Many parents are concerned about the safety of childhood vaccines, and my attention was caught by Mothering’s action alert about “Green Vaccines”. What the heck is a green vaccine? It sounds like an oxymoron to me. Jenny McCarthy, spokesperson for Talk About Curing Autism (TACA), and Jim Carrey are calling for support of the Green Our Vaccines Rally for Autism.
On June 4, 2008, the Green Vaccines rally will be held in Washington, D.C. The rally cry is:
- We are not anti-vaccine, we are anti-toxins.
- Green our Vaccines!!
- Change the schedule, babies are getting too much too soon.
- We support informed consent for all families
- To give the moms and dads around the world a day to be heard. This is their day. This will be their moment.
Jenny McCarthy and Jim Carrey believe that the current mandatory vaccine schedule requires too many vaccines too soon for young children. I believe all these early vaccinations do not give children’s natural immune systems a chance to develop, and these young bodies are overloaded with toxins. I agree with Jim and Jenny, but I believe the slogan of “Green our Vaccines!” is a bit misleading.
The term “green” to me means “natural”. The only way to naturally protect a child from an disease, such as chicken pox, is for a child to contract the illness and develop naturally immunity. That being said, there are some illness that are too dangerous to contract, and in my instance, I have made vaccinations choices based upon my son’s congenital heart defect I would not have made otherwise. “Live” vaccines do work by causing the body to respond to weakened version of illness, which reminds me of the principles of homeopathy, and many doctors believe that vaccines strengthen the immune system.
I agree that the vaccine schedule needs to be revised and toxins, such as aluminum, need to be removed. We can have safer vaccines for children, and I recognize the importance of vaccines for both public and personal health. I am just not sure the slogan “Green our Vaccines” is appropriate. Perhaps “Safer Vaccines” or “Toxin-Free Vaccines” would be a more accurate way to describe the changes that need to happen to protect our children.
Image: Talk About Curing Autism
The term “green” is gaining a wider meaning, while also coming under more scrutiny about the claims being made in association with the term. Fair trade is not about the environment, per se, but I think it falls under the green umbrella. Human rights issues, charitable giving, and exercise could also be considered green activities. Adam Werbach became frustrated with the term and announced “The birth of BLUE”. I’m partial to “quality of life” if you have to get right down to it. But green has become a universal term to mean health, wellness, and sustainability.
Granted, “Green Your Vaccines” is catchy and may not be entirely accurate under the narrow definition of green. But if you agree that kids need some vaccines and that there is a problem with toxins, it’s not that far of a stretch to qualify the activity of making them more safe and more healthy an act of “greening” them.
On vaccines in general, I’ve consulted a number of doctors, mostly traditional MDs, a couple of whom are close friends, and have concluded that there are risks either way. Personally, I’ve chosen to err on the side of science by opting for the vaccines but spacing them out on an alternative schedule, and our doctor was entirely cooperative.
in japan most vaccines don’t start till age 2.
% of systemic side effects in kids under 2 is much much higher. over 2, side effects are mostly local to the injection site.
i agree – too much too soon.
Mark, I remember reading about Japan, and that was one reason we waited to get my daughter DTAP after two-years-old (that’s her only vaccine). Unfortunately though, the death from pertussis that happened this year in Sonoma County, CA was from a very young baby (I think two months old).
Aluminum salts are added to the vaccines in order to stimulate the immune response. Vaccines without it have shown to be less effective. The amount of aluminum in the vaccines is less than what is in breast milk.
I suggest you get your medical advice from doctors, not B-movie actors.
