Whooping cough is on the rise in the United States. The generally accepted solution is more vaccines, because organizations like the Centers for Disease Control and the American Academy of Pediatrics say that the vaccine is “the best way to prevent pertussis (whooping cough),” and the public has been led to believe there is not an effective treatment for the illness. But not everyone believes that. Are they crazy parents endangering the rest of society, or could they possibly have a leg to stand on?
Whenever parents look past the recommendations and the medical dogma of vaccination, several questions typically arise. How effective is the vaccine? What are the risks of the vaccine? And, are there treatments available for treating the illness if it is contracted?
How effective is the vaccine?
Most parents assume that, if a child is vaccinated against a disease, they won’t get it. However, Natural News wrote last week that the data from a recent BMJ study indicates that the rate of whooping cough is nearly the same in vaccinated children as in unvaccinated children, around 18 – 20%.
In 2012, Reuters reported that Dr. David Witt, an infectious disease specialist at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in San Rafael, California, researched the outbreak of whooping cough in his state, fully expecting to see more pertussis in children that were not vaccinated. Conventional wisdom says that those are the people more vulnerable to the disease.
“We started dissecting the data. What was very surprising was the majority of cases were in fully vaccinated children.”
Current recommendations are for more and more booster shots of the vaccine, because a number of studies have made it clear that immunity from the shot wanes after time, even after just five to seven years. In fact, in 2013 the CDC began recommending the Tdap booster vaccine for all pregnant women, during each pregnancy.
This data is causing some parents to question whether or not the effectiveness statistics on the whooping cough vaccine are enough to justify any possible risks to their children or unborn child.
Are there risks to the vaccine?
Generally, parents are told that the risks of any given vaccine are “one in a million.” But could that be hyperbole? Some are saying that it is.
Even in the 1970’s, a study in The Lancet showed that doctors were questioning the benefits/risk ratio of the whooping cough vaccine that long ago: “This risk [of neurological damage from the vaccine] far exceeds the present risk of death or permanent damage from whooping-cough or even, in some parts of the country, the chance of contracting it.”
The side effects of the whooping cough vaccine can include high fever, high pitched screaming or persistent crying, convulsions, collapse, shock, brain inflammation, and encephalitis, according to Dr. Joseph Mercola. But there’s more, including death. According to The Refusers blog, autism and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome are also listed as possible side effects, on the package inserts of the vaccine itself.
This is not some zealous anti-vaxxer posting alarming anecdotes. These “serious adverse events” are clearly written on the package inserts. The National Vaccine Information Center lists the various vaccines used against whooping cough, and lists these serious risks of each as reported by the manufacturers. This is information that is rarely shown to parents by those injecting the vaccines. Further:
“As of August 2012, about half of the 2,982 awards for vaccine injury and death totaling nearly $2.5 billion dollars made under the U.S. 1986 National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act involve pertussis containing vaccines.”
6-week-old Sabra Cline’s mother was not told the possible risks when she agreed to the vaccine for her baby. Two days later, this previously healthy baby died from meningioencephalopathy, as a result of vaccine injury. A Heart for Oils documents her tragic story.
Are there any treatments for whooping cough?
To read the headlines about the whooping cough outbreaks, one would be led to believe that modern medicine has no possible treatment options for those who contract the illness, and doctors stand by the patients’ bedsides wringing their hands helplessly. But that is simply not true. There are options, both in modern medicine and alternative medicine.
The Inquisitr has previously reported that some simple measures like taking Vitamin C, staying hydrated, and taking probiotics can help protect the body against pertussis.
Osteopathic Dr. Larry Malerba, DO, DHt, says that there are a number of homeopathic remedies that have been shown to be effective against whooping cough, such as Antimonium tartaricum, Coccus cacti, and Drosera rotundifolia. Natural News cites evidence of the homeopathic remedy Pertussin providing relief in a matter of a couple of weeks as compared to months with conventional treatment.
Acupuncture has been recognized by the World Health Organization as being therapeutic against whooping cough, says the Holistic Squid, which also mentions essential oils for whooping cough symptoms, including melaleuca, lavender, peppermint, eucalyptus, and chamomile. The Essential Oils Desk Reference adds Thieves, Melrose, Raven, Breathe Again, rosemary, oregeno, and dorado azul to the list of essential oils that may be helpful with whooping cough symptoms.
The doctrine of vaccination to prevent whooping cough is being questioned in unprecedented numbers, but contrary to media hype, those challenging the firmly entrenched beliefs are not irresponsible, ignorant parents. They have solid reasons for asking questions. There was once a time that those challenging entrenched doctrines of the day, such as the flat earth or three-chambered heart, were persecuted as heretics. Surely, culture can get beyond the hysteria and recognize that people can have opposing viewpoints, even on something as sacred as the whooping cough vaccine, without being burned at the figurative stake.
[images via bing]