Unvaccinated Children --Article by an MD

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 1/21/02 10:37:00 AM Pacific Standard Time,

mem121 writes:

 

> the fear that a large reservoir of unvaccinated persons could

> contribute

> > to epidemic outbreaks that might involve vaccinated individuals

 

Well, duh, if vaccs work how are vaccinated persons at risk???

[Guest guest]

-

" Ingri Cassel " <vaclib

Sunday, January 20, 2002 11:09 PM

Unvaccinated Children --Article by an MD

 

 

> Richard Moskowitz MD is a homeopath.

> Sheri

> http://www.healthy.net/asp/templates/article.asp?PageType=Article & ID=1122

> Unvaccinated Children

> Richard Moskowitz M.D.

> Printed With Permission HealthWorld Online

> (http://www.healthy.net)

> --------

--

>

> The refusal of significant numbers of parents to vaccinate their children

> has created a sizable group of people needing very much to be studied, and

> has raised a number of important public health issues. Foremost among them

> is the fear that a large reservoir of unvaccinated persons could

contribute

> to epidemic outbreaks that might involve vaccinated individuals as well.

> Equally pressing are the immediate practical questions of how best to

> protect the unvaccinated persons from disease, how to prevent such

> outbreaks if possible, and how to treat them effectively if they do occur.

> The long-term question which interests me the most is what the general

> health of this unvaccinated group will be like, and what we can deduce

from

> this data concerning how vaccines really act.

> I would like to begin by proposing that we use the terms vaccinated and

> unvaccinated instead of immunized and unimmunized, since the basis of the

> vaccination controversy is the belief of many parents that the vaccines do

> not produce a true immunity', but rather act in some other fashion--or, in

> my view, that they act immunosuppressively.

> This may sound like a purely semantic distinction, but in fact it bears

> directly on the first question raised above. If the vaccines conferred a

> true immunity, as the natural illnesses do, then the unvaccinated people

> would pose a risk only to themselves. Children recovering from the measles

> or polio or whooping cough need never fear getting them again, no matter

> how often they are reexposed in the future. So, the reports of large-scale

> pertussis outbreaks in the United Kingdom since the vaccine was made

> optional seem to me a convincing argument against vaccinating anybody,

even

> those who desire it, because if the vaccine produces authentic immunity,

> then this rebound phenomenon should not occur.

> Furthermore, we should be skeptical about the " outbreaks " that are

reported

> to have occurred. Pertussis, or " whooping cough, " is actually rather

> difficult to diagnose conclusively, as it requires special cultures or

> antibody tests that many laboratories cannot perform and that many

doctors,

> in the presence of suggestive symptoms, rarely take the trouble to order.

> Conversely, there are other cases of pertussis with typical signs and

> symptoms but negative cultures and no detectable antibodies. In other

> words, whooping cough as a clinical syndrome need not be associated with

> the organism Bordetella pertussis, against which the vaccine is prepared,

> or indeed with any microorganism whatsoever.

> Reservoirs of people unvaccinated against measles, mumps, or diphtheria,

on

> the other hand, should result in periodic outbreaks of these diseases. But

> again, authentic immunity, would insure that only the unvaccinated would

> fall ill, which has never proved to be the case. All known out breaks of

> these diseases in the post vaccine era have included large numbers of

> vaccinated people as well; an. in many instances a large majority of the

> cases had previously been vaccinated, some of them quite recently.

> The argument that parents should vaccinate their children to protect

> society as a whole from epidemic does not make sense. Such epidemic argue

> rather against vaccinating the ones who were vaccinated but still came

down

> with the disease as soon as they were exposed to it. Likewise, if we

accept

> partial or temporary immunity--conceding that the vaccine are not that

> effective, but that we have no other alternative to these rebound

> epidemics--then are we not simply throwing good lives after bad, rather

> like acknowledging that our patients are addicted to dangerous drugs yet

> fearing to withdraw them or even withhold them from others, lest the

> original error be fully or frankly exposed?

