Which is riskier: The 5-in-1 vaccine or the diseases it is meant to prevent

What

The 5-in-1 Pediacel vaccine protects against: diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough (pertussis), polio, and Hib (Haemophilus influenzae type b)  Ref

Descriptions below per Ref

Diphtheria is a serious, potentially fatal, disease that usually begins with a sore throat and can quickly develop to severe breathing problems. It can damage the heart and nervous system. Diphtheria spreads through close contact with an infected person.

Tetanus is a very rare and painful and potentially deadly disease that affects the muscles and can cause breathing problems. It is caused by bacteria found in soil and manure, which can get into the body through open cuts or burns.Caused by bacteria commonly found in soil and manure and enter through a wound (cuts, scrapes, burns, bites, piercings, etc) Most commonly caused by deep wounds, but can be from minor wounds as well. Treatment is tetanus immunoglobulin (contains antibodies that kill the tetanus bacteria), antibiotics and when necessary ventilator/feeding tube.

Whooping cough, known medically as pertussis, is a disease that can cause spells of severe coughing and choking, making it hard to breathe. It lasts for up to 10 weeks. It's not usually serious in older children, but it can be very serious or even fatal in babies under the age of one.

Polio is a virus that attacks the nervous system and can permanently paralyse the muscles in the arms and legs. If it affects the chest muscles, it can kill.

The Hib bacteria can cause a number of serious diseases, including epiglottitis (a severe form of croup) or meningitis.

When

Given on three separate occasions, when babies are two, three and four months old. Ref

Ingredients

Inactivated (not live) virus
Ref

Common Side Effects

• Irritable afterwards
• Minor or short-lived redness and swelling at the injection site

More than one in 10 babies who have the vaccine experience:

• pain, redness and swelling at the injection site
• irritability and increased crying
• being off-colour or having a fever

Rare: Between one in 1,000 and one in 10,000 babies given the vaccine experience:

• febrile convulsions (fits)
• floppiness

Very Rare: Fewer than one baby in 10,000 given the vaccine experience:

• high fever (more than 40.5°C)
• unusual high-pitched or inconsolable crying

Extremely Rare: Fewer than 1 in 100,000

• Severe allergic reaction (anaphylaxis)

Risk of getting diseases if not vaccinated

Diphtheria

Since 2010, there have been only 20 recorded cases of diphtheria in England (out of 53.9 million in mid-2013 Ref) and Wales (out of 3.1 million in mid-2013 Ref), and one death. Ref.

This means that there is a 20 in 53.9 million chance of getting diphtheria in England right now. This means on average from 2010 to 2015 (5 years) there were 20 recorded cases and this equals 4 cases a year.This also means that in a given year there is only 4 in 53.9 million (or 1 in 13,475,000) chance of getting diphtheria each year.. If put in the perspective of the vaccine side effects, it is 134 times LESS likely that your baby will get diphtheria than experience the extremely rare anaphylaxis. That means in 134 years the risks of getting the actual disease diphtheria will equal that of the most rare side effect of one dose of vaccine (you will actually need three though, but I won't bother with that added risk since it is so small in comparison).

About 10 percent of cases are fatal. In those cases, by the time the victims seek treatment (antitoxin) the disease had done too much damage. This means that 10% of 4 are fatal and equals .4 people in all of England statistically may die from diphtheria each year. That is in line with the stats from the Public Health England that say zero per year. Ref.

Conclusion on Diphtheria
If you don't care about herd immunity and you want to play by the number, then really there really isn't much reason to vaccinate for Diphtheria. Statistically you are far safer in the UK to not get the vaccination.

Tetanus

 In 2013, there were only 7 recorded cases of tetanus in England and Wales, and no deaths. Most (not all) cases occur in people who were never vaccinated or partially vaccinated for the condition. In the UK, 1 in 7 to 10 people who develop tetanus will die from the condition. Using 2013 as reference that means that one person would have statistically died, but didn't. Ref Given that the population of England (53.9 million in mid-2013 Ref) and Wales (3.1 million in mid-2013 Ref) is 57 million total people in Wales and England. This means that 7 out 57 million (or 1 in 8.1 million)  got the tetanus (an none died, but 1 statistically should have). The chance rarest side effect (anaphylaxis) of the vaccine itself is 1 in 100,000 for each dose. There are 5 doses of the vaccination needed. This means the total risk of the vaccination is at least 1 out of 100,000 (if we ignore addition risk of getting multiple doses). This means it is 280 times likely of suffering from the most common side effect of vaccine than getting a case of tetanus. The worst cases of the disease are worse probably though, so maybe it could be worth it given that both are extremely rare to have severe issues.

Conclusion of Tetanus
It can't be passed from person to person, so herd immunity isn't really a factor. Just looking at the the numbers, then really there really isn't much reason to vaccinate for Tetanus. Statistically you are far safer in the UK to not get the vaccination if you assume the side effects of the vaccine and the cost likely case of the disease are equally as bad. The worst cases of the disease are worse probably though, so maybe it could be worth it given that both are extremely rare to have severe issues.



Whooping cough is a cyclical disease with the number of cases thought to peak every three to four years. An outbreak of whooping cough in 2012 meant 9,711 cases were confirmed in England and Wales compared to 4,835 confirmed cases in 2013.
The overall increase in the number of cases of whooping cough is thought to be related to heightened awareness of the disease and more cases being reported. Ref


Deadly 5-in-1 Vaccine Kills At Least Eight Infants


---- Stopping analysis...
I give up trying to compare the risks. This is too big of a job and the data just isn't widely available for the risks on either side. In fact, the risk of getting a disease is greatly influenced by proximity to the outbreak. In the end I think getting vaccinated isn't a bad thing. My toddler is likely to experience some level of discomfort from the vaccines. Hopefully not too bad. If there is an outbreak the chances of getting a disease can increase significantly. This is the biggest risk that can't be quantified easily. Next there is the worry of not doing anything and she gets a disease. How do I accept that. On the other hand I have to accept that if I do vaccinate I am directly bringing some "harm" to my daughter, but hopefully very minor. There is no easy decision. I really don't know what to do. My wife doesn't think she can live with herself if our daughter gets a disease and we didn't vaccinate. I guess that is a reason to vaccinate. In the end, I'm tired of using logic to defend myself. No one I talk to has spent the time researching the issues unless they are not vaccinating. Weird. I guess the next step is to figure out what the doctor suggests as a catch up schedule, and then see how I feel about it.

