MMR Vaccine - Is It Safe or Not Safe - Or Is There A Better Way?
By: Steve Reynolds
The MMR Vaccine is a very controversial subject, leaving a large percentage of Parents of young children at best confused, and at worst a number of people frightened.
This is a compound vaccine which inoculates against Measles, Mumps and Rubella all in one go.
It is understandable to be fearful of something which has not yet, it seems, been clearly dismissed from being the cause, or partial cause of Autism in small children.
But what if your child were to contract one of those diseases as a result of not being protected against it?
Is the MMR vaccine the best protection against them, or does it create more problems than it solves?
There are a number of inoculations which no one makes a fuss of, Polio and Diphtheria for instance, because we know that they work.
So, it's not the fact of being "injected" that is the problem, as has been put forward by several people. Yes, it is unpleasant for the child to have a needle stuck into their arm or any other part of their body, but it is only very temporary, soon forgotten, and the benefits are obvious.
Two sides to the MMR vaccine I have recently encountered:
On the Negative side, a retiring Chief Medical Officer with a 40 year career in science and medicine in the US, Britain and Europe says there has not been enough research on the subject, and he has seen a "steady accumulation of evidence" from scientists worldwide that the Measles Mumps Rubella shot is causing brain damage in certain children.
In 2001, he says, safety trials in the UK were inadequate before its introduction.
There is a rising number of Autism cases and Autism related bowel diseases and immune system damage in a subset of vulnerable children.
The risks of brain and gut damage from MMR injections seem to be much higher where a brother or sister has diabetes, an immune disorder.
However, there is no one piece of conclusive evidence, and it is very hard to prove the actual links in very young children.
In his view, it is entirely possible that the immune systems of a small minority cannot cope with the challenge of the three live viruses in the MMR shot.
On the Positive side, the Department of Health in the UK is of the opinion that the MMR injection remains the best protection against these three diseases.
The World Health Organization maintains the MMR shot has an outstanding safety record, and there is a wealth of evidence showing children who receive the MMR vaccine are no more at risk of autism than those who do not.
Should this indecision and argument push forward the view that Single inoculation vaccines be available to those who want to chose that option if they feel this is a safer way to protect their young, and give them piece of mind?
The most important is the Rubella vaccine, as this is the most dangerous of the three diseases.
With the take up of the MMR shots so low, an immunization program for Rubella needs to be instigated soon, or future generations of young babies could be facing a significant danger which could be avoided.
A different train of thought is that Natural Remedies could be effective in the fight against disease, without the need for conventional medicines.
A child's immune system will generally be able to fight off infections effectively, if the child is healthy, once he reaches the age where the immune system has had chance to develop.
Problems occur when the immune system is in a weakened condition making the child more susceptible to viruses etc. that it comes in contact with.
It is possible to keep your child very healthy and thereby enhance the resistance to infection and disease without the use of drugs, along with constant visits to the Doctor.
There are books and eBooks which give a large amount of information on how to build the immune system and strengthen your child's resistance to disease in a completely Natural way, readily available on the internet, and well worth reading.
For anyone who hasn't encountered Natural Remedies before, it may come as a pleasant surprise to find that there are other ways to protect your child from being attacked by viruses, germs and bacteria, which have no side effects, and are safe to use.
About the author
Steve Reynolds is researching health in children, and currently running and continually updating his web site on the subject.Copyright; Feb 2006. S A Reynolds, www.kidzandhealth.com Contact steve@kidzandhealth.com
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