> Which brings us to the second question, namely, how to protect your

> unvaccinated child from an acute out break of one of these illnesses in

the

> vicinity. The first priority is clearly to know the illness--its signs and

> symptoms, its natural history and vehicles of spread, its prevention and

> treatment.

> Rather than reading this information from a pediatrics text and the

passing

> it along to you, I suggest that you read up on these diseases. Even more

> importantly, meet with your local pediatrician or primary healthcare

> provider and plan a course of action. If you cannot immediately find

> someone whom you can work with or relate to, keep looking. Your local

> support system is too important to be left for the time when you need to

> call on it in a hurry.

> Taking responsibility for not vaccinating is no different from taking

> responsibility for a homebirth or any other form of alternative health

> care. It calls for not a substitute for conventional care, but rather a

> different relationship to the healing process and the health-care system,

> based on personal choice and direct participation. We still need help when

> our children get sick, and we need to know that this help is available to

us.

> In the event of an outbreak, a great deal can be done to minimize the risk

> to those exposed and to treat those who actually fall ill--much of which

> does not involve chemical drugs or vaccines of questionable safety and

> effectiveness. The homeopathic method, one such approach, uses minute

doses

> of natural substances to stimulate and enhance the natural defense

> mechanisms of the host. The homeopathic prevention and treatment of

> specific acute diseases are discussed in detail in the highly recommended

> book Homeopathy in Epidemic Diseases, by Dr. Dorothy Shepherd, a prominent

> English homeopath.'

> The homeopathic approach to epidemic diseases in general was first

employed

> by Hahnemann in 1799, during an extensive scarlet fever epidemic in the

> province of Saxony.2 After he had treated a dozen or so cases in the usual

> homeopathic fashion, giving small doses of remedies capable of producing

> similar illnesses experimentally, Hahnemann realized that one remedy

helped

> to cure at least 75 percent of the cases, a second remedy covered another

> 15 percent or so, and the remaining 10 percent required a variety of

> different remedies corresponding to the unique features of each case. The

> principal remedy, which corresponded to the genus epidemicus (the main

> characteristics of the outbreak as a whole), was then given out

> prophylactically to people exposed to the disease, and also to patients in

> the early stages of illness--before the critical point, when other

remedies

> would sometimes be needed, was reached.

> The results were quite dramatic. Those so treated either did not get sick

> at all or suffered much milder illnesses, on the whole, than their

> compatriots who were not treated or who received the drugs and other

heroic

> measures in standard practice at the time. Hahnemann became justly famous

> for this exploit; and since this time, his method has been used with equal

> or greater success throughout the world in treating numerous outbreaks of

> cholera, typhus, smallpox, yellow fever, influenza, and other acute

> diseases of similar type. Why it has not been more widely influential in

> this country is a great mystery, and clearly has to do with the historic

> decline of homeopathy as a thought form until the advent of the

alternative

> health and self-care movement of the past 10 years or so.

>

> " The argument that parents should vaccinate their children to

> protect society as a whole from epidemics does not make sense "

> Pertussis

> " Whooping cough " can be quite a nasty and prolonged illness, even in older

> children, in whom it is seldom fatal or dangerous. It can certainly

> threaten life in young infants under one year of age, because of the

> narrowness of the immature laryngeal opening and its particular

> vulnerability to obstruction from any inflammation or swelling. It is

> rarely serious in children older than six; and adults, for some reason,

> rarely contract the illness at all, even when they are exposed and have

> never had it before.

> The incubation period varies from one to two weeks; and the illness often

> begins quite slowly, with some fever, typical upper respiratory symptoms,

> and a cough that gradually becomes more and more paroxysmal, until the

> characteristic spasms appear, often terminating in vomiting or tenacious

> sputum ejected with great violence. Such a cough may commonly persist for

> six weeks or even longer, suggesting an autoallergic as well as an

> infectious origin.