Measles Unexplained

I thought this article was interesting and made some good points.

Interesting article. I think keeping plenty (not too much as it can be toxic) of Vitamin A by Coutsoudis in a healthy child will reduce her risk of severe infection from measles. It could be as much as 50%.

Most cases have the following symptoms: fever, cough, red eyes, runny nose, and a rash. 

In the worst-case scenario, a patient could develop encephalitis, or swelling of the brain. This is, factually, devastating for anyone. It can have life long effects including brain damage, deafness, and/or other neurological impairment. Chances of this are approximately 1 out of 1,000. 

The cause of death is about 1 in 1000 also and usually occurs from pneumonia. Only about 5% of the cases develop pneumonia though.

In Africa there were lots of death compared to developed countries. The cause was either malnutrition (low Vitamin A in particular) or lack of access to the vaccine. Interestingly by the time the vaccine was invented the number of cases of measles had decreased significantly.

According to the CDC here are your chances of complications:

Measles Complications Conditions

• Diarrhea - 8% reported
• Otitis media - 7% reported
• Pneumonia - 6% reported
• Encephalitis - 0.1% reported
• Seizures - 0.6-0.7% reported
• Death - 0.2% reported

The CDC says malnourished children under 12 months of age and a vitamin A deficiency are most at risk:

"Measles in developing countries has resulted in high attack rates among children younger than 12 months of age. Measles is more severe in malnourished children, particularly those with vitamin A deficiency. Complications include diarrhea, dehydration, stomatitis, inability to feed, and bacterial infections (skin and elsewhere). The case-fatality rate may be as high as 25%. Measles is also a leading cause of blindness in African children."

It is interesting to see how cases of measles affects the different age groups.

Notice that about 9% develop Pneumonia, but 25% are hospitalized for one reason or another.

I wonder, how effective is the vaccine if you only have the first dose of the vaccine. It is recommended the vaccine is to be given at 1yr and 5 yrs of age. If you have a 2 year old this is something to consider, especially if you have not vaccinated yet. Here is what the CDC says:

"From 1985 through 1988, 42% of cases occurred in persons who were vaccinated on or after their first birthday. During these years, 68% of cases in school-aged children (5–19 years) occurred among those who had been appropriately vaccinated. The occurrence of measles among previously vaccinated children (i.e., vaccine failure) led to the recommend at ion for a second dose in this age group."

and 

"The size and makeup of measles outbreaks has changed since the 1980s. Prior to 1989, the majority of outbreaks occurred among middle, high school and college student populations. As many as 95% of persons infected during these outbreaks had received one prior dose of measles vaccine. A second dose of measles vaccine was recommended for school-aged children in 1989, and all states now require two doses of measles vaccine for school-aged children. As a result, measles outbreaks in school settings are now uncommon."

This makes me think about giving a vaccination to my unvaccinated 2 year old. It seems the vaccines will not be that effective with just the one dose. Also, I wonder how immediate would she gain any benefit. 

Then I read the following from the CDC:

"

Measles vaccine produces an inapparent or mild, noncommunicable infection. Measles antibodies develop in approximately 95% of children vaccinated at 12 months of age and 98% of children vaccinated at 15 months of age. Seroconversion rates are similar for single-antigen measles vaccine, MMR, and MMRV. Approximately 2%–5% of children who receive only one dose of MMR vaccine fail to respond to it (i.e., primary vaccine failure). MMR vaccine failure may occur because of passive antibody in the vaccine recipient, damaged vaccine, incorrect records, or possibly other reasons. Most persons who fail to respond to the first dose will respond to a second dose. Studies indicate that more than 99% of persons who receive two doses of measles vaccine (with the first dose administered no earlier than the first birthday) develop serologic evidence of measles immunity.

...

Two doses of measles vaccine, as combination MMR, separated by at least 4 weeks, are routinely recommended for all children. All persons born during or after 1957 should have documentation of at least one dose of MMR or other evidence of measles immunity (see below). Certain adolescents and adults should receive two doses of MMR.

...

A second dose of MMR is recommended to produce immunity in those who failed to respond to the first dose. The second dose of MMR vaccine should routinely be given at age 4–6 years, before a child enters kindergarten or first grade. The recommended visit at age 11 or 12 years can serve as a catch-up opportunity to verify vaccination status and administer MMR vaccine to those children who have not yet received two doses of MMR.

"

I read this to mean that for my 2 year old she has 98% chance of getting immunity from measles after just the first vaccination. However, if she gets a second vaccination after 4 weeks then should gain 1 more percent for the chances of being developing the measles antibodies. In my opinion, if you don't want to vaccinate in the first place, the risk of side effects of the second vaccination may be greater than the benefit of getting that 1% closer to 100% chance of immunity. It seems getting  only the first vaccination is a good balance if you child is over the 15 month mark.

I wonder how many health kids that get exercise, get proper sun exposure (Vitamin D), proper nutrition get this measles and how serious the cases are versus kids that don't fit this criteria.

The CDC does say: "Overall incidence rates were highest for Hispanics and blacks and lowest for non-Hispanic whites. Among children younger than 5 years of age, the incidence of measles among blacks and Hispanics was four to seven times higher than among non-Hispanic whites."

I would be willing to bet the above group does not meet this criteria in most cases.

The CDC also says: "Ninety percent of fatal cases occurred among persons with no history of vaccination."

This is of little surprise given that a large percentage of cases are from unvaccinated people.

What is in the Vaccine?

The CDC says: "The only measles virus vaccine now available in the United States is a live, more attenuated Edmonston-Enders strain (formerly called “Moraten”). The vaccine is available combined with mumps and rubella vaccines as MMR, or combined with mumps, rubella, and varicella vaccine as MMRV (ProQuad). The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends that MMR be used when any of the individual components is indicated. Single-antigen measles vaccine is not currently available in the United States.

Measles vaccine is prepared in chick embryo fibroblast tissue culture. MMR and MMRV are supplied as a lyophylized (freeze-dried) powder and are reconstituted with sterile, preservative-free water. The vaccines contain a small amount of human albumin, neomycin, sorbitol, and gelatin."

