Refutations To Anti-Vaccine Memes

[stryper]

The antivaxxers are quite... morontheistic in their habits no? The same denial of reality and "belief armor" in general.

 

Or maybe we should call them authoritarian in their thinking. Doesn't matter whether the führer they bow to is religious or not.

 

 

If it's not one dogma it's another. 

[Kurari]

I've always wondered why it was easier to discount many decades of strict diagnostic research over the idea that one quack wanted to make a lot of money off of gullible parents. 

[florduh]

researching data falls under "personal experience" as well.

 

 

 

No. Researching data is looking at double blind trials and other controlled tests. Personal experience is subjectively interpreting what you see, think you see, or hear in anecdotes, and has no evidence or research behind the conclusion. It is an uninformed opinion.

[Vigile]

The problem with this is, researching data falls under "personal experience" as well.

 

 

 

In a controlled setting, measures are taken to remove subjectivity.  It's far, far more accurate than personal experience.  Moreover, objective forms of measurement are used, such as white blood cell counts, etc...

 

Medical studies also use a much tighter measure of statistical significance compared to significance levels applied to say political polls.  This provides a much higher level of confidence in findings as it weeds out outliers that can skew the data. 

 

[LifeCycle]

 

The problem with this is, researching data falls under "personal experience" as well.

 

 

 

In a controlled setting, measures are taken to remove subjectivity.  It's far, far more accurate than personal experience.  Moreover, objective forms of measurement are used, such as white blood cell counts, etc...

 

Medical studies also use a much tighter measure of statistical significance compared to significance levels applied to say political polls.  This provides a much higher level of confidence in findings as it weeds out outliers that can skew the data. 

 

 

Right... So when my friends white cell blood count dropped immediately following, I'm sure it wasn't the treatment, it was spontaneous remission.   Hey, it could have been. Anything is possible.

 

But yes, there are so many variables and I'm not claiming to be an expert.  I'm just speaking from personal experience.  I do believe the human body is an amazing machine and I think the root of the issue is how we equip it with our nutrition or lack thereof.  Our immune system is capable of fighting off dangerous diseases but if we don't equip it correctly, it's hampered and no longer capable.  Nutrition and exercise are key, IMO.  Not doing these things correctly is akin to giving a computer guy a hammer to work on your computer.  Those aren't the tools he needs for the job.  Eating Cheeze-It's and drinking toxic soda drinks like they're water doesn't equip your immune system... As a matter of fact it equips the disease.

 

I think things are backwards... Referring to natural remedies or holistic treatment as "alternative medicine" is backwards.  Cutting people open and cutting shit out of the body is alternative medicine to me.

[florduh]

Alternative medicine and/or prayer is fine until you're really sick. Natural means of healing have been around since Day1 but it is the advances of medical science that has us living longer, healthier lives today. Natural healing and good nutrition are fundamental building blocks of good health, but modern Western medicine - including vaccines - is what put an end to worldwide epidemics of countless diseases and helped increase American lifespans by 50% over the last few decades, so I wouldn't dismiss it so readily.

[LifeCycle]

Alternative medicine and/or prayer is fine until you're really sick. Natural means of healing have been around since Day1 but it is the advances of medical science that has us living longer, healthier lives today. Natural healing and good nutrition are fundamental building blocks of good health, but modern Western medicine - including vaccines - is what put an end to worldwide epidemics of countless diseases and helped increase American lifespans by 50% over the last few decades, so I wouldn't dismiss it so readily.

Yes it did. I don't discount that.  There are many things developed by humanity that have been used for great things and then later used in horrendous ways as well.

 

I'm not one to look at some entity all wide-eyed and with respect because they were once great.  Everyone and everything is capable and not immune of corruption.  With medicine, I just choose to tread carefully.

[Positivist]

There are also always going to be people getting sick, even if they invent the cure it does not mean that there isn't any money to be made from it. 

