Today as the number of recommended childhood vaccines continues to increase, so do the number of concerned parents, scientists, lawmakers, and healthcare practitioners. If you are following the recommended vaccination schedule, before your child reaches 6 years of age they will receive at least 14 vaccines. Growing concern over the manufacturing process and how each ingredient affects a child’s developing neurological and immune system has prompted many parents to choose not to vaccinate their children.
The practice of vaccination began in 1796 when Edward Jenner, a British physician, took diseased matter from a cowpox blister on the hand of a milkmaid and inserted it into the cut arm of a healthy eight year-old boy. Later, the boy was exposed to smallpox to see if he would contract the disease. He did not, even after being periodically exposed to smallpox for twenty years. This is recorded as the first vaccination. Throughout the 1900s the medical community credited vaccines for eliminating many diseases, such as polio. However, great controversy exists as to whether or not this is really true. Many books and articles have been written about the controversy. A good synopsis of this is detailed in Neil Z. Miller’s; Vaccines: Are They Really Safe & Effective?
Today many vaccines exist and pharmaceutical companies are developing more and more each year with profits well into the billions. Vaccines are injections that contain inactivated or weakened amounts of a disease-causing organism or specific parts or chemicals of a disease-causing organism. They are said to work by stimulating the production of antibodies, which are specific proteins that help defend the body against infection. Frequently, multiple doses are required in order to develop immunity. Before the organism can be built into a vaccine it must be cultured in some live organic material such as monkey kidney, calf serum, or chick embryo. Once the organism is cultured, harvested, and prepared, it is built into a vaccine. In order for the vaccine to be effective and have shelf life, other chemicals are added to stabilize and preserve the vaccine. Many of these chemicals are considered inactive and to have no outward effect on the person receiving the injection. However, some ingredients, such as thimerosal – mercury based preservative, have come under intense scrutiny and are implicated in many adverse reactions. For a complete list of ingredients and other valuable information, visit http://www.nvic.org/.
Even though the terms vaccination and immunization are commonly used interchangeably, I am going to refer to immunization as natural infection or the process that actually occurs in the body when you develop true lifetime immunity against a disease-causing organism. Your immune system is a collection of cells and organs whose complex interaction provides an efficient way of protecting you from outside invaders and your own altered cells, which lead to cancer. Just like the wall of a military fort, your skin and mucous membranes provide the first line of defense. In order for a total immune response to occur, invading organisms must pass through this first line of defense. The second line of defense is your internal army of immune cells that recognize, eliminate, and remember invading organisms. In addition, fever and inflammation play a major role in your immune response. Fever intensifies your immune response and limits the growth of invading pathogens. In most cases fevers should be allowed to run their course, otherwise you are interfering with your bodies attempt at healing.
So, why do I make the distinction between vaccination and immunization? Because the immunity developed through vaccination is different and less effective than natural immunization. This is why many vaccines require booster shots throughout life. By injecting a vaccine directly into your body you bypass many immune system defenses that would naturally have been stimulated. The key factor in testing a vaccine’s effectiveness is whether or not the vaccine causes the production of an antibody to it. However, that is only one component of many complex strategies employed by your immune system. Many scientists believe that this creates a kind of partial immunity where all the immune system strategies are not being activated. In fact, some believe that vaccines may even trick the immune system into focusing on that organism and not other potential invaders, thus lowering immune defenses. Have you ever noticed how many children have a chronic snotty nose during their vaccination years? Others believe that vaccines actually suppress the immune system rather than make it stronger. If this theory were true that would mean that when you are infected, your immune response would be suppressed and you would experience less symptoms or no symptoms and thus believe you were not sick. Many vaccines are given as multiple doses in one injection. Some believe this may overwhelm the nervous and immune systems leading to chronic disorders such as autoimmune diseases, where your immune system no longer distinguishes some of your own cells from invading organisms.
Much is not known about the effects vaccines have on us, especially long-term effects. No real efforts have been made at studying long-term side effects. However, evidence is beginning to surface that suggests that vaccines may be playing a major role in the rising incidence of autoimmune disorders and chronic childhood disorders such as autism, asthma, and ADHD. One thing we know for sure is that the practice of vaccination defies how nature intended for our immune system to function. As B.J. Palmer, D.C. puts it, in most cases “nature needs no help, just no interference.”
As a parent I take my responsibility to my children seriously and I am sure you do to. No responsible parent would ever do anything to would harm their child or limit their potential. So please take your vaccination choices seriously and learn as much as you can about vaccines before you make the choice. There are many books published on the matter.
Whatever you decide, invest in your child’s health today by incorporating healthy lifestyle habits that build a strong immune system. Start your child out right by breastfeeding them as nature intended. Don’t be a “germ-o-phobe”. Not everything in your surroundings needs to be completely sterile. Your child’s immune system must be challenged by common bacteria and viruses in their environment in order to grow stronger. Support your child’s immune system by allowing most fevers to run their course. Learn and teach your child how to eat healthily, exercise, and have positive thoughts and beliefs that build a good foundation for self-esteem. And lastly, improve your child’s immune function with regular chiropractic care.