What is an attenuated virus

Wikipedia says: "An attenuated vaccine is a vaccine created by reducing the virulence of a pathogen, but still keeping it viable (or "live"). Attenuation takes an infectious agent and alters it so that it becomes harmless or less virulent."

What is chick embryo fibroblast
Wikipedia says: "A fibroblast is a type of cell that synthesizes the extracellular matrix and collagen,^[1] the structural framework (stroma) for animal tissues, and plays a critical role in wound healing. Fibroblasts are the most common cells of connective tissue in animals."

I say, if you are concerned about GMOs, you may not want to get the MMR vaccine. It has genetically engineered albumin (human protein) in it. 

What is Neomycin (preservative)

Wikipedia says: "Neomycin is typically used as a topical preparation, such as Neosporin. It can also be given orally, where it is usually combined with other antibiotics. Neomycin is not absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract and has been used as a preventive measure for hepatic encephalopathy and hypercholesterolemia. By killing bacteria in the intestinal tract, it keeps ammonia levels low and prevents hepatic encephalopathy, especially prior to GI surgery. It has also been used to treat small intestinal bacterial overgrowth. It is not given intravenously, as neomycin is extremely nephrotoxic (causes kidney damage), especially compared to other aminoglycosides. The exception is when neomycin is included, in very small quantities, as a preservative in some vaccines – typically 0.025 mg per dose.^[1]"

Does this mean that the measles vaccine can damage the kidney of small babies or children that are say in the 1 percentile?

What is Sorbitol (Sugar)

WiseGeek says: "Sorbitol, or glucitol as it is sometimes called, is a slow-metabolizing sugar alcohol derived from fruits, corn and seaweed. It's a sugar substitute found in foods such as frozen desserts, sugar-free chewing gum and diabetic candies. Sorbitol is only about 60% as sweet as sugar, however. It is also used as a thickener and moisturizer in beauty products."

Wikipedia says: "Gelatin or gelatine (from Latin: gelatus meaning "stiff", "frozen") is a translucent, colourless, brittle (when dry), flavourless foodstuff, derived from collagen obtained from various animal by-products. It is commonly used as a gelling agent in food, pharmaceuticals, photography, and cosmetic manufacturing. Substances containing gelatin or functioning in a similar way are called gelatinous. Gelatin is an irreversibly hydrolyzed form of collagen. It is found in most gummy candy as well as other products such as marshmallows, gelatin dessert, and some ice cream, dip and yogurt. Household gelatin comes in the form of sheets, granules, or powder. Instant types can be added to the food as they are; others need to be soaked in water beforehand."

To Summarize

It is a difficult choice to make. There are world health and individual health to consider. No one wants to spread disease and we all want to be healthy. There is definitely uncertainty as to the best to meet that goal. I see it as weighing the risks and benefits because nothing is 100% or without cost. Here are the major risks and benefits. 

What we are trying to avoid: Measles

Most cases have the following symptoms: fever, cough, red eyes, runny nose, and a rash. 

In the worst-case scenario, a patient could develop encephalitis, or swelling of the brain. 

Choice #1 - Don't vaccinate

Choice #2 - Vaccinate

Why you may want to wait until after your child is age 1 to vaccinate

Here is a quote from the VAERS site regarding the data:

"More than 10 million vaccines per year are given to children less than 1 year old, usually between 2 and 6 months of age. At this age, infants are at greatest risk for certain medical adverse events, including high fevers, seizures, and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Some infants will experience these medical events shortly after a vaccination by coincidence."

Why don't doctors tell us this. Why don't they tell us that breast feeding will help reduce the risk of infectious diseases. The good news is that if you didn't vaccinate you baby and have not had caught any diseases, the risk of side effects is less after 6 months of age or is that really the case. This is something to consider for those that may want to vaccinate after 6 months of age.

This is a very interesting statistical analysis of the VAERS data. Here are some of the finds based on VAERS data:

The more doses the greater chance of hospitalization

For each dose you give an infant (under 1 year of age) there is an increase in the likelihood of hospitalization by approximately 1.9%. Just two doses is about a 10% risk of being hospitalized. The CDC recommends easily 25 vaccinations (even more if you count doses) by age 1 according to the official recommendations.If we assume the trend continues in a linear fashion as suggested below, then with 25 vaccinations the chance of hospitalization would be 53%. Why doesn't a doctor say that before giving or recommending a vaccination. To be fair, this does NOT mean that there is a 53% chance that your infant will be hospitalized if you follow the CDC recommendation. All this means is that of the cases that are reported for infants under age 1 that of the cases reported by age one 53% of the reports would include hospitalizations. In actuality there is not enough data over for over 8 vaccinations by age 1 to support this analysis, but it is very interesting and verifiable for up to eight vaccinations.

Waiting until your child is older than age 1 could reduce the risk of hospitalization

Notice after 6 months of age it is not really as linear as before. This may imply that the CDC is correct saying that the infants are most at risk of hospitalization from side effects of a vaccine up to 6 months.

Death

Similar findings were found for death potentially caused by vaccines:

"...an increased mortality rate associated with 5–8 vaccines relative to 1–4 vaccines; (d) a decreased mortality rate associated with children aged 0.5 to <1 1.4="" a="" aged="" and="" e="" infant="" male-to-female="" mortality="" ratio.="" relative="" span="" those="" to="" year=""> "

This means the more vaccines the higher risk of death and waiting until after 6 months of age to vaccinate may also reduce the risk of death from the side effects of a vaccine.

Underreporting of issue

The report says: 

"Since VAERS is a passive system, it is inherently subject to underreporting. For example, a confidential study conducted by Connaught Laboratories, a vaccine manufacturer, indicated that “a fifty-fold underreporting of adverse events” is likely.¹³ According to David Kessler, former commissioner of the FDA, “only about one percent of serious events [adverse drug reactions] are reported.”¹⁴ Less serious vaccine adverse events (e.g., swelling, fever, or redness at the vaccination site) are more underreported than more serious vaccine adverse events (e.g., hospitalizations and death).¹⁵ The current analysis made no attempt to quantify underreporting due to age, type of adverse event, or other factor since only relative trends were utilized."

Legal Notice:

I am not a doctor or a statistician. I simply am interpreting the report to the best of my ability and trying to put it in a more consumable form for the average person. This should not be used as medical advice. Please read the study and CDC sites if you have any questions. 

