Need a pediatrician who supports not vaccinating? (renting, private schools)

[janineg]

I know Abe Broudy from my high school days and know his siblings, too. He's a really nice person and VERY smart. But I live in north county and have never had him as a pediatrician for my kids.
Janine

[earlyretirement]

I'd have to agree with the vast majority here who say vaccinating is just the right thing to do. I could understand a parent's concern if it was some newer vaccination or experimental but there are many vaccinations that clearly show that they work and the science behind them is very clear and the benefits far outweigh any potential negatives. And that is the reason why many schools around the WORLD require them for kids entering schools.

I'm a former healthcare executive and one of the specialties I dealt with was providing vaccinations for employees going overseas to work on both short-term and long-term assignments. I can tell you horror stories of some people that traveled abroad because they didn't want to get vaccinated. Some even died. It was after those horrible situations that most major companies make it a requirement for their employees traveling abroad get vaccinated against the risks. Vaccinations against many diseases work.

You may think you are being a protective mother by not vaccinating but you most likely will do more harm than good.

In any event, I think it's good to think about the best case and worst case scenario with any action. Obviously you've already thought about the worst case scenarios of getting your child vaccinated. But how would you feel if your child died or got seriously ill by not getting vaccinated? Most likely you'd feel very foolish and it sounds like you haven't thought that part through... Good luck.

[John_Galt]

Originally Posted by sdbound123

Dr. Abraham Broudy in Eastlake...is very balanced and will grant every parents personal choice although he does not fully endorse either side.

I'm not sure that I'd want a doctor who "does not fully endorse either side" of an argument. The science and supportive evidence for vaccinations is so strong that I'm not sure I would trust a physician who wouldn't strongly support their use. An honest doctor with full knowledge of the benefits of vaccines would be a very strong proponent of their use and would most certainly "endorse" one of the sides of this argument.

My wife is a pediatrician and when a parent of one of her patients is opposed to vaccination, she will make every effort to provide the parents with the evidence for the safety and efficacy of all commonly administered vaccines.

Just as you wouldn't want your mechanic to be neutral on the opinion of whether or not brakes stop cars (and not sit back and "not fully endorse either side" of the argument), you should want your physician to give you the benefit of their judgement and expertise, based on the latest scientific information available.

[ukiyo-e]

My boss is an immunology professor and her twin boys got all their vaccinations. She knows much more about vaccines than doctors, and wouldn't do it if she thought they were unsafe. I don't think a lot of people really understand how terrible some of the childhood diseases are. The younger generation having children now never lived through seeing friends and sibling die from them, or they'd never hesitate.

Sometimes I could just wring Wakefield's neck. It's amazing how stubbornly people are hanging on to his anti-vaccine nonsense even after The Lancet retracted the article because of bad science.

[winterblue]

I vaccinated both my children but if I had to do it over again I would take a different approach. Ends up my son is allergic to Thimerosal, which is a perservative used in vaccinations. When my son was in H.S. we had him allergy tested and he came up allergic to thimerosal (which is a very common allergy)...which means he was allergic to every vaccine he ever got! He was sickly as a baby, always crying, had lots of ear infections. In speaking to the Naturopath I go to now...I should have never vaccinated him at such a young age (or at all considering his allergy). Her take on it and what she has done with her own daughter is that infants are just too young to withstand the vaccinations they get. If they are breast fed, they are getting all the immunity they need from the breast milk. That way you can delay vaccinating until their systems have matured and then only a few vaccinations are needed and at long intervals from one another. If I had known what I know now when my kids were babies I would have done everything very differently. My son has been plagued by health issues his whole life....maybe things would have been different if he got a better start without the vaccinations. My daughter hasn't had any noticable effects of being vaccinated, but that doesn't mean she might have been better off if we waited and followed a different protocol.

More information is being uncovered about this issue and it is certainly worth continuing to look into it and research findings so we can figure out what is best for our children's health.

[shmoov_groovzsd]

Winterblue,

You mentioned about your son when he was a baby but I am not following what is happening to your son now that would make you think differently considering your daughter is fine?