 

Vaccines are not big money-makers for Big Pharma. Drugs are the big cash cow.

[Thurisaz]

I've always wondered why it was easier to discount many decades of strict diagnostic research over the idea that one quack wanted to make a lot of money off of gullible parents.

Let alone that it's been proven by now that this Brit twit who "founded" the antivaxx crap with that one article in the Lancet journal lied. You don't have to stop at the "idea" of it all having been a scam. It's a fact.

 

 

researching data falls under "personal experience" as well.

 

No. Researching data is looking at double blind trials and other controlled tests. Personal experience is subjectively interpreting what you see, think you see, or hear in anecdotes, and has no evidence or research behind the conclusion. It is an uninformed opinion.

 

That's it exactly.

It's amazing in how many ways the human mind can deceive itself. I thought I knew quite a few things about that... until I took the time to dig through the Skeptic's dictionary. Oh boy was I ignorant!

 

I strongly recommend that everyone who hasn't checked out that site already do so, and soon. It's worth the time.

[Kurari]

The truth about what works in health lies in the individual as always. 

 

I worked in clinical trial research a few years ago doing record management. It was interesting stuff. We monitored clinical trials of the effects of everything from the latest chemical compounds to pomegranate juice. It was fascinating stuff! 

 

I think there can be a very happy partnership between holistic medicine and modern medicine. I follow a regimen of both pharmaceuticals and herbs, diet, and exercise to help with my own issues of having Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Depression...both of which are genetic and run in my family.  

[florduh]

With medicine, I just choose to tread carefully.

 

 

 

As do I. I turn a critical eye toward everything these days - meds, foods, politics, religion and miracles. With medicine and nutrition, I wait it out and trust my own body because the experts reverse themselves on one nugget of wisdom or another almost daily. As you know, they go from eggs are good to eggs are bad. Red meat, alcohol in moderation, exercise regimens, soybeans, raw milk, veganism, etc. all get their turns. Seems there is an expert somewhere who will support or debunk anything you can think of. I see the reasonable way to go is with preponderance of evidence and credentials/history of any given expert.

[Kurari]

 

I've always wondered why it was easier to discount many decades of strict diagnostic research over the idea that one quack wanted to make a lot of money off of gullible parents.

Let alone that it's been proven by now that this Brit twit who "founded" the antivaxx crap with that one article in the Lancet journal lied. You don't have to stop at the "idea" of it all having been a scam. It's a fact.

 

 

A pox on Andrew Wakefield and Jenny McCarthey. The maiming and deaths of many from preventable diseases just so they can get the fame and cash are on their hands. 

 

Wakefield is blacklisted. He lost his hospital rights and his medical license, and he fled to the United States to avoid prosecution under the review boards. He continues to lecture and run "clinics" to his pathetic herd of sheep here in the States now.

[Positivist]

First of all, thank you SL for the great memes! I will pull these out during the next wave of anti-vaccine tripe that shows up on my newsfeed.

 

Regarding the link between autism and vaccinations... It does appear autism is on the rise while the number of vaccines given to children is on the rise.  Yes, there are a lot of variables to consider but I do not believe it's rational to say there exists no link.

There is no link. There are many factors that cause autism, including dietary factors, genetics, and others. Much of it is unknown.

 

Cancer is the a result of a lack of energy, ultimately.  Our nutrition plays a key role in that.

Disagree. It is a condition that results in unregulated cell reproduction, resulting in abnormal cells that multiply at an alarming rate and gobble up the body's resources. Every person has cancer cells somewhere in their body; the difference between those with cancer and without is the degree to which cell anarchy can be suppressed which depends on many factors. I'll never forget a man who was a vegetarian tri-athlete, and diagnosed with Stage III colon cancer at the age of 33. Who knows why?

 

I don't have any specific citations.  I just know it to be true. 

It "happened" is not the same thing as it's "true".