Hepatitis B (aka Hep B)

What is Hep B?
Hep B is short for the virus called Hepatitis B. It causes liver damage and can cause liver failure (can be fatal).

How is it transmitted?
The Hep B virus can be transmitted to you by doing one of the following with an infected person:

• Unprotected Sex
• Sharing of IV drug needles
• Get a tattoo with an improperly sterilized need that was previously used on someone that was infected.
• Accidentally stuck by an infected needle
• Blood transfusion
• Saliva exchange is a theoretical, but virtually unheard of.
• Exchange of blood through an open wound

The Hep B virus can be transmitted to your BABY by doing one of the following with an infected person.

• Blood transfusion (blood is screened for Hep B, but in rare cases (1 in 65,000 or 1 in 500,000 units) it gets through.
• Saliva exchange is a theoretical, but virtually unheard of.
• Exchange of blood through an open wound.
• Birth if mom is infected. NOTE: The placenta protects the baby during pregnancy, but not birth).

As you might imagine it is extremely rare for a baby to be at risk for Hep B. Yes, the risk would go up as a child starts to handle things like needles or play with other children where injuries with blood are more likely. For a baby in the first two years of life I believe this to be a low risk disease. I will re-evaluate as she gets older. Even later, I think the risk is low enough to vaccinate, but I will delay until there is more exposure to risky situations. For example, a care giver, medical, etc.


Why would you want it?
If you are in the medical profession and around other people's blood or saliva you may want to consider the vaccine. Once you become sexually active it may make sense. Travel for less than 6 months is NOT a good reason to get this vaccine because there is little added risk. Though, it is worth noting that many places such as Alaska, Pacific Islands, China, Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, Central Asia, most of the middle east, Africa and the northern part of South America have 12% of the population infected with Hep B opposed to 1% in the US, Canada, Western Europe, Australia, and southern part of South America which have 1% infected. Interestingly most cases in these areas are transmitted at the time of birth to infants. Countries not listed have a 5% infection rate.



Symptoms and Diagnosis
A blood test is needed to diagnose Hep B. Symptoms include

• Abdominal Pain
• Jaundice (yellow eyes and skin)
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Fatigue

Is HEP B Common?
According to Dr. Sears, this is a very difficult one to tell. The only place that he could find that said how many cases a year are reported was in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. It said there were 360 cases from birth to age nine per year. Interestingly, it is somehow estimated that 30,000 cases are estimated per year.

Keep in mind the study was done by the drug companies (GlaxoSmith Kline and Merck) did a study to determine if infants should be vaccinated for Hep B based on how many actual cases there were in infants and children. They concluded the number was 30,000 cases a year and every since 1991 it is recommended that all babies should be vaccinated in order to decrease Hep B in our population. The reality is that since then the cases of Hep B has decreased by two-thirds. Is this because of the vaccine or something else? Hard to say.

Is Hep B Serious
The vaccine books says, "Extremely. About 90% of babies who catch Hep B during birth become chronically infected. They may now show it for many years or decades, but 25% of them will develop liver cancer or liver failure eventually.

Kids who catch Hep B during the toddler or preschool years have about a 35 percent chance of getting a chronic infection and older kids and adults have only a 6 to 10% chance of developing a chronic disease....There are an estimated 4000 deaths each year in the United States from liver failure or liver cancel due to Hep B. These are virtually all among adults."

You may also want to consider that only 10% of children of contract Hep B show symptoms right away. On the other hand, it passes without much consequence for adults.

Is Hep B Treatable?
No routine treatment is available. However, there are treatments similar to Chemotherapy though. This works in about 1/3 of the cases. Also, babies that are born to infected mothers can be given a HBIG injection to kill the viruses. It can be given to anyone who is exposed to blood known to contain the Hep B virus.

When to give it?
The CDC and AAP now recommend giving the vaccination at BIRTH. This is the one size fits all mentality of the AAP and CDC. The vaccine only applies to those babies with mothers that have Hep B already. Alternatively, they used to recommend two months after birth for the first of three doses. If you decide you don't want to give the Hep B vaccination be aware that some hospitals don't ask, they just assume you want the vaccine for your newborn and give the vaccine to them. So, be sure to make it known to the staff what your preference is.  The upside of waiting until adolescence is that only 2 shots are needed instead of 3 and the toxin to body weight is much better (safer). Though 2 or 3 shots depends on the manufacturer.

How is the vaccine made?
The Vaccine Book says, "This is a very unique vaccine in that it is artificially engineered using advanced genetic techniques." The good news is there is no way to get Hep B from the vaccine. The bad news is a portion of DNA from the Hep B virus is integrated into yeast cells and then the virus is filtered out. Then to make the vaccine work "better" they add aluminum.

This is GMO to the max. If you research GMO in our food you will find that messing with DNA and then putting it in our body is a BAD idea. Our body doesn't know what to think of it. Add that to the aluminum, mercury, and formaldehyde and I'll give this vaccine a big PASS.
NOTE: Many of the manufacturers of the vaccine have removed either all or all but trace amounts (still too much though) of mercury, but check to be sure the vaccine being used doesn't have it.

Side Effects of the Vaccine
The standard side effects occur more frequently than with many of the other vaccines. About 10 to 15 percent of people experience flu-like symptoms. Other possible reactions are: life-threatening allergic reactions, severe rash, heart palpitations, minor liver damage, bleeding disorders, visual problems, hair loss, arthritis, lupus. There are also several neurological reactions but they are rare.

Conclusion

If you are someone how believes that vaccines work reduce disease in the long run and don't mind subjecting your baby and child to this vaccine then I guess it makes sense. For me, I will not subject my baby to something for the theoretical greater good of the population when the risk for her contracting the disease is extremely low.


References: All information on this post was taken from The Vaccine Book by Dr. Sears.

Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis Vaccine

I am reviewing Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis (whooping cough) together since you typically give them to babies as a group. There is no doubt that like every disease we vaccinate for that it is not good to get a severe case of it, but we have chosen to not to vaccinate for diseases that are a uncommon. This makes this vaccine particularly difficult to decide because we are really talking about three diseases, not just one.

Let's start by looking at them individually.

