Ignorance is...Just Ignorance

A pregnant friend of mine recently asked my opinion on childhood vaccinations. She had been speaking to her neighbor, who informed my friend of her hesitancy in following her pediatrician's "aggressive" vaccination schedule. She even told my friend about a woman she knew who was "anti-vaccine" because of the "dangerous link to autism." True story. I'm not making this up.

Sadly, it is ignorant people like this who are contributing to a growing health crisis in this country. I must admit, I have a very strong opinion on this subject. I don't mean to lecture or criticize, but I wholeheartedly resent those people who feel they know more than the doctors. We hear almost daily that there is NO PROVEN LINK between childhood vaccines and autism. In fact, more and more studies are released each year which further disprove this "theory." Yet, ignorance exists. I believe in personal freedom, but not at the cost of my child's safety and well-being. I recently heard about an outbreak of measles somewhere in the Midwest. Measles!!! The CDC hypothesized that the disease originated with a child whose parents refused the MMR vaccine because of its rumored link to autism. Because of the selfishness of those parents, other children were put at serious risk.

Daniel gets vaccinated according to the pediatrician's schedule. Whatever they recommend at a particular visit, I accept. I certainly don't presume to know more about it than the pediatricians do, and I truly believe that they have Daniel's best interest at heart. Vaccines SAVE LIVES. Period. I am not at all worried about autism. I'm a hell of a lot more concerned about measles, mumps, rubella, polio, hepatitis, etc.

Some people favor a "staggered" vaccination schedule, meaning that their children receive only one vaccine at a time in hopes of lessening the impact these vaccines have on the body. I think this whole staggering idea is trendy -- the word spread via the media because some know-it-all celebrity like Jenny McCarthy shot her mouth off and made a bunch of already self-doubting mothers even more anxious. I have no doubt that I am doing what is best for Daniel. You want statistics? He is a happy, expressive, inquisitive little boy. At the end of the day, that is all I need to know.