To vaccinate or not is a big debate. I’ve never seen parents so opinionated than when the conversation comes around to vaccines. (And breastfeeding, stay-at-home moms…ok so there are a few, but today we’re talking vaccinations.)
I have anti-vaccination friends, friends who keep their kids right on schedule, and those of us who spread out our vaccines. Personally, we have never had a problem with vaccines. My kids have no signs of autism or any perceived side-effect of vaccines. They’ve never had measles, polio, or any other illness that they’ve been vaccinated for, even the flu. I guess we’re in the lucky bunch when it comes to vaccines that work.
Of course, I don’t know any kids, in our circle of friends, who has had measles or polio, so maybe it is because we’ve all been vaccinated? Maybe it is because our parents and grandparents have been vaccinated and these disease were eliminated.
This is why I choose to vaccinate. My father had polio as a child and it was not a good experience. Why would I put my kid through that when there is a vaccine?
I think the best way of putting it is “the privilege of anti-vaccinations.” Kristen over at Rage Against the Minivan, wrote a great post about the privilege of being able to choose. She makes a very good point that diseases like measles and polio have not been eradicated in countries around the world. There are children who suffer from these diseases. In fact, “It is estimated that before vaccines and antibiotics more than 70% of children died before the age of five. What an incredible privilege to raise our children in a time and place when these numbers are a shocking, far-off statistic rather than the norm.”
I’m not trying to tell anyone what to do, ultimately, it is your decision, but what are you basing your decision on? Have you researched the disease itself? Would you take your unvaccinated child to a place where there was a measles, mumps, or polio outbreak?
