The Vaccine Debate
Many of you have requested that I touch on the touchiness of vaccines.
So here ya go.
To vaccinate or not to vaccinate?
It’s been so fascinating watching these two camps argue, prove, debate, and ultimately it’s about YOUR education, YOUR choice, and YOUR life.
And I’m not here to prove, convince or sway anyone, this is what I’ve noticed works and doesn’t work around this topic.
The NUMBER ONE issue that I see is that the CURRENT vaccine schedule is not in alignment with how kiddos immune systems develop. Period. And this is a problem.
It’s also a problem that we don’t take the INDIVIDULE into consideration. We just say sweepingly that you either SHOULD or SHOULDN’T vaccinate. That vaccines are either GOOD or BAD.
We don’t ask about the HUMAN involved. How old are they, do they smoke, do they have an infectious disease, were they breast fed, were they a vaginal birth, do they take probiotics, what’s the exposure, what’s the risk of infection…you see?
AND, I feel like we get hyper focused on the thing called THE VACCINE and there is little talk about all the other things that we can be doing to build and support the kiddos (and adults) immune systems.
First, lets do an immune system overview shall we?
K, so what’s the job of the immune system? Simply put they are the cells that roam around the body bumping into things and then asking the question, “are you me? Or are you not me?”
And if the answer is a NOT ME then the cells “tag” that thing (say a virus) and then alerts the rest of the immune system to blow that virus up. When all is tagged and destroyed then the immune system goes back to its business.
And some of those immune cells have memory. Which means that the next time they need to react there are 100-1000 OTHER CELLS that are ready to respond to that particular virus.
So say the initial exposure to that virus took the immune system 7 days to deal with it.
Next time, with the memory cells ready to go, it will take the immune system 3-4 days to deal with it.
So can you see how, in theory, this is why we vaccinate-to make those memory cells. To heal and react faster, better and stronger.
Also, SOME of the memory cells only live for a certain amount of time; this is why some vaccines need “boosters.”
Ok, is that clear?
Now I’m gonna go a little deeper.
There are MANY ways that the immune system can react to things like bacteria, viruses, fungus, food etc...
But for now, and for simplicities sake we are only gonna talk about two of the ways.
They are called Th1 and Th2.
The Th1 response is how the body deals with bacteria and viruses primarily.
The Th2 response is how the body deals with parasites and allergies primarily.
Si?
K, when a baby is born they DO NOT HAVE THE Th1 response built yet. So the PRIMARY LINE OF DEFENSE IS Th2.
The IDEAL response to a vaccine is the Th1 response.
And, when do we give most vaccines?
Right, in the FIRST year of life when the kid can only mount a Th2 response; which is NOT ideal because it will drive the ALLERGIC response.
Is this making sense?
This is one of the issues with how we use and administer vaccines.
We are NOT LISTENING TO OR HONORING THE BODY.
We are not supporting the natural development of the immune system, and then when something goes haywire we BLAME THE WHAT…?
Right, we immediately blame the vaccine.
So, what to do?
I have a revised vaccines schedule if parents are set on vaccinating, but wanting to honor the kiddos immune development. There are also homeopathic nosodes which is another option for vaccination. There is also the option of not vaccinating at all.
It becomes about the individual. I ask a lot of questions. And I do a LOT of immune support and building.
How do you support the immune systems natural lines of defense you ask?
Awesome question.
Ideally you:
1. Have a vaginal birth.
Lactobacillus and Bifidus (beneficial bacteria) are in the maternal vagina and when the child is born it begins to populate the infants gut and build a healthy immune system.
You had to have a c-section? No problem…that infant HAS OT BE ON LACTOBACILLUS/BIFIDUS PROBIOTIC FROM DAY ONE.
2. You breast feed.
There are antimicrobial compounds in breast milk. There are immune development compounds in breast milk. There are anti-inflammatory compounds in breast milk. Breast milk is the bomb.
You cant breastfeed? No problem. There are some alternatives that can serve to build the child’s development and you better believe that kid is on a PROBIOTIC.
3. Get enough Vitamin D.
In all my years of practice I have NEVER (and never use never unless I mean it) seen someone with a normal vitamin D level. We need to supplement. Your kids too. 1,000-2,000 IUS/day of vitamin D3 is ideal.
AND GET OUTSIDE. For frick sake, put the sunscreen DOWN and go outside. Just don’t BURN. We are addicted to sunscreen, it drives me bananas.
4. Get enough omega-3.
We live in a society where we are consuming too much omega-6, which pushes the INFLAMMATORY pathway, which over time can create disease. Make sure you and your kiddos are getting DHA to help with brain development and immune health.
5. Rub castor oil on their belly at night.
Using castor oil EXTERNALLY can boost the immune system. It helps the liver detox and helps with digestion.
6. Eat whole foods.
Being that I’m a food expert it seems obvious but guess I gotta say it. Eating the rainbow is the best multivitamin there is.
And just for kicks and giggles here are some vaccine “who knews” and other fun facts:
Be careful with vaccinating 12-25 year olds because vaccinating during puberty can trigger autoimmune.
The HPV vaccine is HIGLY controversial, I say JUST DON’T and instead get pap smears regularly please.
0-12 month olds can’t mount a Th1 response because otherwise it would cause brain damage.
After an orgasm there is a burst of cortisol (that suppresses the immune system). And in a female the cortisol diminishes SLOWLY so she doesn’t reject the sperm.
If you shut down a fever you shut down Th1. So then Th2 expands and contributes to ALLERGIES and ASTHMA…fevers are awesome.
The bottom line is it depends on the individual.
Always.
Woot! I’m out to go do yoga with my friend.