Vaccinating Your Baby

The best option at the present time might be to stop all vaccines if you understand and agree with the statistical risks involved with non-vaccination. This option is not acceptable for every family.

Bob Sears has written a brilliant article about the scientifically demonstrated but largely undefined risk of aluminum in shots. Brilliant!

To Dr. Sears, I would argue that this could now serve as a bridge to a possible pause in vaccines until they remove residual mercury and all the aluminum. I understand that alternative schedules might be an answer for some but we’re still using the same shots with the same ingredients. Dr. Sears forcefully and very intelligently states that we don’t know if there is a safe level of aluminum and preservatives! Time for a temporary pause, Dr. Bob?

Vaccine manufacturers, the CDC/FDA/AAP/ACIP need to prove the safety of the aluminum, formalin, residual egg and porcine cells in immunizations.

It is not our job to prove danger, it’s their job to prove that attempting to create immunity against certain illnesses is safe and worth the risk to an individual child. The discussion of Public Health is important but parents also want and are completely entitled to discuss risks and benefits for one child, their child.

Could the risk/benefit ratio be different? Yes, it could be. Your doctor has to discuss safety: get the aluminum and the rest of the mercury out of vaccines. Stop assuming that we’re naive enough to believe that injecting aluminum, formalin, other preservatives, porcine residue and more will create no side effects. We have watched the progression of childhood illness to the horror of the CDC’s own number: one of six children have a neuroimmune disease. Every day I see children with OCD, Autism spectrum challenges, severe oppositional-defiant syndrome, ADD/ADHD (it’s real!) learning disorders from mild to disabling severe, or bipolar disorder.

Prove vaccines–the concept and their full complement of ingredients–safe or stopping asking us to jump when you say jump.

Dr. Jay Gordon and Jenny McCarthy will be featured on Fox 11 News in Los Angeles, discussing vaccinations, autism, and keeping America’s children healthy tonight during the 10 o’clock news. Thereafter, Dr. Jay will participate in a live online chat to discuss these controversial topics and other pressing health questions after the program at 11:00 PM. To participate in the live chat, go to www.fox11.com.

With all the hand-wringing about bacterial resistance to antibiotics and “super bugs”, I often urge parents to reserve the antibiotics arsenal as a last resort. Ear infections, for example, can be first treated with natural remedies while a child’s own immune system fights, and most-often, wins the battle without a prescription.

I treat ear infections with prevention (anti-allergy measures such as dairy avoidance, dust reduction and getting rid of feather pillows and quilts) and with herbal and homeopathic remedies. I have some formal training in these methods but nowhere near enough to call myself an authority. I have been trained by my patients’ actions and by years of experience watching the way children respond to gentler methods of healing otitis media and other infections.

I like to put mullein/garlic oil in the ears hourly for a day or two and give pulsatilla 6X or 12C (homeopathic strength–the range I have given indicates homeopathic ignorance… but it works) or lachesis homeopathically hourly for two days. Elderberry is an herbal preparation which interferes with viral growth and I use the extract for younger children and the lozenges (hourly again… tough day for moms) for the toddlers and older kids.

The doses can be calculated from the bottle you buy.I also give extra vitamin C (500 mg/year of age/day to a maximum of 5000 for ten year olds to adults) and 5-15 mg of zinc/day to help immune function. Echinacea is another good herb for stimulating immune function and I use it for any child without bad allergies or other autoimmune problems.

Dairy avoidance is crucial to treat or prevent ear infections and many people like to replace the lost calcium either with fortified drinks (soy, rice, orange juice) or with supplemental calcium. Pain control can be done either herbally or with Tylenol-type meds. Hot compresses on the ear will increase blood flow and speed up healing.

Since the Los Angeles Times reported that the largest U.S. measles outbreak occurred in 2006, news radio reporters have been parroting admonitions by the medical establishment to vaccinate, vaccinate, vaccinate. The irony is that most of the adults infected had been vaccinated during childhood, and got measles nonetheless. Now there’s some rumblings to have yet another MMR vaccine for fear some people will loose immunity over time. News flash: When it comes to vaccinations, one size does not fit all! The human immune system is dynamic– and let’s face it– we doctors haven’t completely figured it out.

Here is a link to Dr. Jay Gordon when he appeared on Larry King Live as part of the network’s coverage of Autism Awareness Day.

Watch here.

Dr. Jay Gordon will appear as a guest on CNN’s Larry King Live on Wednesday, April 2nd. The show will discuss autism as part of the network’s day-long coverage of Autism Awareness Day.

Check your local listings for airtimes or click here.

I was thrilled to see Larry King provide a forum for the vaccinations/autism link with the family whose daughter received nine vaccines in a single visit. I’m only being a little facetious when I say the three doctors commenting on the panel were all wearing very large clown shoes and surreptitiously holding funny red noses in their laps!

Clearly in some cases, a genetic proclivity combined with an environmental assault can create a recipe for severe developmental issues. Vaccines, aluminum in vaccines and multiple vaccinations all contribute to autism, period. They don’t cause all cases, but they sure do contribute mightily.

Being an active participant in boosting your child’s immune system will pay dividends in peace of mind and your child’s future well-being. “Natural immunity against colds and other serious diseases generally last forever,” says Dr. Gordon.

Here are some guidelines:

• Breast feed as long as possible. Breast milk is a dynamic defense against disease. As the mother gains immunity to new, foreign viruses and bacteria, so does the child through breast milk.
• Avoid antibiotics. “Your immune system, when allowed to fight the battle, will win,” says Dr. Gordon in his educational DVD, Vaccinations? Assessing the Risks and Benefits.
• Decrease chemical exposure. The most insidious mode of a child’s exposure to harmful chemicals is often the place you assume is the safest - the home. Avoid garden pesticides and opt for natural defense against insects. Pesticides impair immune system functioning. Replace harsh household cleansers for more natural formulations.
• Provide your child with adequate nutrition. Feed them a rainbow of fruits and vegetables to provide essential vitamins and minerals.
• Give the right fats. The human body absolutely needs Omega-3 fatty acids for optimal body and brain function. Here’s the problem: We can’t manufacture it; we receive it through fish and some nuts. Increase your child’s intake of these precious oils. If you are concerned (as well you should) about mercury levels in fish, use alternative supplements like flax seed and purified fish oil supplements.
• Decrease intake of refined sugars. Avoid white bread, granulated sugar, soda and candy. Many so-called child friendly snacks have copious amounts of refined sugar, dyes and trans fats-all compromising to the immune system.

For more information about the vaccinations DVD mentioned in the article, go to www.vaccinationsdvd.com

Welcome to Vaccinating Your Baby. This is a new online resource giving parents and caregivers the latest information and news on the risks and benefits for childhood vaccinations.