 

 

-----------------------------------------------

As for the safety of vaccines, much is done to make them safe. As to their value, ask any health care professional who has cared for a child dying from a vaccine-preventable disease; ask them what it's like to comfort the family and ease the child into her/her death at the age of 5. It's very disturbing. Or caring for a post-polio patient, as their lives are being carved out from within them.

 

I live in a part of Canada in which there is a large population of non-immunizers. Their wellbeing depends upon herd immunity. Vaccination seems to go in cycles within the population. We suppress a disease through vaccination, the disease stops appearing so some people stop immunizing, believing the disease is 'extinct'; then the disease reappears in an epidemic or pandemic, so vaccinations start up again, followed by suppression. Repeat as needed.

 

Anyhow, just had to say that. Sorry if I come across as heavy handed. I have some nutters on my newfeed who just refuse to get the immunization thing and they really push my buttons.

[LifeCycle]

First of all, thank you SL for the great memes! I will pull these out during the next wave of anti-vaccine tripe that shows up on my newsfeed.

 

Regarding the link between autism and vaccinations... It does appear autism is on the rise while the number of vaccines given to children is on the rise.  Yes, there are a lot of variables to consider but I do not believe it's rational to say there exists no link.

There is no link. There are many factors that cause autism, including dietary factors, genetics, and others. Much of it is unknown.

 

Cancer is the a result of a lack of energy, ultimately.  Our nutrition plays a key role in that.

Disagree. It is a condition that results in unregulated cell reproduction, resulting in abnormal cells that multiply at an alarming rate and gobble up the body's resources. Every person has cancer cells somewhere in their body; the difference between those with cancer and without is the degree to which cell anarchy can be suppressed which depends on many factors. I'll never forget a man who was a vegetarian tri-athlete, and diagnosed with Stage III colon cancer at the age of 33. Who knows why?

 

I don't have any specific citations.  I just know it to be true. 

It "happened" is not the same thing as it's "true".

 

 

-----------------------------------------------

As for the safety of vaccines, much is done to make them safe. As to their value, ask any health care professional who has cared for a child dying from a vaccine-preventable disease; ask them what it's like to comfort the family and ease the child into her/her death at the age of 5. It's very disturbing. Or caring for a post-polio patient, as their lives are being carved out from within them.

 

I live in a part of Canada in which there is a large population of non-immunizers. Their wellbeing depends upon herd immunity. Vaccination seems to go in cycles within the population. We suppress a disease through vaccination, the disease stops appearing so some people stop immunizing, believing the disease is 'extinct'; then the disease reappears in an epidemic or pandemic, so vaccinations start up again, followed by suppression. Repeat as needed.

 

Anyhow, just had to say that. Sorry if I come across as heavy handed. I have some nutters on my newfeed who just refuse to get the immunization thing and they really push my buttons.

This quote system gets too outta hand for me.  I just want to respond your comments.  Not my comments, and then your comments with my response added. 

 

Oh well...  My lack of energy is rooted in the idea that our immune systems are capable but not energized with the right things to to combat the free-radicals. So the reproduction of the cancer cells goes unchecked.

 

There is a link imo between Autism and heavy metals such as Mercury.  I think heavy metals are a significant contributor to our poor health in modern times... High amounts of Aluminum on the brain have been linked to Alzheimers.  Of course they also say there is no link. 

 

It's ultimately all about who you're going to listen to as we're not capable of doing that kind of research on our own. 

 

I generally accept the worst in humanity before I believe in the best.  In other words, trust is earned and I've seen far too much death at the cost of dollars to believe the establishment.  From the outside looking in you'd call me paranoid, I'm sure.  But from where I am, if you had walked in my shoes, you'd call me rational. 

[pandora]

 

 

The problem with this is, researching data falls under "personal experience" as well.

 

 

 

In a controlled setting, measures are taken to remove subjectivity.  It's far, far more accurate than personal experience.  Moreover, objective forms of measurement are used, such as white blood cell counts, etc...

