Monday, June 30, 2014

Fully Vaccinated Children ‘Have Whooping Cough’

Despite most being fully vaccinated for whooping cough, the infection is still present in about a fifth of UK children visiting their doctor with a persistent cough.

Whooping cough, also known as pertussis, is one of the most common diseases that can be prevented by vaccine. Worldwide, nearly 300,000 children die from whooping cough each year. (Art by clipartlord)

Since 1992, the UK has had primary vaccine coverage for whooping cough of more than 90%. However, following vaccination, immunity is reported to last for just 4-12 years. Immunity following infection lasts longer, about 7-20 years.

In October of 2001, a preschool whooping bough booster vaccination was introduced. However, the introduction of this booster does not seem to have resulted in any significant changes to whooping cough hospital admissions.

The US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany and other countries have also introduced an adolescent whooping cough booster vaccination. The adolescent booster (Tdap) has only been partially effective in preventing whooping cough in the US, possibly due to limited vaccination coverage.



To help assess whether a similar adolescent booster should be introduced in the UK, the new study examined the prevalence and severity of whooping cough in school-age children following the introduction of the preschool booster vaccination.

In total, 20% of the children were confirmed as having whooping cough, including 18% of the children who had been fully vaccinated.

MY TAKE:
I applaud this study for reporting on the limits of the pertussis vaccination. Many studies fail to report on the high percentage of vaccinated children that still contract various diseases. By contrast, another study from 2013 conducted by the University of Michigan indicated only 20% of adults in the US were ‘up to date’ with their whooping cough vaccinations. The study was conducted as a poll and 61% of the respondents didn’t even know when they were last vaccinated.

A vast majority of the deaths caused by whooping cough occur in infants younger than 3 months of age. Finally, a study questions the value of vaccinating adolescents for this disease much less entertaining the need for adult vaccination.

My biggest issue with vaccinations is that they target the secondary immune system – cell immunity. The primary immune system is the GALT (gut associated lymphatic tissue). Virtually all common infections enter the body through the respiratory and digestive tracts. The GALT reacts to these foreign bodies, examines them, and elicits and immune response. All of this occurs prior to a cellular immune response in the blood stream.

Immunization through injection stimulates a cellular response without prior GALT response. A century ago, when immunizations started, we had no working knowledge of the GALT. Despite all we now know, the immunization process remains virtually unchanged. The technology has grown by leaps and bounds, but the basic premise is flawed.

In Europe, a sublingual allergy treatment has been available for the past three years. The first US product is pending approval now. This product uses a homeopathic remedy that stimulates the GALT rather than allergy shots that stimulate cellular immunity.

I believe that homeopathic sublingual remedies for childhood infections can be developed using the same concepts. After all, the GALT stimulates both the primary allergic and infection fighting response by determining whether the foreign substance is living (infection) or non-living (allergen).

THE BOTTOM LINE:
Don’t just blindly have your children vaccinated. Do the research, look at your options. Not all vaccinations are equal. Most childhood vaccines are commonly available as non-cellular products, reducing the side effects (including death) by 90%. If you create a demand, the financial incentive will fund the research to provide alternatives.