> The nosode Pertussin, prepared from the sputum of patients with this

> disease, is the homeopathic remedy generally used for prophylaxis of

> exposed children (Pertussin 30c, one dose daily for two weeks after

> contact); and it can also be given in early stages of illness, at

four-hour

> intervals. Drosera is the remedy most often used for the illness itself,

> although other remedies may also be needed. For children with a well

> developed cough, Drosera 30c or Pertussin 30c may be given every four

> hours, or even more often if necessary. A physician should be consulted if

> the illness is severe. [comment from Sheri.....careful here - it could be

> any remedy that you need - another homeopath I know said that is rarely

> Drosera or Pertussin that is helpful in pertussis - you have to

individualize]

> Homeopathic remedies are available without prescription, but care should

be

> exercised to obtain them from a manufacturer belonging to the American

> Association of Homeopathic Pharmacies. This way, you will know that they

> have been prepared in accordance with the standards of the U.S.

Homeopathic

> Pharmacopoeia.

> Diphtheria

> Diphtheria is rarely seen today in developed countries, but small

outbreaks

> have occurred in the southwestern U.S. (San Antonio in 1977). The illness

> is primarily a poisoning attributable to the toxin (a highly antigenic

> protein of high molecular weight) elaborated by the diphtheria bacillus.

> Diphtheria toxin is the source from which the standard vaccine is prepared

> (diphtheria " toxoid " is the toxin denatured by heat, alum precipitated?

and

> preserved with an organomercury compound), and is also the source of the

> homeopathic remedy, or nosode, Diphtherinum, which is commonly used for

> prophylaxis and for treatment of complicated cases.

> Diphtheria begins as a " cold " or sore throat after a very brief incubation

> period of two or three days. The primary infection is usually in the

throat

> or nasopharynx, and quickly becomes apparent with a greyish, ulcerating

> " pseudomembrane, " foul breath, high fever, and marked swelling of the

> cervical Iymph nodes (producing the classic " bull neck " in severe cases).

> Complications such as heart or kidney failure or esophageal obstruction

may

> follow within a few days; and severe cases may be accompanied by

difficulty

> in swallowing or talking, due to residual postdiphtheritic paralysis that

> may require further treatment. Diphtherinum 30c or 200c may be given in a

> daily dose for the first three days following exposure. A physician should

> be consulted and other remedies used if the illness develops.

> Tetanus

> Tetanus is essentially a wound infection complicated by inoculation of

> tetanus spores into the wound and germination of these under strict

> anaerobic conditions. The infection itself is relatively minor; like

> diphtheria (and its close relative botulism), tetanus is largely an

> intoxication produced by a highly antigenic protein, tetanus toxin,

against

> which the standard vaccine is prepared by heat denaturation.

> Tetanus does not occur epidemically, and cannot be passed from person to

> person, although conditions associated with wound infections (such as

> warfare) definitely favor it if the spores are present. The spore forming

> organisms live in horse manure, and to a lesser extent in human manure

> (chiefly among people who keep horses); but the spores themselves are

> highly weather-resistant and can survive in the soil for decades. They

will

> germinate only under strict anaerobic conditions--such as a deep, jagged

> puncture wound with enough tissue damage to get the infection started (the

> proverbial " rusty nail " ) or a simple wound infection (a severe burn or an

> infected umbilical cord stump in a newborn) which consumes all the

> available oxygen and thereby allows the spores to germinate underneath.

> Careful attention to wound hygiene will effectively eliminate the

> possibility of tetanus in the vast majority of puncture wounds. Wounds

> should be carefully inspected, thoroughly cleaned, surgically debrided of

> dead tissue (under local anesthesia, if necessary), and not allowed to

> close until healing is well under way " from below. " Two homeopathic

> remedies that may have a useful role at this stage are Ledum 30c, which

> should be given every two to four hours from the time of the puncture, and

> Hypericum 30c, which should be substituted if any signs of infection are

> present.

> I have had no experience with Tetanus, the remedy prepared from the toxin

> itself; and tetanus toxoid is of no value unless the individual has

> previously been vaccinated, since a primary antibody response takes at

> least 14 days, and the incubation period of the disease can be

considerably

> shorter than this (three to 14 days). Hypericum can reputedly treat as

well

> as prevent tetanus, but I would recommend giving human antitoxin at the

> first sign of the disease, since it is far less effective later on.

