Jennifer Hickey:  

Hello fellow classmates, I received my BS in 1999 and MS in 2002 in Food and Nutrition with a specialization in Dietetics from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. I am a Registered Dietitian. I met my husband, Andrew Hickey, in college and we moved to Arizona and got married in November 2002. We moved to Chicago in 2004 and had our son Matthew in 2005 and then our daughter Morgan in 2007. After our son's vaccine induced regression into Autism, I decided to go back to school to become a Chiropractor. We moved to Davenport, Iowa in 2009 and I have just completed my first year of school at Palmer College of Chiropractic. We believe God has blessed us with a child with Autism to change the way this country views its health care. Should you vaccinate your child? Questioning the safety of vaccines is a taboo topic in the United States and many other countries. The pressure is on most pediatricians to always counsel that the "benefits outweigh the risks" when it comes to vaccinating children. Yet, most parents have heard about the legitimate concerns many parents have that vaccines may have triggered their children¿s autism or other neurological disorders ("NDs"). The growth in the number of vaccines given to our children in the last 20 years is rarely discussed in the media, despite a stunning chart that shows a 260% increase in vaccines administered (were millions of children dying from deadly diseases 25 years ago?). Parents should know that vaccines are never tested for their "combination risk", despite the fact that children may get as many as 6 vaccines in a single visit to the doctor. And, when it comes to vaccines, how can it be possible that one size fits all? What may present as no risks for one child may present enormous risks for another. Few Americans realize that children here in the U.S. are the most vaccinated in the world, averaging 36 vaccines before they are 5 versus an average of 18 vaccines for the rest of the first world. Check out this revealing document, Autism and Vaccines Around the World, to learn more. As a parent contemplating vaccinating their child, consider the following 3-points to potentially mitigate risks from vaccines. 1. Take Precaution * Consider delaying vaccines until your child is 18-24 months old. * Do not vaccinate if your child is taking antibiotics. * Consider no more than one vaccine per doctor¿s visit. * If you plan to get the MMR vaccine, ask your doctor to give it in three separate vaccines for measles, mumps and rubella. * Consider giving high doses of Vitamin C (3,000-5,000 mg per day) on the day before, of, and after vaccination. * If your child experiences any developmental delays, stop vaccinating until you learn more. * With the measles vaccine (MMR), consider high doses of Vitamin A (5,000 IU or more) on the day before, of, and after vaccination. * If your child has an adverse reaction to a vaccine, stop vaccinating until you learn more. * Always ask to see the vaccine insert, and never accept a vaccine that uses the preservative Thimerosal (mercury). For a complete list of vaccines with Thimerosal, see the FDA¿s website here. Note: most flu shots today still contain Thimerosal. 2. Consider delaying vaccines In our favorite article on vaccines, A User-Friendly Vaccine Schedule, written by University of Washington surgeon Donald Miller, Dr. Miller makes a number of interesting observations including: "Public health officials, however, have not proven that it is indeed safe to inject this many vaccines into infants. What's more, they cannot explain why, concurrent with an increasing number of vaccinations, there has been an explosion of neurologic and immune system disorders in our nation¿s children." And: "New knowledge in neuroimmunology (the study of how the brain¿s immune system works) raises serious questions about the wisdom of injecting vaccines in children less than two years of age." Dr. Miller¿s recommendation: don¿t start vaccinating your child until they turn two years old. 3. Consider an alternative schedule to the CDC¿s current schedule It really is shocking to look at the 1983 recommended vaccine schedule and compare it to 2010. Does a child really need so many more vaccines today? And, why does the rest of the world give far fewer vaccines (see here)? Quiz your doctor by asking them how many vaccines were on the schedule in the 1980s. We have found that most have no idea. Three potential alternative schedules to consider: 1. Listen to the Doctor (our favorite) Donald Miller, M.D., is a surgeon at the University of Washington. His article, A User-Friendly Vaccine Schedule, is summarized into this schedule. 2. Turn back the clock This is the schedule from 1983. If it worked for kids then, why doesn't it work for kids now? 3. Consider the vaccine schedules of Denmark, Sweden, Finland, or Iceland. These four countries all give far fewer vaccines than the U.S. and have far lower rates of autism. Is there a connection? If every vaccine is so important, why don¿t these other countries give them? As one example, read about the Rotavirus vaccine here. Final thoughts and resources The par...Expand for more