(hla) An article from the St. Louis Post Dispatch had failed to report that there are serious health risks associated with the Tdap vaccine, says Michelle Goldstein of VacTruth.com. The vaccine that supposedly prevents tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis can cause brain damage and even lead up to death.

The need of the new vaccine is due to cases of pertussis, otherwise commonly known as whooping cough, that doubled in the United States in 2012, with a figure of 41,000 as compared to only 19,000 in the previous year.

Whooping cough is a highly contagious bacterial disease caused by Bordetella pertussis, which leads to vomiting and can also be fatal. An online report suggests that the "...rising incidence of whooping cough is reported to be related to the vaccine wearing off if given more than ten years earlier" may be the reason why people think the vaccine is necessary.

Goldstein warns that the risk that whooping cough, diphtheria and tetanus pose to health are low compared to the serious dangers that are associated to the use of this vaccine. A report by the National Vaccine Information Centre (NVIC) documents the widespread health dangers associated with the vaccine. The vaccine may cause encephalitis, brain damage and even death. The Tdap and DTap vaccines that are currently used in the United States, which replaced the DTP vaccine in 1996, also contain the dangerous pertussis toxin with unsafe additives.

The Centre for Disease Control (CDC) reported that 8 out of 10 people may experience pain, 1 out of 3 experience redness and swelling and 1 out of 15 suffer from fever. Although rare, people have also reported that they have experienced fever of 102°F, extensive swelling of the arm where the shot was given and also severe allergic reaction.

Goldstein, the writer for NaturalNews.com, suggests that natural remedies may prove useful in treating whooping cough. She quotes that the condition can be successfully teated through a vitamin C protocol developed by Dr. Suzanne Humphries, which has been proven to greatly reduce associated symptoms. Goldstein supports her claim by quoting that antibiotic treatments prescribed by allopathic physicians have never been shown to positively impact the course of the illness.

She took a step further by questioning the place of vaccines in our healthcare system today, stating that "vaccines have never been proven to prevent any disease." Therefore, with all the risks listed in the above, is there a need for vaccines?

Another thing to take note of is that whooping cough is still prevalent even in vaccinated population. Regardless of the system of medicine adopted in treating the condition, people generally recover from whooping cough and those who recover from the condition usually gain lifetime immunity from it. Should they be re-infected, Goldstein states that subsequent episodes are generally "quite mild".

As for tetanus, there are many ways the condition can be prevented. A thorough clean of cuts is said to be effective in preventing the disease. The Centre for Disease Control (CDC) reported that it is rare to contract the disease, citing only 233 cases of tetanus reported between year 2001 and 2008. Goldstein highlighted that "the incidence of tetanus declined by more than 95% between 1947 and 2008", which once again raises the question if a vaccine is really required for the condition.

The other condition that the Tdap vaccine is supposed to prevent is diphtheria, which has been reported as a low-risk disease. This has not been seen widely in the United States since an outbreak in the 1970s. There were only 55 cases of diphtheria reported to the CDC between 1980 and 2010.

All these facts make one ponder if vaccines are really necessary in our society today? Could the risk of using vaccines outweigh the risk of contracting the disease? Unfortunately for some countries and jobs, vaccination is compulsory. This also raises the moral issue if any person at all should be forced into getting a vaccine against his/her own will.



By Genevieve Tan Shu Thung

Copyright © 2013 Sandhya Maarga Holistic Living Resources
Holistic Living Annex (AUGUST 2013)