> If you do decide to vaccinate your children with tetanus toxoid alone,

> there is no need to vaccinate until the child is old enough to walk around

> and navigate on his or her own (18 to 24 months), at which time the

vaccine

> is far less likely to cause complications.

> [comment from Sheri.........this vaccine is also extremely dangerous]

> Poliomyelitis

> The poliovirus produces no illness at all in over 90 percent of those

> exposed to it; among others, it causes, at most, an ordinary flu syndrome

> with fever, weakness, gastrointestinal symptoms, aches, and pains. Even in

> epidemic conditions, poliomyelitis (the severe central nervous system

> complication) develops only in relatively few anatomically susceptible

> persons, most of whom eventually recover.

> The typical symptoms of poliomyelitis include extreme sensitivity to

touch,

> irritability, stiff neck, and fine tremors in the early or preparalytic

> stage, which may look rather like a viral meningitis. Not infrequently,

the

> fever will return to normal for a few days just prior to the onset of

these

> central nervous system symptoms, at which time it will rise again,

> producing the " dromedary, " or double-hump, fever chart. Paralysis--due to

> inflammation of the anterior horn cells, or motor nuclei of the spinal

> cord--often appears suddenly and early in the course of the illness, as

> complete loss of voluntary movement in a single limb, or perhaps of the

> palate and throat muscles (in the dangerous brain-stem or bulbar type),

> producing disturbances of swallowing. Most of these cases will still

> recover, with residual paralysis or death often supervening much later,

> after the acute inflammation has subsided.

> The homeopathic remedy Lathyrus sativus has been found to correspond most

> closely in its symptomatology to central nervous system polio, and has

been

> used with great effectiveness both for prophylaxis of exposed individuals

> and for treatment in the early stages of the illness, before irreversible

> damage has occurred. According to Dr. Shepherd, a Dr. Taylor Smith of

> Johannesburg used Lathyrus 30c, one dose every 16 days, in 82 healthy

> people (aged six months to 20 years) living in a seriously infected area,

> 12 of whom were direct contacts. This regimen was continued for the

> duration of the outbreak, and not one of these people developed

> poliomyelitis.

> Dr. Smith also used Lathyrus 30c in three doses, 30 minutes apart, for a

> second group of 34 children who were ill with fever, neck rigidity, and

> muscle tenderness of varying severity. All of these children recovered

> promptly and completely, without any sequelae.

> Dr. Grimmer of Chicago, a well known homeopath of the thirties and

forties,

> recommended Latharus 30c or 200c in a single dose repeated every three

> weeks for the duration of the epidemic, and stated most emphatically, from

> his own experience, that paralysis will not develop in those so treated.

> Other remedies may be required for the illness itself, at the first sign

of

> which a physician should, of course, be consulted.

> Measles

> Wild-type measles is a strong, febrile illness lasting at least one or two

> weeks, with a long incubation period of 14 to 21 days; a

characteristically

> smooth, confluent rash; " measly " or runny catarrh of eyes and nose; and a

> sizable risk of further developments, such as pneumonia, otitis media, or

> even laryngitis of the croupy or whooping-cough type. The incidence of

> measles in susceptible contacts approaches 100 percent; and in populations

> not previously exposed to it, the fatality rate may be 20 percent or more.

> After generations of contact with European and North American cultures, it

> became a largely self-limited illness for these populations, one still

> memorable but producing complete recovery and a permanent or lifelong

> immunity in the vast majority of cases.