Diptheria

The Vaccine Book says, "Dihptheria is a very severe throat infection that is caused by a bacterium...The germ secretes a toxin that irritates the lining of th ethroat and upper  lungs, causing a severe coughing and breathing difficulty. The breathing passage becomes swollen and may close off altogether... Diphtheria is transmitted like the common cold."

It is not common in the United States. There are only about 5 cases each year and many years go by without any reported cases at all. It is more common in parts of Africa, Central and South America, Asia, South Pacific, Middle East, and Europe. About 10 percent of cases are fatal. In those cases, by the time the victims seek treatment (antitoxin) the disease had done too much damage.

Our Choice: Since Dihpheria is basically nonexistant in the US we will not be vaccinating for it. If we decide to travel to other parts of the world where it is more common when she is older, we may reconsider.

Tetanus

The Vaccine Books says, "Tetanus is an acute infectious disease that is caused by a bacterum () that lives in soil and on dirty, rusty metal and can also contaminate unsterile needles... the toxin that enters a person's a person's nerves and gradually caues paralysis throughtout the body. Tetanus is commonly referred to as lockjaw because often the first muscles to become paralyzed are the jaw muscles.

It is thankfully not common. Most people with deep and dirty wounds receive proper medical care and have their wounds flushed out with clean water and disinfectant. Each year in the United States we see only about 50 to 100 cases of tetanus. Virtually all occur in adults over twenty-five who haven't received a booster shot. Only about 1 case occurs in kids under five each year, and only a handful in older children. Before this vaccine was introduced several decades ago, about 1300 cases were reported each year in the United States." Internationally, tetanus is much more severe for infants says the World Health Organization that has reports of 200,000 infants dying each year from tetanus world wide. This occurs most often when an unvaccinated mom gives birth, the umbilical cord is cut with a dirty tool, and tetanus spores from the dirty tool flow into the newborn baby through the cord. This doesn't happen in developed countries.

Our Choice: Given that there is only 1 case for kids under 5 and a handful in older children we will not be vaccinating. I can see how some might think that vaccines caused the decline (1300 to 50 or 100 cases a year) in cases would be attributed to the vaccine. I think it is more about the decline of the family farm and everyone moving into cities where we don't routinely work in the dirt. In short Tetanus is not a disease of infants and rarely for children.

It has a 15% fatality rate. It is treatable with antibody injections and antibiotics to kill the germ, but there are no medications to reverse the paralyzsis. It just has to run its course which can mean intensive care and life support while the paralysis wears off. This may take a few weeks. Also, you can get the tetanus vaccine if you get injured and suspect you might get tetanus. It is however not as effective. Though, there is a TIG (tetanus immune globulin) that can immediately inactivate any tetanus bacteria present.

Pertussis

The Vaccine Books says, "Otherwise known as whooping cough, pertussis is caused by a bacterium (Bordetela pertussis) that infects the upper lungs. It secretes a toxin that causes severe irritation and damage to teh lining of the upper lungs and throat. Pertussis is similar to diphtheria, not as serious. Symptoms mimic the common cold in the first week, but then the cough worsens into prolonged coughing fits tha tlast from thirty seconds to as long as two minutes. The cough is so severe that a person can barely breathe, and when a breath is finally possible, it sounds like a gasping "whoop." Pertussis is transmitted like the common cold an dcan last for as long as three months, even with treatment."

According to The Vaccine Book, Unfortunately, Pertussis is fairly common (about 10,000 reported caes each year in the United States during the 1990s and early 2000). In 2004 and again in 2005 it increased to about 25,000. Over the past few decades pertussis has mysteriously peaked every five years (some other sources say 3-4 years) and then decline. Case in point, one year later in 2006, it was back down to 13,000 cases. In the early part of the twentieth century (before the pertussis vaccine ) cases where about 240,000 each year in the US.

From what I can tell it appears that the vaccine may have made a difference in reducing the overall number of cases. I still wonder what would have happened if we didn't vaccinate for it. Would it have grown out of control or just declined to is current state as many of the charts suggest diseases do naturally.

The Vaccine Book says, the greatest risk for infants is below 6 months with about 1% fatality rate for that age group. There are about 2000 reported cases of pertussis each year for infants less than 6 months, and about 75% are hospitalized and about 20 die each year. In rare cases the infant can have coughing fits so long the brain is deprived of oxygen and can cause brain damage. There appears to be no long term effect from this disease. The coughing slowly resolves and the lungs recover over a couple of months. After 6 months of age, fatalities are almost unheard of, so isn't considered a serious disease in older infants (meaning up to age 1), children, and adults.

It is treatable using antibiotics to kill the germs so the person is no longer contagious. However, the damage to the airway caused by the infection produces weeks of ongoing cough, even after the germs are gone. Starting treatment early may make the symptoms shorter or less severe. The problem is that since it can be mistaken for other things like just a cough treatment may come later when the treatment might not help much and disease will just need to run its course. The good news is there are homeopathic remedies that are considered to be more effective than traditional medicines by many.

Our Choice: Since Pertussis is fatal for only 1% of the cases and that is typically in very young babies. The biggest risk seems to be less than 2 months or less and then 6 months when it is no longer considered a serious disease since fatalities are basically unheard of. Given that our baby is one month a way from the six month mark and we do not use day care and are careful about anyone who has a cough and there are homeopathic remedies we don't feel the risk of this quite reactive vaccine is worth the risk.

The Vaccines

The hard decision for many is whether to vaccine for all three even if you feel some of the others are not needed. In our case, we didn't find the risk of any particular one enough to vaccinate even if it were separate, so thankfully the choice is easier for us.

Adults
It is is recommended that you get a booster shot called Tdap every ten years. It is said this is to better protect the babies since can't be vaccinated until after two months. The focus of this vaccine is on Tetanus (you can tell because the T is bigger than the other letters). This is basically what some refer to as herd immunity (needs to be 90% of the population to be effective). About 25% of patients have standard side effects for this adult/child vaccine. Headache and fatigue are most common (30-40%).

My Choice: Personally, I won't be getting my booster. It is interesting when you start to consider what you would do vs. what you would do to your child. Most adults don't get their boosters (me included) because they think the risk is low, but yet some will automatically give it to their baby.

