>>>>>>Just goes to show that there are differing views in every place. Nicholas' kids had no vaccines (if I understood him correctly).
>>>>>
>>>>>thats correct and I have no intention of ever having a flu vaccine either
>>>>
>>>>Once again, I ask why not? FWIW, when I asked my doctor whether I should get a flu vaccine (a couple of years ago--I was maybe 48), his response was that everyone should.
>>>>
>>>>You feel this way about all vaccines, no matter what they're for and what the risks are? If you'd been a parent when the polio vaccine came out, would you have not immunized your kids? (FWIW, I remember standing in line for that one.)
>>>>
>>>>What are these risks that you feel outweigh the benefits?
>>>>
>>>>Tamar
>>>
>>>We have always used alternative medicine (homeopathy) .
>>
>>This is something I know very little about, so educate me, please. I understand concerns about using drugs for every little thing; I also understand that, for a long time, conventional medicine was unwilling to look at many "natural" remedies. (Historically, that was to distinguish trained doctors from quacks.)
>>
>>That said, I also look at the unbelievable successes of modern medicine (like the fact that almost all children in the first world survive infancy, and most women survive childbirth), and have trouble understanding why someone would entirely reject it.
>>
>>Tamar
>
>Here's something about how I feel about vaccination
>
>Another concern of vaccinations is the way they are administered. By injecting toxins directly into the bloodstream and bypassing the normal route of immune defence of the body – i.e. skin, mucous membranes of the nose and mouth and the liver, the usual immune response of the body, and consequent recovery, is bypassed. While this produces an antibody reaction, it is not a normal defence reaction by the body. Reactions to infectious diseases such as fever, rashes and coughs do not occur as they should, so the cycle of natural immune system stimulation, recovery and subsequent natural immunity and ability to respond quickly and easily to other illnesses in future, is compromised.
>

I hope John Ryan, who has the credentials to answer this, will jump back in.

That's an argument I've never heard. I tend to agree with Kevin (!) that if this were an issue, we'd hear about a lot more cases.

Of course, in that case, the polio vaccine, which is oral, shouldn't be an issue for you.

Tamar