> The prophylaxis and treatment of measles varies somewhat from outbreak to

> outbreak, the genus epidemicus corresponding most closely to Pulsatilla in

> Hahnemann's series, Bryonia in Dr. Shepherd's experience, and probably

> other remedies in other times and places. In the U.S., largely because of

> mass vaccination programs, acute measles is now predominantly a disease of

> adolescents and young adults, undoubtedly involving some genetic

> interaction with the vaccine virus; and it will probably call for still

> other remedies. Pulsatilla remains the remedy most often recommended for

> prophylaxis, although my own experience is still too limited to confirm or

> refute it. [sheri comment........again, if your child should come down

with

> measles you have to take all of the individual symptoms to find the

correct

> remedy]

> Mumps

> Mumps, or epidemic parotitis, resembles measles in its highly contagious

> nature and its predilection for the older age groups as a result of the

> vaccine program; but it is rather milder, as a rule. After an incubation

> period of three weeks, it begins with fever, runny nose, tenderness around

> the ears, and swelling of the parotid on one side, spreading to the other

> in a few days. About 25 percent of boys with mumps show swelling and

> inflammation of one or both testicles; in girls, the ovaries and breasts

> are occasionally affected. Residual scarring and atrophy of one testicle

is

> sometimes seen in adolescent boys and young men.

> The nosode Parotidinum, prepared from the saliva of an infected

individual,

> may be used prophylactically, although Pilocarpine 6c is the remedy

> recommended by Shepherd for both prevention and treatment. I have had no

> personal experience using remedies with mumps. [sheri

comment........again,

> if your child should come down with mumps you have to take all of the

> individual symptoms to find the correct remedy]

>

> Rubella

> Rubella, or German measles, is the mildest of all the illnesses for which

> vaccines are presently required, and very often escapes detection

entirely.

> In the adolescent and young adult populations--those presently most likely

> to develop it--the illness may be somewhat bothersome, with arthritic

> symptoms more likely; the same symptoms are often encountered after

> vaccination of these age groups. In children, there is no reason to treat

> rubella at all, in most cases. Pregnant women, especially those exposed in

> the first trimester, may be given Pulsatilla 6c or 30c every day for 14

> days following exposure, or every four hours for fever and acute symptoms.

> Rubella should be suspected in the event of a mild fever; punctate rash;

> and swollen or tender lymph nodes behind the ears and neck, and around the

> base of the skull--an area seldom affected in other ailments.

> People often ask if it is possible to " vaccinate " homeopathically, to use

> remedies for the same purpose that the vaccines are normally given. This

> question addresses not short-term prophylaxis in the event of an acute

> outbreak, which is discussed above, but routine, long-term protection of

> the entire population against these diseases.

> There is some evidence that remedies can be used in this way. I know of

> several British veterinarians who use homeopathic rabies nosode in lieu of

> injections to protect their dogs--with no serious side effects and, as

yet,

> no rabies. But in order to do so, they must give the remedy repeatedly

> throughout the life of the animal--an approach that would be much less

> suitable for humans. This brings us back to the concept of trying to

> permanently eliminate susceptibility to specific diseases. Why attempt

such

> an uneconomical fantasy, as well as an unnecessary one, since the remedies

> work so splendidly well when illness is actually present or threatening?

> People also ask whether or not homeopathic treatment can be used in

> conjunction with vaccines. Homeopathic remedies may be given to mitigate

> the effect or severity of vaccines, just as they have been used with good

> effect in cases of vaccine-related illness. Certainly, when vaccines are

> given, I would recommend giving Ledum 30c--the basic first-aid remedy for

> puncture wounds--immediately afterward, in three doses 30 minutes apart;

> and following it with either the nosode prepared from the disease or

> vaccine itself or Thuja 30c, the general " antidote " to all vaccines, in

> three doses 12 hours apart. [Comment from Sheri......again, not in

> agreement that you can work magic this way and avoid damage]

> Be aware of the possibility that a strong family history of vaccine

> reaction may greatly increase the risk of receiving that particular

> vaccine. Any child whose brother or sister or parent reacted strongly or

> violently to a vaccine should certainly be excused from receiving it,

> preferably by obtaining a medical exemption from a physician practicing in

> that state. Likewise, any child whose sibling or parent previously

> contracted poliomyelitis, or a severe or complicated case of measles or

> whooping cough or any of the other diseases listed, should not receive the

> vaccine prepared against that illness. Other grounds for medical exemption

> include preexisting epilepsy, central nervous system disorder, or any

> severe or disabling chronic disease where the risk of serious exacerbation

> from the vaccine outweighs the more imponderable long-term benefit.