Well done Doug, absolutely correct. As for the “too much, too soon” argument, I am constantly amazed by the fact that the majority who support this argument lack even a rudimentary understanding of immunology or vaccine mechanisms of action. Mark, I would like to ask you to please post your sources (primary only please) regarding Japan’s rationale for their age schedule as well as the sources on systemic side effects being substantially higher under 2 years of age. However, by simple logic one can deduce that the systemic side effect claim is false. Furthermore, what is applicable in Japan is not in the US. While children seem quite similar, kids in Japan are not immunologically comparable to those in the US. To understand this, you would require a knowledge of the genetics of the human leukocyte antigen/major histocompatability complex. This should only take 1 year of graduate school courses to give you the basics. As Doug said, doctors are the experts. To think that every doctor in the US is ignorant (compared to actors!), lying, or involved in a conspiracy regarding vaccine safety is the height of paranoia. History will show that this anti and green vaccine group rather than aiding the advancement of pediatric health, ultimately detracted from it. These groups are siphoning time, attention and money from research that could truly further our knowledge of the mechanisms of autism and instead focusing it on scapegoat “toxins” that have been repeatedly exonerated by multiple world medical organizations.
does anyone know what shots make up the 36? i have a 2 yr old and i am very interested in certain “habits” he has i believe may be signs of autismn. i am a nurse but do not believe in the general practices in medicine we have developed today and think they def give way too many shots! any info would be appreciated! thanks
Jodi, Dr. Sears’ book offers an alternative vaccine schedule.
http://eyr.lil.mybluehost.me/2008/01/14/to-vaccinate-or-not-to-vaccinate/
I am not an expert on autism spectrum disorders, but some of the early signs are children that do not respond to their names or do not like to be cuddled or make eye contact. Is your child talking? Late talking is not always a sign of autism (my son has a delay in expressive language skills but is not autistic). Recently, a speech therapist told me that one clue is how other children react to the child. This is often a sign something is going on with a child if other children do not want to play with him/her. Do remember, at two-years-old, a child would be participating in parallel play and not truly engaging with another child yet. You should really talk to your doctor if you are concerned.
Dr’s who refuse to have an alternative schedule for vaccinations based on their basic principals of “human leukocyte antigen/major histocompatability complex” as one of the previous blogs indicate, or fear of what might happen to your kid, are arrogant and controlling & not interested or understanding of the individuals that they serve! Bottom line is different kids are effected differently by the drugs, antigens, and toxins put in their body- Know your kid, trust your dr- if you don’t, find one who you can. Don’t let them bully you into a dumb decision!
i’m not sure whoever wrote this article did much research the vaccines have hardly any aluminum in vaccines and that isnt what is causing the damage. it’s the mercury. you know the stuff in old school thermometers.they mainly put it in the MMR shot and other combined shots so that the vaccines can blend but each had a seperate effect. that is what is leading to autism. you can actually kill someone with a decent size dose of mercury it is extremely toxic. what i dont understand is how thegovernment can allow these vaccines to be used when they are now extimating that 1 in every 150
kids is getting autism because of these vaccines. they make everything else bad illegal why not these poisonous vaccines???
this is one mom that is scared to get my daughter vaccinated, because of fear that she would become autistic. i still will get her vaccinated, but i’m scared to do so.
Scarlett’s mom,
According to Dr. Sears, thimerosal (mercury) is no longer an issue and has “been taken out of virtually all vaccines.” Unfortunately, it is still present in the flu and tetanus vaccines and vaccines we ship to third world countries. 1 percent of mercury still exists in some brands of shots compared to early 1990s levels. If you know the right brands (Dr. Sears tells you in his book), you can vaccinate 100% mercury-free, but not aluminum-free, which Dr. Sears feels is a concern currently.
I don’t think that the issue we need to be discussing here is the slogan “Green Our Vaccines”. This is a slogan that’s attention grabbing in our society right now. Obviously this slogan has helped the cause gain more attention. What we NEED to be discussing is the TRUTH behind these claims. I think it’s moronic to think that the chemicals in vaccines are a positive to a child. We already know the dangers of mercury and aluminum to an adult individual. Why would we give this to our children? Why would we assume this is ok? Just because the government and mass media says so? If your neighbor jumped off a cliff, would you too? Or better yet, should we just wait 20 years for the results of the tests that the public will demand on these vaccines? Then we can all wish we had taken the toxins out of them more quickly. I know a lot of people who believed that there was no direct cause of lung cancer from tobacco use. These people, if they were alive, would wish the government and it’s interest groups would have been more fourthcoming with the truth. So pick on the slogan if you will… BUT DO pay attention to the truth that’s behind it.