, I'll give you a few of my thoughts on each article.

Article #1

This article includes opinions from three doctors - all strongly against the H1N1 vaccine. The video includes the opinion of a credible infectious disease doctor who claims he will not vaccinate his children. Be sure to scroll below the text to read what Dr. Mercola has to say about the swine flu. All the information is great, but I was most disturbed by this statement:

"I also learned at the conference from Dr. Vickie Diebold who is the consumer representative on the federal vaccine panel, that the CDC has budgeted over 12 million dollars to BLAST kids this fall on TV with characters such as Elmo from Sesame Street to propagandize them to be afraid of the swine flu and make sure that they get their vaccine. This is over 50% of the total amount ($21 million) they have budgeted to determine if the vaccine is even safe." - Dr. Mercola

What? HALF of the budgeted funds are going towards TV propaganda instead of testing the vaccine? Frightening.

Article #2

A big part of making an informed decision is reviewing information from both sides of the argument. Article #2 is Dr. Sears's take on the vaccine. He does recommend both the seasonal and the H1N1 vaccines, but only if you feel comfortable with them. He takes time to explain the spacing between the shots (the H1N1 vaccine requires two doses, one month apart)

However, he is very clear that he does not think that pregnant women should receive the swine flue vaccine or ANY flu vaccination. There has been NO testing to see how the vaccinations affect the unborn child and that is not a risk that should be taken.

"The bottom line is that the swine flu is about the same level of seriousness as the regular flu." - Dr. Sears

Article #3

Another great article by Dr. Mercola. This article pertains to all vaccines, not just the one for H1N1. This section makes so much sense to me:

"Less than 100 children in the U.S. die each year from seasonal flu viruses.[iv] If we use Australia’s math, a very rough estimate would be another 100 children could potentially die of swine flu in the United States in the coming year.

If children are the first target group in the U.S. per Sebelius, that means we’re about to inject around 75 million children with a fast tracked vaccine containing novel adjuvants, including dangerous squalene, to prevent perhaps 100 deaths.

I’m not overlooking the tragedy of the loss of even one child to an illness like the H1N1 flu virus. But there can be no argument that unnecessary mass injection of millions of children with a vaccine containing an adjuvant known to cause a host of debilitating autoimmune diseases is a reckless, dangerous plan."

For me, it's all about weighing the benefits versus the risks. What's the risk of NOT getting the vaccine? Death. People do die from the swine flu! What's the risk of TAKING the vaccine? Death or long-term illness or neurological problems. I believe the risk from the vaccine is greater than the risk from actually contracting the virus.

I'm not just leaving everything to chance. I know that H1N1 is potentially deadly, just like the seasonal flu. So I'm taking steps to protect my family. This winter, more than ever, we'll be eating healthy, getting plenty of rest and I'll continue to breastfed Madeline.

I'd love to hear from you. What have you decided to do about the H1N1 vaccine? What helped you make your decision?

Return of seperate MMR vaccines

As a parent that has chosen to vaccinate my child on a delayed and selective schedule, I'm thrilled that Merck is going to begin production of separate MMR vaccines again.

For those of us that have chosen to limit and manage the vaccines that our children are given, this offers us even more control over what is introduced into their little bodies. For those that fully vaccinate and are understandably concerned by parents who don't, this is great news for you too! With the option to space out and offer each component of this vaccine separately, more parents (including this one!) will be vaccinating their children for these diseases.

Vaccinations are obviously a hugely controversial subject. There are so many differing opinions that it's difficult to separate fact from fiction. No matter what your stance on immunizations, this is good news for everyone. I'm so pleased that Merck is willing to give parents more choices.