 

Medical studies also use a much tighter measure of statistical significance compared to significance levels applied to say political polls.  This provides a much higher level of confidence in findings as it weeds out outliers that can skew the data. 

 

 

Right... So when my friends white cell blood count dropped immediately following, I'm sure it wasn't the treatment, it was spontaneous remission.   Hey, it could have been. Anything is possible.

 

But yes, there are so many variables and I'm not claiming to be an expert.  I'm just speaking from personal experience.  I do believe the human body is an amazing machine and I think the root of the issue is how we equip it with our nutrition or lack thereof.  Our immune system is capable of fighting off dangerous diseases but if we don't equip it correctly, it's hampered and no longer capable.  Nutrition and exercise are key, IMO.  Not doing these things correctly is akin to giving a computer guy a hammer to work on your computer.  Those aren't the tools he needs for the job.  Eating Cheeze-It's and drinking toxic soda drinks like they're water doesn't equip your immune system... As a matter of fact it equips the disease.

 

I think things are backwards... Referring to natural remedies or holistic treatment as "alternative medicine" is backwards.  Cutting people open and cutting shit out of the body is alternative medicine to me.

 

  What specifically did he take?  I apologize if you have already posted it, I skipped to this page.

 

Spontaneous remission does happen.   We do not thoroughly understand our immune system and our own innate abilities to fight cancer.

 

What you have is subjective and anecdotal.    

[pandora]

 

The problem is the failure of the medical establishment to get on board and use these treatments as well in their death camps.

 

 

 

 

Damn. Not even in quotes.

 

 

 

 

Cancer is the a result of a lack of energy, ultimately.  Our nutrition plays a key role in that.

 

 

 

 

 

Cancer is not one disease. There are more than 200 types of cancer. All behave differently. There are also many different causes encompassing genetic predisposition, environmental factors, and compromised immune systems. Attributing cancer of any type to "lack of energy" is akin to saying that planetary alignment or witches cause disease. A little paranoia keeps one on his toes, but you can't let it rule your life.

 

This.    

[Positivist]

This quote system gets too outta hand for me.  I just want to respond your comments.  Not my comments, and then your comments with my response added. 

 

Oh well...  My lack of energy is rooted in the idea that our immune systems are capable but not energized with the right things to to combat the free-radicals. So the reproduction of the cancer cells goes unchecked.

 

There is a link imo between Autism and heavy metals such as Mercury.  I think heavy metals are a significant contributor to our poor health in modern times... High amounts of Aluminum on the brain have been linked to Alzheimers.  Of course they also say there is no link. 

 

It's ultimately all about who you're going to listen to as we're not capable of doing that kind of research on our own. 

 

I generally accept the worst in humanity before I believe in the best.  In other words, trust is earned and I've seen far too much death at the cost of dollars to believe the establishment.  From the outside looking in you'd call me paranoid, I'm sure.  But from where I am, if you had walked in my shoes, you'd call me rational. 

 

I agree, LC! The quote system seems so wonky. It didn't used to be this bad, so I wonder what changed.

 

I agree with you also that Western medicine, to which I have sold my soul, is somewhat lacking. I too have been let down, including quite recently. No one seems to be able to diagnose these days. Forget "physician, heal thyself"; it's more like "patient, heal thyself". I think that as a species we are killing ourselves off through GMOs, poisons, and abundance.

 

Re: autism and mercury. I know there are a lot of myths out there. Here's another anecdote from a friend. This friend of mine had a friend who had an ugly child (her words--and she loves kids and thinks they're all cute). The kid just looked weird and was autistic, too--totally non verbal. The mother took the kid off of gluten, and 2 years later my friend ran into the mother and child, and the child was completely normal, conversing, and even looked normal. The kid cannot tolerate any amount of gluten, and that was seemingly the cause of his bizarre appearance and autism. Weird? For sure. Possible? I'd have to say yes. It's near impossible to refute that kind of evidence--albeit a third-hand story from a non-medical person. Unfortunately, often no one understands the mechanisms behind these types of syndromes and the alleged triggers.

