About Heather Camlot
A freelance writer, crafts junkie and mom of two, Heather Camlot is constantly on the lookout for that elusive work-life balance she hears so much about. Read about Heather's never ending search for five minutes to herself while trying to meet deadlines, make the school bus and raise two fantastic children.
When the November issue of Wired magazine arrived in the mail, I was taken aback. No celebrity, no tech gadget, no mathematical formula. Just a cute cherubic babe playing with his toes – and the word “Fear” written across his chest.
The issue’s cover line reads as follows: “Vaccines don’t cause autism. But some panicked parents are skipping their baby’s shots. Why that bad decision endangers us all.” The article goes into how an anti-vaccine movement is afoot in the United States, with some big-name supporters including Robert F. Kennedy and Jenny McCarthy, whose son has autism. In some parts of the country, the magazine reports, vaccination rates have dropped so low that diseases once thought to be under control are returning -- in large numbers. Case in point: according to the journal Pediatrics, potentially lethal pertussis has increased from 1,000 in 1976 to 26,000 in 2004.
In the summer, the government of Canada launched a new child immunization campaign to remind parents of the importance of being immunized against certain diseases before the age of 2. In the press release announcing the campaign, Minister of Health Leona Aglukkaq says: “Immunization is one of the best tools we have to protect the health of our children. Many vaccine-preventable diseases that can be fatal can be easily avoided with on-time immunization.” (For an immunization schedule, visit the Public Health Agency of Canada.)
So, why are some people opting out? The article points to Big Pharma blunders and PR missteps, which have lead to expert mistrust, as well as to the age of instant communication, where we can get medical (mis)information from the internet in seconds.
Before making any crucial health decisions, do your research – by reading legitimate medical journals and websites, and by posing questions to knowledgeable physicians and scientists. The most important thing you can do for your child, as Wired writes, is to “Arm yourself with facts.”
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