The Vaccine
There are a few different manufacturers of the vaccine and each one has different issues. Some have more Aluminum that others and some have none. Unfortunately, the one that has less Aluminum has Mercury. Between the two I would be sure to pick one that doesn't have Mercury and has more Aluminum since Mercury is really bad, and Aluminum is assumed to be not such a big deal. They all have formaldehyde.

There used to be a lot of bad things reported about DTP which are said to not apply to the new DTaP that we give our babies. About 15% of babies have standard side effects from this vaccine. There are real serious reactions though like Guillain-Barre syndrome, brain damage, and other nerve dysfunctions, encephalopathy.

There are other forms of the vaccine also. Here are some of them and what they are generally used for:

• DT - It is recommended for infants and children. Some parents use for older children since Pertussis is not needed later except for herd immunity and the P part is suspected to be the part that most kids are sensitive to. It is not recommended to be used for older kids because they may react to the high D component.
• dT - similar to DT, but less diphtheria vaccine than tetanus vaccine and is used for older kids (age 7 and up) and adults.
• T - Commonly used if someone is injured who want a tetanus shot. It is not officially approved for kids of younger age yet, but doctors can do it if desired.

I think it is crazy that there are so many versions of this vaccine for different age groups. To me that says it is too reactive. If for example the DT has too much D component then why in the heck should it be ok to give it to infants that are WAY smaller. This makes no sense to me. The whole set of vaccines tells me that these vaccines are not a one size fits all and thus may be more reactive for my baby.

Pneumococcal Disease / Pc Vaccine

To quote The Vaccine Book, "Pneumococcus (Pc) is a bacterium that causes a wide range of illnesses, from mild cold symptoms and ear infections to severe pneumonia, blood stream infections, and meningitis. It is transmitted like the common cold. When the germ finds its way ino a person, it usually is kept restricted to the nose, throat, and ears and causes cold symptoms, coughing, or ear pain. Occasionally it moves down into the lungs and causes symptoms of pneumonia (labored breathing, severe cough, and fever). Very rarely the germ invades farther into the body and causes bloodstream infection (symptoms include high fever and lethargy) or meningitis (fever, sever headache, vomiting, stiff neck). No one knows what percentage of the time Pc transforms from a minor illness into a more severe one, but this does happen more commonly in infants, toddlers, and the elderly."

According to The Vaccine Book, It is a common bacteria that causes respiratory infections, however cold and flue viruses are still far more common. It is also the most common cause of infant meningitis.

The CDC estimated that there were about 60,000 cases of severe pneumococcal disease each year before the vaccine began, but I am not sure how accurately they were able to estimate that since it is not a disease that requires that the CDC be notified. Of those 60,000, 17,000 were in kids younger than five years of age. These numbers have seemed to decrease by at least half since the vaccine came into use, but now we are seeing increases in other strains of the Pc germ that are not covered by the vaccine.  In fact, in a new (1995 - 2005) study in the Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal 2007;26:461-467) showed that 96% of the severe cases of Pc disease at Children's Medical Center in Dallas were caused by Pc strains not found in the vaccine. Conversely, serious Pc infections (pneumonia, bloodstream infection, or meningitis) occur mostly in infants (age two and under) and the elderly. Serious cases in healthy children and adults are uncommon.

True researches started working on an updated version of the vaccine and probably have one by now (2013), but to me this seems like a HUGE issue. In my mind, this means that the virus is mutating or evolving and the vaccine is only a good for a relatively short period until the virus adapts. This seems much like the flu vaccine. England has scrapped the Pneumonia Vaccines because they don't work. Specifically, The Committee are talking about the elderly over the age of 65, not infants and say

"JCVI has concluded that the protection the vaccine provides is poor and is not long-lasting in older people. In addition, the programme has had no discernable impact on the incidence of invasive pneumococcal disease in older people. The committee has advised, therefore, that there is little benefit to continuing the programme and that it should be stopped."

The way I see it is yes this is a common and potentially severe disease. The standard side effects are common 15% of the time, but it also has a much high rate of seizures than other vaccines. There is only a .001875% chance of having a severe reaction to the vaccine. If that was all that was considered it looks like not a bad idea to get the vaccine, but given that the virus tends to adapt and thus the vaccine is no longer effective. To add to that, we plan to breast feed (greatly reduces the chance of a severe case) our baby the first two years which is the highest risk time period. We are also not going to use day care. I don't like Aluminum being in the vaccine. All that put together and I don't see how it makes sense to get this vaccine. I say no to this vaccine (in our case). 

Vaccine Side Effects

As bad as many of the diseases we vaccinate for, the severe reactions to the vaccines themselves can be equally bad or even worse.

Standard Side Effects

According to page 15 of The Vaccine Book, the following side effects typically occur 5 to 10% of the time, but some vaccines it soars to up to 40% of the time. The STANDARD side effects are, but not limited to:

• Pain at the injection site
• Redness at the injection site
• Swelling at the injection site
• Fever
• Crying
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Poor appetite
• Sleepiness
• HeadacheS
• Body AcheS
• Pea-sized nodule at injection site lasting for several weeks
• Rash over the whole body or limited to one area.

Best remedies are said to be holding a cool washcloth or ice pack to the injection site or giving ibuprofen, but it doesn't always work well. You can try Arnica for swelling. Most important is some TLC.

Serious Side Effects

The Vaccine Book (pg 181) says, "All vaccines have some potentially serious side effects. Fortunately, they are extremely rare." Based on Dr. Sears estimations, the chances of having a SEVERE reaction are approximately 4 times LESS than getting a SEVERE case of the disease. The problem is that he also said there is no way of know how off this estimate is. It could be easily be a factor of 4x off which would put it at the same likelihood as getting a SEVERE case of the disease AND we don't fully understand the long term effects vaccines have on us. We do know that having a healthy immune system is critical in reducing the chance of reactions to vaccines and reducing the chances of getting a disease. Keep in mind, the human body is subjected to millions of germs a day and only a tiny faction of 1% are for the ones that have vaccines for.

My question is, should we injecting our babies on things we HOPE will help them, but could in fact HURT them. For example, the Tetanus vaccine product insert states that there is enough evidence to say the vaccines can cause the Guillain-Barre syndrome. In the 1990's the DTP was replaced with the DTaP vaccine it had such bad reactions and may have caused permanent brain injury. Amazingly, it was once thought to be a safe vaccine, but in fact was the most "reactive" vaccines ever. The point is we can't trust what the government or the product companies believe. I'm not saying they are evil or malicious, I am just saying they will be smarter tomorrow than they are today and new safety facts are bound to come to the surface.