 

Who knows? You're right: there are some many opposing and competing interests and viewpoints out there, so while one group is just out to make money, another group is trying to mitigate the damage caused by the greedy group. In many ways, humans are pawns in a big nasty game. We are subject to policies and socioeconomic systems that essentially legislate poor health.

 

Sigh. Now I'm depressed!

 

BTW, I love your tag lines.

[pandora]

So read through the thread... he was cured with "nutrition" and a "holistic" approach, eh?  What did that entail?   If it included homeopathy and essential oils, well, I am highly suspicious.  

 

Perhaps there is a rare form of cancer that is caused by a specific nutritional deficiency and your friend had it.  *shrug*  There is no doubt that eating all the processed junk and living in the chemical world we do contributes to cancer in general, but I don't think a good diet is going to reverse most forms of cancer.

 

There was a holistic cancer center in the news lately... I'm too lazy to get an article, but the jist is that the center advertised higher rates of remission.  It was found that they only accepted patients who were had lower stages of cancer and only certain types of cancer with higher remission rates.

 

The thing to keep in mind with "drugs" versus "nature" is that they are all chemicals!   Many drugs are developed and refined plant molecules that have been found to have a particular receptor affinity that helps with a particular symptom.   Aspirin, antibiotics, cholesterol meds... the list goes on.    The difference between drugs and natural remedies is that the drugs have been tested with trials and the natural remedies hawked by the Dr. Ozes and quacks of the world have merely anecdotal evidence, or poorly done studies and misrepresentation of results.   There are some reputable institutions that study natural remedies, and ones that pass the test of double-blind placebo-controlled trials get further investigation and we have gotten some good drugs out of those kinds of studies.  However, most natural remedies don't pass the test... or have such mixed results (with biased sources having the only positive studies) that it is obvious most of the stuff claimed is bullshit.   Metanalysis of these studies on any one of these substances most often reveal a neutral effect.   The studies have been done in many cases, but of course the quacks won't be referring you to them!  

 

Sure, the industry is out to make money, but it isn't a complete fraud.   The general motive is to help people while making money, not just to make money.  Without modern medicine, many of us would be dead.   It kills me when people display such a suspicion of the medical field.... you'll be happy for that emergency surgery,  resuscitation meds, and modern medicine when you have a big trauma, deadly infection, failing organ, heart attack, stroke, etc... I'd like to see you deny medical treatment then and claim that you will go eat an apple with extra ginger and honey to save yourself from bleeding out, kill that MRSA infection, or reverse that stroke.  LOL  It is akin to trusting prayer and God to save you.

[moloko5]

From my understanding (Master's level biology), all sorts of cancers are known to spontaneously improve.  It is not all that common in general, probably varies across different types of cancer, and isn't well studied.  It's also really hard to find cause and effect, and in fact, it is possible that some cancers that go into remission during treatment don't do so as a result of the treatment.

 

If cancer improves it could be something to do with a diet change, or it could be because your immune system began attacking the tumor for some reason or it could be that the malignant cells stopped reproducing for some other unknown reason. The reason that scientists are skeptical of supposed cancer cures is because there is a long history of such cures not panning out when applied to a large population.  There is a large body of literature in studying all sorts of natural cures for various types of cancer, and few if any have been very successful.  You can go to PubMed and probably find a study on whatever nutritional or holistic approach as a number of them have been analyzed.  At best you'll probably find that a diet change had a small improvement on patient outcomes.  If someone is cured of cancer, they should be grateful because many people aren't.

 

Also humans are very good at inferring cause and effect.  We see it all the time even though everyone is mistaken all the time.  Because two things happen at the same time, it doesn't mean that they are related or one caused the other.  We're wired to assume that they are related and it probably served our ancestors well in avoiding bad consequences from different actions.  Our ancestors would think, "If I eat such and such plant, I get sick."  Perhaps they got sick from the flu and not the plant, but not knowing anything about what causes sickness, our ancestors would be well served to make a correlation even if it wasn't always accurate.  We're still wired to think that way.