The practice of vaccination began in 1796 when Edward Jenner, a British physician, took diseased matter from a cowpox blister on the hand of a milkmaid and inserted it into the cut arm of a healthy eight year-old boy. Later, the boy was exposed to smallpox to see if he would contract the disease. He did not, even after being periodically exposed to smallpox for twenty years. This is recorded as the first vaccination. Throughout the 1900s the medical community credited vaccines for eliminating many diseases, such as polio. However, great controversy exists as to whether or not this is really true. Many books and articles have been written about the controversy. A good synopsis of this is detailed in Neil Z. Miller’s; Vaccines: Are They Really Safe & Effective?
Today many vaccines exist and pharmaceutical companies are developing more and more each year with profits well into the billions. Vaccines are injections that contain inactivated or weakened amounts of a disease-causing organism or specific parts or chemicals of a disease-causing organism. They are said to work by stimulating the production of antibodies, which are specific proteins that help defend the body against infection. Frequently, multiple doses are required in order to develop immunity. Before the organism can be built into a vaccine it must be cultured in some live organic material such as monkey kidney, calf serum, or chick embryo. Once the organism is cultured, harvested, and prepared, it is built into a vaccine. In order for the vaccine to be effective and have shelf life, other chemicals are added to stabilize and preserve the vaccine. Many of these chemicals are considered inactive and to have no outward effect on the person receiving the injection. However, some ingredients, such as thimerosal – mercury based preservative, have come under intense scrutiny and are implicated in many adverse reactions. For a complete list of ingredients and other valuable information, visit http://www.nvic.org/.
Even though the terms vaccination and immunization are commonly used interchangeably, I am going to refer to immunization as natural infection or the process that actually occurs in the body when you develop true lifetime immunity against a disease-causing organism. Your immune system is a collection of cells and organs whose complex interaction provides an efficient way of protecting you from outside invaders and your own altered cells, which lead to cancer. Just like the wall of a military fort, your skin and mucous membranes provide the first line of defense. In order for a total immune response to occur, invading organisms must pass through this first line of defense. The second line of defense is your internal army of immune cells that recognize, eliminate, and remember invading organisms. In addition, fever and inflammation play a major role in your immune response. Fever intensifies your immune response and limits the growth of invading pathogens. In most cases fevers should be allowed to run their course, otherwise you are interfering with your bodies attempt at healing.
So, why do I make the distinction between vaccination and immunization? Because the immunity developed through vaccination is different and less effective than natural immunization. This is why many vaccines require booster shots throughout life. By injecting a vaccine directly into your body you bypass many immune system defenses that would naturally have been stimulated. The key factor in testing a vaccine’s effectiveness is whether or not the vaccine causes the production of an antibody to it. However, that is only one component of many complex strategies employed by your immune system. Many scientists believe that this creates a kind of partial immunity where all the immune system strategies are not being activated. In fact, some believe that vaccines may even trick the immune system into focusing on that organism and not other potential invaders, thus lowering immune defenses. Have you ever noticed how many children have a chronic snotty nose during their vaccination years? Others believe that vaccines actually suppress the immune system rather than make it stronger. If this theory were true that would mean that when you are infected, your immune response would be suppressed and you would experience less symptoms or no symptoms and thus believe you were not sick. Many vaccines are given as multiple doses in one injection. Some believe this may overwhelm the nervous and immune systems leading to chronic disorders such as autoimmune diseases, where your immune system no longer distinguishes some of your own cells from invading organisms.
Much is not known about the effects vaccines have on us, especially long-term effects. No real efforts have been made at studying long-term side effects. However, evidence is beginning to surface that suggests that vaccines may be playing a major role in the rising incidence of autoimmune disorders and chronic childhood disorders such as autism, asthma, and ADHD. One thing we know for sure is that the practice of vaccination defies how nature intended for our immune system to function. As B.J. Palmer, D.C. puts it, in most cases “nature needs no help, just no interference.”
As a parent I take my responsibility to my children seriously and I am sure you do to. No responsible parent would ever do anything to would harm their child or limit their potential. So please take your vaccination choices seriously and learn as much as you can about vaccines before you make the choice. There are many books published on the matter.
Whatever you decide, invest in your child’s health today by incorporating healthy lifestyle habits that build a strong immune system. Start your child out right by breastfeeding them as nature intended. Don’t be a “germ-o-phobe”. Not everything in your surroundings needs to be completely sterile. Your child’s immune system must be challenged by common bacteria and viruses in their environment in order to grow stronger. Support your child’s immune system by allowing most fevers to run their course. Learn and teach your child how to eat healthily, exercise, and have positive thoughts and beliefs that build a good foundation for self-esteem. And lastly, improve your child’s immune function with regular chiropractic care.
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