People ask me if it is a good idea to vaccinate their child. That is a decision that should be made by each parent. Their are pros and cons to the concept and to each vaccine. Every parent should be well informed on the issue and of each vaccination and the disease that it is meant to treat. But, they should also be informed as to some of the behind the scenes issues like this article. As adults we may consider getting a vaccination for something, and this could have a serious impact on our health. And, we may not want to take that risk. As for IC, it defintiely can impact the pain and the way your immune system is reacting. SO, one may want to consider whether she or he wants to subject him or herself to that risk: http://www.ageofautism.com/2008/08/every-child-by.html
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I pick and choose
Both of my children are vaccinated against MMR, Chicken Pox, Polio, etc. The usual ones that the pediatricians recommend for. This is a decision both my husband and I made together as was the decision to not circumcise my son. I think the bottom line is that medicine no matter which side of the fence you are on involves a lot of guess work. I think that there is a lot of hysteria surrounding vaccinations on both sides. Those who are pro will tell you they don't want a horrible outbreak of polio while those who are against will say it is causing autism. I think no one really has sat down and looked at what is going on because everyone has an agenda. We chose not to circumcise our son because we felt that would be the same as taking out his tonsils or appendix (which we almost did, but didn't) It is a natural part of his body. I think this issue goes back to what Matia said about not becoming paranoid about every decision we make. We pick and choose what is most important to us and try and stay informed. I do not think that the MMR vaccination is related to autism, however, I have several friends who do have autistic kids and strangely enough their mothers have IBS/Fibromyalgia, etc. So... I wonder where these kids pick this up? Wondering if maybe the stage is already set by mom and then boom, a trigger like a vaccine which is healthy in normal people, could cause a child who has a poor history to get autism? No one knows for sure I guess. The funny thing is that even though my children are vaccinated, I do not get them the flu shot nor do I ever encourage the use of Purell. I am all about a little vitamin X being a healthy part of my kids' life.