 

So it would be natural for someone who was cured of cancer without a known treatment to want to share that with others.  Unfortunately, more likely than not, it wouldn't work with most people.

 

My ex-girlfriend has an autistic daughter by the way.  She is absolutely convinced that it was the result of vaccines because her daughter started showing symptoms around the time she was getting vaccinated.  There is nothing you can say to change her mind and she would get very offended if you tried to argue about it.  It's unfortunate, because she refuses to get any additional vaccines, but much like religion, when someone has a strong belief it closes their mind to reason.  In the case of autism, it's natural to want to find a cause and vaccines might seem plausible given the circumstantial evidence of increasing number of autism diagnoses and the fact that vaccines and the first symptoms of autism tend to happen about the same time. It's been well studied and there isn't a link.  However a human mind in search of a reason which has drawn a strong cause and effect relationship isn't easily convinced.

[Vigile]

Good screen name Moloko.  Are you Russian? 

[SilentLoner]

 

There is a link imo between Autism and heavy metals such as Mercury.  I think heavy metals are a significant contributor to our poor health in modern times... High amounts of Aluminum on the brain have been linked to Alzheimers.  Of course they also say there is no link. 

 

 

*Sigh.* I suppose you are unaware there has been no mercury in vaccines for years now? And without googling it, do you know the difference between ethyl and methyl mercury? 

 

Vaccinations have been around for over 200 years and vaccine rejectionists have been around for nearly that long. Over the years, the basis for claims of harm from vaccines has changed, but one factor has remained constant. Vaccine rejectionists have never been right. The fearmongering surrounding mecury (thimerosal) is just the latest iteration in an ongoing effort. That fear mongering rests on one thing - ignorance of basic chemistry.

 

To hear vaccine rejectionists tell it, all mercury containing compounds are dangerous and therefore thimerosal is dangerous. But that’s not how chemistry works. The toxicity of a substance depends on how atoms are arranged, not simply which atoms are present. The fact that some mercury compounds are dangerous does not mean that thimerosal must be dangerous because it contains mercury.

 

Mercury is poisonous, but that does not mean that any compound that contains mercury is also poisonous. Methyl mercury is the one found in fish and is the reason why restrictions of fish consumption are recommended for certain groups. Thimerosal is ethyl mercury and is not poisonous.

 

Though methyl mercury and ethyl mercury might sound like they are very similar, one is poisonous and the other is not. How? Consider the case of alcohol. Methyl alcohol (methanol), also known as wood alcohol, will lead to blindness or death if you drink it. Ethyl alcohol (ethanol) is the alcohol found in wine and spirits. Chemical structure is more important than the identity of the individual atoms that make up the compound.

 

Ethyl mercury is excreted, and fairly rapidly. Methyl mercury is not - it binds irreversibly to cells and causes poisoning. Not directed at you, but if someone does not know the difference in ethyl and methyl mercury, they have no business talking about risks from mercury.

 

I'm sure you wouldn't eat coal either (filled with carbon), but virtually every large molecule in your body contains carbon. Elemental chlorine (usually found as a gas) is extremely poisonous, but that does not mean that atoms of chlorine within a compound make every substance that contains them poisonous. We eat table salt (sodium choride) all the time without being poisoned. Indeed chlorine atoms (in the form of the electrolyte chloride) are absolutely essential to human health. Sodium is both poisonous and explosive. That does not mean that compounds that contain sodium are either poisonous or explosive. Table salt (sodium chloride) contains sodium, yet we do not worry that salting our food will result in an explosion at the dinner table.

 

Obviously you can't determine what to eat based on whether it contains atoms that would be dangerous if they were ingested as pure elements.