If that doesn't make you think twice consider these SEVERE side effects with the disease you are trying to prevent given that the chances MAY be the same of getting them.

Guillain-Barre syndrome
Dr. Sears says, "The body's immune system attacks the nervous system, causing temporary weakness and some paralysis. The effects usually wears off after several weeks, but a person must receive intensive care in the meantime to support the body system that aren't working (including respiration), and this illness is potentially fatal." Tetanus vaccine may cause this reaction / disease. To be fair, this condition also strikes for no apparent reason when no vaccines were recently given.

Encephalitis and Encephalopathy
Encephalitis is where the brain experiences swelling and irritation of the brain tissue for a brief period and is considered to be harmless. It is a lesser case Encephalopathy.

Encephalopathy is the same as Encephalitis except it is for days and can lead to dysfunction and damage to the brain tissue.

Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE)
It is a gradual and chronic swelling and irritation of the brain tissue and can cause permanent damage to brain tissue as it deteriorates over many years. The MMR and all tetanus containing vaccines (according to their product inserts) may also be linked to this reaction.. Also, certain viral infections may also cause this.

Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)
It is hard to say if vaccines cause SIDS or not. Mostly because nearly all babies have had vaccines. Statistically there appears to be no link in either direction.

Autism
It appears that vaccines don't cause Autism per say. However, it doesn't mean that vaccines don't make children with autism or children that are thought to have autism, but do noticeably autistic. The reason according to Dr. Sears (The Vaccine Book, pg 183) is that, "many autistic kids have a variety of similar health problem, including intestinal disease, autoimmune disease, allergies, brain inflammation, and metabolic defects, as well as genetic inability to detoxify their bodies of the host of chemical in food, water, and pollution that are part of our modern society. Their brains and bodies may be affected by the buildup of these environmental chemicals." It is theoretically possible that chemicals in vaccines could contribute to this and maybe even bring autism in a child to such a level that it is first observable.

Chronic Arthritis
According to The Vaccine Book, "The product insert cites three research studies that have shown a 12 to 26 percent chance that teenage and adult woman who get the MMR or the plain rubella vaccine may experience significant arthritis for days, months, or rarely, years. Infants, children, and adult men don't seem to have this risk."

The best remedies for Severe reactions is about the same as for mild reactions with the addition of maybe vitamin A and vitamin C.

Rating the "Reactivity of Vaccines"

Dr. Sears has concluded through observation and his reading that we can probably rate the vaccines reactivity as follows where the first ones are least reactive (5%) up to the most reactive (40%).

5%

• HIB
• Polio
• DTaP
• Pc
• Chickenpox
• Hepatitis B
• Hepatitis A
• MMR
• Meningococcal
• Flu

40%

Minimize your risk

The goal whether you vaccinate or not is to keep the body as healthy as possible so that it can fight of disease and undesired reactions. Here is some advice Dr. Sears on pg 189 of The Vaccine Book suggests:

Breastfeed
One year, but two years is better.

Minimize sugar and junk food.
Sugar weakens the immune system. Just as a doctor if the week after Halloween is their busiest week. Be particularly careful several weeks before a vaccination.

Minimize other chemical exposures
Eat organic, non-gmo foods. This includes baby good and formula. Check the labels, most mainstream products are not organic and gmo free.

Use Omega-3 oil supplements
Most children a deficient in omega-3 fats mainly because they don't eat enough fish and eggs. Luckily breast milk does contain lots of omega-3s. Watch for mercury free supplements. Can supplement toddlers over age one.

Probiotics
They play a critical role in regulating both our intestinal immune system and our internal immune system. They are particularly important if antibiotics are used since they kill all bacteria including the good stuff such as acidophilus. Probiotics can be used after two months of age.

Vitamin A
Some researchers believe it can play a role in protecting the brain from vaccine side effects. Even infants can be given this supplement, but be careful of overdosing as it can be toxic. I suggest asking your pediatrician how much is ok. A baby multi-vitamin in the form of drops may be a good way to get the needed vitamins.

Vitamin C
This antioxidant vitamin can help boost the immune system and may decrease vaccine side effects. The amount in a multi-vitamin is usually not enough. Ask your pediatrician for suggests.

 Conclusion

There are many more side effects than I have listed here. It is hard to tell how much less risky a reaction is to a vaccine verses the disease itself. I don't have any easy answers. It would be nice if there were concrete stats on this stuff, but there just simply isn't. Our best bet is to stay health through good life choices. For me, I will have to evaluate each disease and vaccine combination separately because the risk do vary greatly from vaccine to vaccine and disease to disease. My heart and brain still find it difficult to purposely inject my baby with something that will not do her good, but has a likelihood of causing harm to her. The hope is that it will save her from a terrible disease someday and I will never be the wiser of it.

Stats on Diseases and Vaccines and when to vaccinate

The sad truth is that there is not hard core statistics on vaccines or the diseases so that you can easily make a decision on whether the risks / benefit ratio for a particular vaccine or even all vaccines in general because the reporting mechanism is subjective. May minor reactions to vaccines go unreported because they are assumed to be caused by something else or because psychologically doctors subcontiously (like all humans) see things through the filters of the thing they believe most. Consider that most doctors are in favor of vaccines. This means that when presented a symptom that could be from a reaction to a vaccine or something else they will likely say it was from something else and not report it. Why, because it supports their beliefs. I don't fault them, it is human nature, but it is something to consider. The same thing would be true for parents against vaccines. They would tend to lean the other way and blame more things on a reaction to a vaccination.

The question then comes for long term effects that may not be noticed and cannot be measured easily. Considering this, the risk of vaccines could actually be higher than is thought. On the other hand it may not, so you have to decide which side makes more sense. The problem that goes along with this is that vaccines do have the same testing requirements that drugs do. They don't have to go through long term testing or even a few years. There seems to be no way to easily do the testing than to compare against previous batches of vaccines and observe through this subjective system described above. To me, it makes more sense to error on the side of caution and history. History has taught me that we don't understand the harmful effects of things we produce until it is too late and the damage is already done. The human body is no exception to this; we hardly understand how it works and reacts to everything.