Back on the topic about immunization. Canada seems to understand as do other industrialized nations that have high population. Taking the few singular cases and generalizing it to the masses just doesnt seem to make sense much when a child is growing. Immunization isnt a wait and see approach because the repercussions could be far worse I am sure than without. Unless you plan on never having your child leave home or be in contact with other humans.

[suzy_q2010]

Originally Posted by winterblue

I vaccinated both my children but if I had to do it over again I would take a different approach. Ends up my son is allergic to Thimerosal, which is a perservative used in vaccinations. When my son was in H.S. we had him allergy tested and he came up allergic to thimerosal (which is a very common allergy)...which means he was allergic to every vaccine he ever got! He was sickly as a baby, always crying, had lots of ear infections. In speaking to the Naturopath I go to now...I should have never vaccinated him at such a young age (or at all considering his allergy). Her take on it and what she has done with her own daughter is that infants are just too young to withstand the vaccinations they get. If they are breast fed, they are getting all the immunity they need from the breast milk. That way you can delay vaccinating until their systems have matured and then only a few vaccinations are needed and at long intervals from one another. If I had known what I know now when my kids were babies I would have done everything very differently. My son has been plagued by health issues his whole life....maybe things would have been different if he got a better start without the vaccinations. My daughter hasn't had any noticable effects of being vaccinated, but that doesn't mean she might have been better off if we waited and followed a different protocol.

More information is being uncovered about this issue and it is certainly worth continuing to look into it and research findings so we can figure out what is best for our children's health.

Normal infants are born with fully functional immune systems. It is not necessary to wait beyond the recommended schedules for vaccination to allow the system to "mature." That is a myth with no scientific support.

What proof --- beyond speculation --- do you have that any of your son's medical issues have anything to do with vaccines? Ear infections are caused by viruses and bacteria --- not vaccines.

Thimerosal in vaccines may cause sensitization to the thimerosal, but it is actually extremely rare for there to be an actual reaction to the vaccine itself. See here:

Medscape: Medscape Access

And current vaccines for infants and children are available without thimerosal:

http://www.vaccinesafety.edu/thi-table-10-0928.pdf (broken link)

It is very unlikely that thimerosal has anything to do with your son's medical issues. as far as the thimerosal allergy is concerned, he should read product labels and not use anything containing thimerosal on his skin, including contact lens solutions. He might react to those and develop a rash.

[earlyretirement]

Originally Posted by suzy_q2010

Normal infants are born with fully functional immune systems. It is not necessary to wait beyond the recommended schedules for vaccination to allow the system to "mature." That is a myth with no scientific support.

What proof --- beyond speculation --- do you have that any of your son's medical issues have anything to do with vaccines? Ear infections are caused by viruses and bacteria --- not vaccines.

Thimerosal in vaccines may cause sensitization to the thimerosal, but it is actually extremely rare for there to be an actual reaction to the vaccine itself. See here:

Medscape: Medscape Access

And current vaccines for infants and children are available without thimerosal:

http://www.vaccinesafety.edu/thi-table-10-0928.pdf (broken link)

It is very unlikely that thimerosal has anything to do with your son's medical issues. as far as the thimerosal allergy is concerned, he should read product labels and not use anything containing thimerosal on his skin, including contact lens solutions. He might react to those and develop a rash.

I have to totally agree with Suzy Q. Vaccines have saved the lives of countless children around the world. It's not Quack medicine. I can't say the same of some "Naturopath"s and other type of "medicine men/women".

As I mentioned before, vaccines are proven science and proven medicine. You have to look at the overall good they have done. Sure, there are probably a very tiny percentage of people that have reactions to them but the number is so tiny compared to the massive amounts of the worldwide population they have saved lives...

[thealohaman]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

I'd support removing a child from the home of a parent who did not have the child vaccinated. It's a form of abuse.

I find this line of thinking very disturbing.

[thealohaman]

Originally Posted by sdbound123

Dr. Abraham Broudy in Eastlake, at Children's Primary Group, is great! He is very balanced and will grant every parents personal choice although he does not fully endorse either side. He places no judgement and he is wonderful!

Good Luck!

Finally, someone who answers the OP's question. Thank you.