Give us the facts about the vaccines

21.APR.11

EDITOR: The debate on vaccines which has been going on for decades, particularly in developed countries, is now of notable interest here in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. However, care must be taken not to politicise and emotionalise such an important health issue.{{more}}

At last Tuesday’s sitting of the House of Assembly, I listened to Senator Douglas Slater, former Minister of Health, voicing his support for the amendment to Immunization of Children Act. In my view, the minister’s presentation was imbalanced and unimpressive and hardly supported by well-researched facts. Dr. Slater was mostly emotional throughout his speech and seemed vexed with those whom he claims, “…belong to religious fanatic groups” and who in his opinion “are infected with some gross ignorance to scientific fact (and) speak nonsens.” It seems as though Dr. Slater did not even care to consider the concerns of some Vincentians who show the risks of taking dangerous vaccines – vaccines which contain toxic substances like aluminium, thimerosal, MSG, formaldehyde
etc. Could Dr. Slater and the current Minister of Health tell us the contents of the vaccines proposed and the risks? Maybe if Dr. Slater were in France some years ago he would have been charged for understating the risks of vaccines.

A report shows that “15 000 French citizens filed a lawsuit against the French government for understating the risks and overstating the benefits associated with the Hepatitis B vaccine.” It was reported that hundreds of persons suffered from neurological disorders, including sclerosis following the hepatitis B vaccination. It is said that “As a result, in October 1998, the French Minister of Health ended the mandatory hepatitis B vaccination for all school children.”(See www.thinktwice.com)

The concerns raised worldwide about the use of such vaccines are numerous to the point where many watchdog organisations, such as the National Vaccine Information Centre and the American Association for Health Freedom, continue to provide detailed research and aggressive education on the risk of vaccines. These concerned citizens are keeping the makers, sellers and propagators of vaccines on their Ps and Qs.

In some countries, the protest has been so strong that the authorities were instructed to take thimerosal out of vaccines before administering them.

In our neighbouring Island Jamaica, a conference was held as recent as the beginning of this year to discuss the science and safety concerns relating to vaccines. It is said that “The meeting was held in response to acknowledged significant increases in immune and inflammatory diseases in children and adults ranging from asthma and neurodevelopmental disorders to the emergence of previously rare but serious autoimmune health conditions during the past three decades.” (www.vaccinesafetyconference.com)

Those who push vaccines claim that the vaccines are ‘safe and effective’. They think that those words are sufficient to convince minds. Certainly not those of us who are genuinely investigating! They also claim that populations have been saved from many diseases like small pox because of vaccination. However, they do not state that there is evidence to show that infectious diseases declined steadily for decades before mass vaccination. One researcher said “…when you consider the fact that the vast majority of disease decline this century preceded the widespread use of vaccinations (pertussis mortality declined 79% prior to vaccines), and the fact that rates of disease declines remained virtually unchanged following the introduction of mass immunization, present day vaccine casualties cannot reasonably be explained away as a necessary sacrifice for the benefit of a disease-free society.” (www.vaclib.org/docs/myths.htm)

Piercing questions

In my research so far, I have observed that the pushers of vaccines cannot reasonably answer, with substantial evidence, the piercing questions and concerns of meticulous researchers, including expert medical professionals like Dr. Sherri Tenpenny. Dr. Tenpenny is a certified medical doctor who was once the Director of Emergency Department in Ohio. She is currently the President of the Association of Health Freedom and has done thousands of hours of research in vaccination.

I am amazed with the extensive and progressing research that is available on vaccines. We have a timely opportunity to plunge into the debate by becoming well informed with the alleged benefits and the risks of vaccines. We do not have to be experts to get involved. We can research and present the findings and our understanding thereof. Since we, the ordinary citizens, are not experts, we can present what the experts say and ask the professed experts to provide us with answers. For example, can’t we get vaccines without toxic contents? Shouldn’t we be informed of the risks of the vaccines? Are there studies to show that vaccinated children are healthier and less susceptible to diseases than non-vaccinated children? Is there proper monitoring of children’s reaction to vaccines? How do you explain the presence and increase of diseases in highly vaccinated population? What evidence do you have to show that vaccination has caused infant mortality rate to decrease? Can you present hard facts to show that the benefits of taking vaccines outweigh the risks?

This is no time for political childishness and willing ignorance in the face of so much available knowledge. This debate on vaccination requires maturity and an honest interest in health and wellness of our people.

Ann-Marie Ballantyne
svgpatriot@hotmail.com