Dr. Sear's stats that he come up with (some where guesstimates because hard numbers were not available). There are several ways that he looked at the stats. The important thing to realize is there is a clear line between diseases that are likely before age 2 and those that are after. Risks do vary greatly between diseases and vaccines. However, believe it or not, the data available is not really by vaccine or disease because many of the vaccines are combo shots and can't be traced because of that. But we can generalize the risk

Combines / copied from The Vaccine Book on pages 170 and 176. The first number is the number of severe cases from the disease itself for children 12 and under. The second number is for the general population (including children 12 and under).

Chances of getting a disease

• HIB: 25 / 25 hospitalizations
• Pc: 10,000 (very approximate) / 30,000 hospitalizations
• Diptheria: 5 / 5 hospitalizations (yearly max, some years are 0)
• Tetanus: 5 / 100 hospitalizations
• Pertusis: 1500 (very approximate) / 1500 (very approximate)
• Hepatitis B: 130 (all severe) / 7500 cases
• Rotovirus: 50,000 hospitalizations (approximate) / 50,0000 (approximate)
• Polio: 0 / 0
• Measles: close to 0 / close to 0
• Mumps: 10 (approximate) / 20 hospitalizations (during a recent outbreak)
• Rubella: 3 babies for with defects / 3
• Chickenpox: 200 (approximate) / 1000 (approximate) hospitalizations
• Hepatitis A: 20 (approximate)  / 200 (approximate) hospitalizations
• Flu: 20,000 (approximate) / 100,000 (approximate) hospitalizations
• Meningococcal disease: 2,750 hospitalizations / 3000 cases
• HPV: 0 / 20,000 new cases of cervical cancer each year and (very approximate) number of problematic genital wart cases each year.

As you can see many of these diseases are not tracked exactly and Dr. Sears had to guesstimate many of the numbers. Nonetheless, you can see that some diseases like Polio and Measles (almost) don't exist in the US anymore. Rubella doesn't really exist anymore either. Other diseases such as HPV are not a risk for children until they are sexually active. Some like the HIB, Pertusis, Rotovirus and Diptheria, and Meningococcal disease (for the most part)  are common in children only.

So, you may want to take your childs age into account when decided whether to get a particular vaccination or not. Keep in mind the Rotovirus vaccination can't be started after 15 weeks since its effects are unknown with those parameters.

Some stats from the The Vaccine Book pages 176 and 177.

Reaction Stats

• The risk of a reaction (mild and severe) from a single vaccine seems to be about 1 in 1000 (.1% of a reaction or 99.9% of no reaction)
• The risk that any one child will suffer a SEVERE reaction over the ENTIRE 12 year vaccine schedule is about 1 in 2600 (.0385% or 99.961% of no reaction)

Disease Stats

• The risk of any one person (child and adult) suffering a SEVERE case of a vaccine preventable disease each year in our entire population is about 1 in 1500. (.0667% or 99.933% of no disease or a mild case of the disease)
• The risk of a child (no adults) having a SEVERE case of a vaccine-preventable disease is about 1 in 600 (.1667% or 99.833% of not getting a disease or getting a mild case of it.) each year for all childhood diseases grouped together. This risk varies widely depending on the disease. Some disease risks are close to 0. Infant diseases are more risky than childhood ones.

For comparison of risk, check out these risks in life that we accept.

• Dying from Prostate Cancer (Male): 2.75%
• Dying from Testicular Cancel (Male): .02% (This is the only one that is even close to these other stats we are concerned in this post)
• Dying from being struck by lightenting: .000792%
• Dying from falls: .294
• Dying in a car incident: .92%

 Dr. Sears assumes that the risk of a SEVERE reaction is the same regardless of the number of vaccines you get at the same time. In particular, he assumes either one shot at a time, but then revises it to say most people get 3 at a time. However, this study shows that there is a linear relationship between risk of SEVERE reaction and the number of shots given at the same time. This means the risk is likely MUCH higher when getting combo shots at one time. My thought is to spread it out as much as possible to give the body a chance to process the toxic elements in these vaccines. Using Dr. Sears alternate vaccination schedule is a good start. If you want to fully vaccinate this schedule should at least minimize the risks. He does also have a selective schedule (see page 223 of The Vaccine Book) that he considers the minimum. Personally, I want to be more selective on what vaccines will be given so I will likely be coming up with my own schedule that keeps the same considerations in mind.

Risk and Time
Most of the diseases have times where the risk is substantially higher for an age group. The age of two is one of those lines. Sometimes this is just because the infant body can't protect itself well enough during this age. It does not mean that the disease only affects that age group, but in some cases that is the case.

Diseases that are of concern below or at age 2

• HIB
• Pc
• Pertussis
• Rotavirus
• Flu
• Meningococcal disease

Diseases that are of concern after age 2

• Hepatitis B
• Chickenpox
• Tetanus
• Diptheria
• Measles
• Mumps
• Rebella
• Hepatitis A
• Polio
• HPV

Other diseases the United States does NOT vaccinate for
Yellow Fever

Why? I assume because it is not in our country. Then why vaccinate for diseases such as polio that have no cases in our country. It seems the same logic should be applied to both diseases. Yellow Fever was in the US at one time. Maybe it is because it had to continually be imported in, but were would polio come from if not imported. I give up. Anyone?

 I still find the major problem with all these vaccines to be that one vaccines is for babies of all sizes, yet that is not how toxicity works. The larger the baby, child, or person, the less toxic a substance will be because it is deluted more and it is more likely the body will be able to deal with it. My baby is in the 5th perceptile, so I all vaccines have too much nastiness to them for her size. The problem is that most of the diseases are the highest risk before age 2. That is the youngest age I would think I would want to subject her body to toxins of this toxic level.

My likely choices:
This makes the decision very difficult. My preference is to reduce the bad stuff put in her body until she is of sufficient weight an can handle the toxins better. So, diseases (Measles, Polio, Rubella) that are low risk of getting because they don't exist in the country anymore, I'll probably skip because the health benefit for her is not there and the risk is too high. Rotavirus is easy for me as well since we are past the 15 week mark and thus cannot get the vaccine even if we wanted tox. The rest are less clear and I'll evaluate on an individual disease / vaccine basis.