For those of you keeping track, Hep A and Rotovirus have been added to the CDC schedule for 2007 and we are now up to 43 vaccines in the first 18 months of life.
Would you want 43 vaccines over the course of the next 18 months?
UPDATE: I forgot the flu shot! So with the prenatal and yearly flu shots that are recommended, the total is actually at 46.
9 comments:
I'm keeping track, right along with you--and tens of thousands of parents who have a pretty good idea why their child got so sick.
Keep on fighting the good fight, Ginger.
All the darkness in the world won't extinguish the light from your candle, burning steady and bright.
hoping to be a mother someday and not knowing much about vaccines are there certain ones that are thought to be safer than others? what should I look out for? ~thanks.
Terri,
Thanks. I appreciate the props.
Rookie,
For people who decide to vaccinate their kids, there is a great book that I recommend by a pediatrician named Stephanie Cave called "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Children's Vaccinations".
http://www.amazon.com/What-Doctor-About-Childrens-Vaccinations/dp/0446677078
She goes into detail on different vaccinations and recommends a safer vaccine schedule than the one issued by the CDC that breaks up the vaccines and has them introduced later.
It is good, common sense thinking for those who want to vaccinate.
There is also lots of information on the internet. Check out the vaccines one at a time. Read the package inserts. Weight the risks for YOUR child, not for 'most' children.
For example, Polio is a terrible illness, but there has not been a case of wild polio in the US since the 70's. So does a child really need to get that vaccine 4 times in the first 6 months of life? But if you are going to Nigeria to visit family, your child will be at risk for exposure and the shot becomes much more important.
You would not give a medication that you didn't know anything about to your baby with out reading about it first, right? Why should vaccines be any different?
The CDC schedule is 10 vaccines in 26 doses (28 if your child gets flu shots) in the first 18 months.
2007 Schedule
You may be having trouble reading the chart or counting.
We have gotten into discussion on how to count these. Here is how I am counting them.
the MMR vaccine is three vaccines in one. The measles vaccine, the mumps vaccine and the rubella vaccine.
One MMR shot in my book counts as three vaccines.
So 2 MMR shots is getting 6 vaccines.
Combining them in one syringe does not make them one vaccine. Your body is dealing with three different viral antigens.
When you count them that way, it comes out to 46 including the flu shot.
Hey... let's just put them all in an IV bag give them at once and just say that kids only have to get one shot!
It is interesting that an expert warns about giving vacinations to an adult stallion.
http://equisearch.com/horses_care/health/breeding/eqmyth642/index2.html
Some of her advice:
Give (or have your vet give) your stallion only one or two injections per day; wait at least a week before giving any more.
Choose your stallion's vaccines wisely, in conjunction with your vet's advice. That is, don't just vaccinate your stallion willy-nilly for every disease ever discovered.
Schedule each injection to take place during a time when your stallion won't be doing any breeding for a couple days to allow time for any swelling or soreness to go away.
One MMR shot in my book counts as three vaccines.
So 2 MMR shots is getting 6 vaccines.
Combining them in one syringe does not make them one vaccine. Your body is dealing with three different viral antigens.
Ginger,
How many "different viral antigens" are there in two MMR shots? How about 10 MMR shots? How about 200?
I think that the CDC should rethink this carefully. For one, I think that too many vaccines in such a short time can cause problems. Next, I think that the CDC should not hide the risks of these vaccines.
More importantly, I feel that the information about the vaccines side effects should not be hidden by the drug companies and disclosed to parents before a child is vaccinated.
Additionally, I would like to see the "one schedule" fits all approach abandonded, and more research into the safety of the vaccines and what is a safe vaccination schedule for kids of different ages. I also think that vaccines should be given one at a time, so if there is a problem or reaction, the doctor will know which one caused the problem and can administer a remedy.
Last of all, the CDC should not punish parents or scorn parents for opting out of vaccines or choose to pursue alternative vaccine schedules. If the CDC wants to encourage vaccinations, that is fine as their position as an organization. However, it should be up the parents to make decisions on what is right for their child and their family.
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