INTRODUCTION

The Vaccination Controversy

When I was growing up, going to the doctor for shots was a time honored tradition that we all accepted–like it or not! Even during my training as a resident at the hospital, I dutifully went for yearly physicals, which included an updating of the basic adult immunizations. Like my parents, I never questioned vaccinations and did not consider them anything but a normal part of routine prevention of illnesses. It wasn’t until I was successfully treated for a thyroid condition with holistic medicine that I became interested in the complementary medical approach of using the body’s natural defenses against disease as much as possible. In this view, vaccinations can interfere with the body’s natural immunity and may themselves cause disease.

Vaccinations, which for decades had been hailed as one of the major achievements in public health, are no longer immune to controversy. In our grandparents’ days, nearly all children had measles, mumps, and rubella. It’s not uncommon to hear stories about chickenpox parties in our parents’ days that flourished at the first sign of the rash when all the mothers would rush their children over to the infected child’s house. Since the introduction of vaccines in the twentieth century, these common childhood diseases are no longer common. This would seem to be good news. But in recent years, professional journals and newspapers have reported with increasing frequency on vaccine injuries, mercury toxicity, and possible links between vaccinations and chronic diseases such as autism.

One of the first major health decisions facing new parents is whether or not to vaccinate. Many p...