 

There is no difference in rates of autism, or other neurological problems between children receiving vaccine with thimerosal, vaccine without thimerosal, and no vaccine at all.  

[skepticalme]

 

 

 

But how can you possibly know cancer cures aren't being suppressed?

 

 

 

How do you know they are?

 

Actually, the cure rate of most cancers has been dramatically improving for decades. Research does pay off in longer lives for millions of cancer victims. If cures are being suppressed, there are still a lot that break through and have success anyway.

 

But how does this suppressing of cancer cures work, anyway? Do all those researchers who have a spouse, child or parent suffering and dying with cancer just all agree, "Fuck 'em. Our loved ones may suffer and die but we can raise our bottom line if we just bury this cure. If I die young from curable cancer, at least I'll die rich." Doesn't make sense to me, but YMMV.

 

Also, when a spontaneous remission of a cancer (not all that uncommon) coincides with the use of herbs, acupuncture or crystals, the New Natural Miracle Cure is born - works like religious faith healers gaining reputation and buzz from coincidence (and outright fakery).

 

There are also always going to be people getting sick, even if they invent the cure it does not mean that there isn't any money to be made from it. A cure is not going to stop the disease from happening in the first place.

 

As long as I continue with our western diets and culture, cancer will always exist withing our society.  

 

Cancer is the a result of a lack of energy, ultimately.  Our nutrition plays a key role in that.

 

Cancer is increasing primarily because of our longevity, we are living long enough to get it.  Diets(mainly obesety) and things like smoking increase your chances or getting certain types, but mainly because we are living long enough to die of those types whereas we would have died of something else prior.

[Positivist]

...I suppose you are unaware there has been no mercury in vaccines for years now? And without googling it, do you know the difference between ethyl and methyl mercury? 

 

Correct! [Applause]

[◊ crazyguy123 ◊]

I agree with you also that Western medicine, to which I have sold my soul, is somewhat lacking. I too have been let down, including quite recently. No one seems to be able to diagnose these days. Forget "physician, heal thyself"; it's more like "patient, heal thyself". I think that as a species we are killing ourselves off through GMOs, poisons, and abundance.

 

Isn't the whole purpose of western medicine, specifically in the United States, to keep people sick so that the sick will need to keep buying expensive drugs? It seems that curing illnesses isn't as important as the people selling the medicine getting their expensive cars or fancy swimming pools.

[Ravenstar]

I didn't let me daughter get the what was it now? The cervical cancer.. oh ya... genital wart vaccine thing, forget what they called it. ooohh Gardasil!

 

Smallpox, Rubella and the rest.. hell yes! Sorry, but polio, smallpox, etc.. and those kill way more than any issues with the vaccines. Read some history on those.. and I have a friend who was struck with Polio as a child... his life has been hard, he was badly crippled.

 

The reason I didn't was because the actual rates for that disease causing that kind of cancer are miniscule, and with regular pap tests it's usually caught anyway.. AND it's one of the lowest mortality rates of any of the cancers...AND my family does not have any history of cervical cancer.. and they were only inoculating the girls (?) Well.. how the hell do the girls get it people? - it doesn't just climb in there from a toilet seat. No point vaccinating only one half of the population for an STD. That's fucking stupid. Creeped me out somehow... just vaccinating girls going into puberty. Maybe I've read too much science fiction  LOL

 

I looked it up and wasn't happy with the mercury content also. Respect yourself, use a condom.. get pap smears, problem solved.

 

I am considering getting her vaccinated for Hepatitis though, now that they are coming out with that. She can decide for herself about the Gardasil I skipped when she is an adult.

 

What I would like to know is this.. IF we can eradicate Polio, smallpox, etc.. in the west - why the hell don't we do it for everyone around the world? Get rid of these nasty bugs once and for all. COST shouldn't be a factor.. hell, I'll pay an extra $5 in taxes to make that happen.

 

I heard somewhere recently that they are developing a vaccine for HIV... goodness, I hope that's true.