Should I vaccinate or not?

A few weeks ago a new mom asked me about vaccinating her newborn. He was soon headed to his 2-month visit and she hadn’t done much research about vaccines but had some questions. She had heard bad things about vaccines, she was nervous to get him vaccinated but at the same time was scared about not getting him vaccinated. “So what should I do?” she asked me. What do you think my answer was?

Seventeen years ago when I first got out of school my answer would have been vastly different than it was this time around. I use to be a bit more outspoken on why I think vaccines are not necessary and why they can cause long-term problems. I think I ticked more parents off then I wanted. I realized that my understanding on vaccines is based on my research and is my decision, it is my feelings … and that I can’t force my feelings on any parent. Parents are entitled to make their own choices. However that’s part of the problem and that many parents are not making their own decisions. They are letting others make choices for them, namely their pediatricians, their spouses, their friends, their family.

With social media, there is an abundance of information out there and there is a lot of bad information out there. Every parent deserves the right to research the information and make his or her own choice. And every parent should. And we should be allowed to make our own choice about whether or not we vaccinate our children.

I know numerous kids who have never been vaccinated and are perfectly fine. At the same time, I know kids who have been vaccinated, and suffer from developmental delays, asthma, allergies and other chronic conditions. And I have never known a child or family where a child who was never vaccinated and ended up with mumps, rubella, measles, diphtheria, polio, hepatitis B and a variety of other diseases, and certainly I don’t know anyone who died from these diseases.

So what was my answer to this mom? I told her I could not tell her what to do, that was not my position. I did tell her that she had to do the research, but if she wasn’t sure, then she shouldn’t be forced into a decision. Once you vaccinated, you cannot take it away. But if she skips the 2-month vaccine, then she can decide later to do it. But it had to be her decision after she did her own research. If it were me, my decision would be….(ask me!).

I do know that a person’s best weapon is a healthy strong immune system, and you develop that strong immune system through chiropractic adjustments & a healthy nervous system, through proper nutrition (no sugar!), a clean environment as well as other things. Chiropractic adjustments correct imbalance and interference in the nervous system, which allows a person to function better. I think everyone should be getting checked and adjusted on a regular basis. Chiropractic care is about optimal health, optimal function, better performance & wellness. Side effects of an adjustment may be a decrease in pain, better sleep, more energy, better range of motion and a better overall feeling of health & wellness. For me, those are the side effects I want to be experiencing, not the side effects of medications. If you aren’t getting adjusted on a regular a basis, call our office or your local chiropractor and get that process started. It’s one of the best things you can do for your health & your immune system.