> This brings us to the final question of the long-term impact of mass

> vaccination programs on individual and community health. Since I have

> expressed my concerns on this score, many people have asked if any

research

> has been done to substantiate them. I can only appreciate the irony in the

> fact that the compulsory feature of these programs is precisely what makes

> it so conveniently impossible to study them--so much so, that parents

> refusing to vaccinate their children deserve to be congratulated for

making

> such research possible, and should, in fact, be recruited when it is ready

> to be carried out.

> Equally noteworthy is the unprecedented breadth and scope of the research

> that will be required. Nothing less than the total health picture of

> vaccinated and unvaccinated children, followed over an entire generation,

> will suffice--a great collective enterprise that not only will be exciting

> and important in itself, but surely will yield invaluable new models for

> holistic medical research generally, models that take us well beyond the

> outmoded focus on single " disease entities " in which we are still

> imprisoned today. So, regardless of whether or not you decide to

vaccinate,

> I urge you all to think about a mechanism for how collaborative research

of

> this kind can be conducted, and how each of us can play our part in it.

>

>

> --------

--

> ----

> Notes

> 1. D. Shepherd, Homeopathy in Epidemic Diseases (Rustington, Essex [u.K.]:

> Health Sciences Press, 1967). Available from Homeopathic Educational

> Services, 2124 Kittredge St., Berkeley, CA 94704.

> 2. Samuel Hahnemann, MD (1755- 1843), the discoverer of homeopathy. .

> 3. R. Moskowitz, " The Case Against Immunizations, " Journal of the American

> Institute of Homeopathy 6 (7 March 1983). Available from the National

> Center for Homeopathy, 1500 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC.

> Abridged version published in Mothering (Spring 1984). .

>

> Ricbard Moskowitz, MD (48) received his undergraduate degree. from Harvard

> and his medical degree from New York University. He has studied classical

> bomeopatb witb Professor Ceorge Vitboulkas in Atbens, Greece. Dr.

Moskowitz

> practices at tbe Turning Point Wellness. Center in Watertown,

> Massachusetts. and is a past President of the National Center for

Homeopathy.

> ===================================================

> Ingri Cassel, President

> Vaccination Liberation - Idaho Chapter

> P.O. Box 1444

> Coeur d'Alene, ID 83816

> (208)255-2307/ 765-8421

> vaclib

>

> www.vaclib.org

> " The Right to Know, The Freedom to Abstain "

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 1/21/2002 11:07:48 AM Pacific Standard Time,

Starrisg writes:

 

 

> Well, duh, if vaccs work how are vaccinated persons at risk???

>

 

Makes you realize what an ignorant society we live in

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

The reason why vaccinated persons are still at risk, , is that even if you

fully vaccinate 100% of the population, only perhaps 60-80% will become

immune. This is the reason why vaccinated kids can still contract the

disease. So its not a case of being ignorant. I think doctors realise that

there is that gap, and we know you will never fully eradicate disease

because of it.

 

I don't have a real problem with those who choose to vaccinate - so long as

they don't force me to do it to my children. I do have a problem where the

ecological balance is upset because of vaccines. In otherwords, new

diseases are being formed because we are retarding or mutating the old ones.

The flu vaccine is a perfect example of this. How many new strains of flu

do we see each year.....

 

There was a case a few years back (and I am sorry that I don't remember what

vaccine it was), but they eradicated that particular strain of disease, only

to have 10 more pop up in it's place, 2 of which were more harmful than the

original. They stopped vaccinating for it, and everything went back to

normal. This is what I mean by upsetting the ecological balance....

 

Tracy

So I guess I do have a problem with it

-

<ErinGJ80

 

Wednesday, 23 January 2002 15:02

Re: Unvaccinated Children --Article by an MD

 

 

> In a message dated 1/21/2002 11:07:48 AM Pacific Standard Time,

> Starrisg writes:

>

>

> > Well, duh, if vaccs work how are vaccinated persons at risk???

> >

>

> Makes you realize what an ignorant society we live in

>

>

>