Is swine flu vaccine for children safe? What are the issues that parents should consider before making a decision? Will swine flu vaccination be required for school attendance?
Pregnant women and children are expected to be among the groups targeted for vaccination, especially in countries who will be rationing their vaccines.
Unfortunately, there are no studies with hard scientific evidence about the efficacy or dangers of swine flu vaccine for children and pregnant women.
"There is no study of the vaccines on pregnant women - no randomized clinical trials," said epidemiologist Tom Jefferson, who reviews influenza prevention and treatment for The Cochrane Collaboration, the voluntary global database provided by healthcare professionals which monitors the effects of healthcare worldwide.
Dr. Jefferson added, "Under the age of two there is only one trial and it shows inactivate vaccines [vaccines based on killed organisms] don't actually work."
Safety of Vaccines for Children
Are vaccines safe for children?
Barbara Loe Fisher is the mother of a learning disabled child who had a severe reaction following his 4th DPT shot in 1980. Barbara is co-founder and president of the National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC) and the author of several books on vaccines and children.
She is a recognized authority and has appeared on numerous national TV shows and before Congress to advocate for safety in vaccine for children.
Barbara is concerned that provisions in the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986 will not be followed. Let's listen to what Barbara has to say about giving the swine flu virus to children:
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Barbara is especially opposed to giving children swine flu vaccines in vaccine trials. Untested, the vaccines could do real harm, especially since some of the
flu shot ingredients
that are being used are known to have ill effects when used with children.
History – Polio Vaccine in the 1950's
In the 1950's, when I was in elementary school, there was an outbreak of polio in the U.S. The public was told that there were limited amounts of the new vaccine available. The vaccine had not really been tested, but everyone was led to believe that vaccine was our best chance to prevent infection.
Parents, frightened for their children's safety, told their children to lie about being with someone who had polio. My mother told us to say that we had gone swimming with Drew, a boy on our street who had polio. Everyone wanted to make sure that their children were vaccinated with the new polio vaccine.
The new polio vaccine, the first of its kind, was given orally and it contained a live polio virus in the vaccine. While my brother and I suffered no ill effects from the polio vaccine, I know several people who did contract the dreaded disease, and they are having physical problems because of polio--50 years later!
Will Swine Flu Shots Be Required for School Attendance?
Nothing has been mentioned yet, about compulsory flu shots being required nationally, to attend school. However, in many locations across the country, schools are being used as distribution centers for immunizations. This could be the first step toward
mandatory vaccination
.
Recently, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that free swine flu shots and mist will be offered, at the schools, to elementary students in New York City. While not mandatory in New York, there will be mandatory flu shots in several other states.
Parents are not always thrilled when vaccinations are mandatory for their children. Here's what happened in 2007 in Prince George's County, Maryland, when chicken pox and DPT shots were made mandatory and distributed through the schools.
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A U.S. news media campaign, starting shortly, will encourage everyone to get swine flu vaccinations. Before you have your family line up for the shots, make sure that you are convinced that swine flu vaccine for children is safe. Stay abreast of developments regarding safety and any reactions that may occur.
As always, the choice is important—and the choice is yours...
To learn about your rights to refuse a vaccination, you might want to read Attorney Alan Phillips' book, Vaccine Legal Exemptions.
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