Cafe Au La Tao

thanks to neil gaiman's twitter, I read about the whole fiasco between Dr. Ben Goldacre and a radio show because of bad science and fearmongering by the media. 

We, (my Ex and I) delayed vaccinations in our kids.  I believe in the value of vaccinations, but not in immature and sometimes non-existant immune systems.  We were lucky, because we learned that by the time Eldest was 3 months old, she had a variety of allergies.  Babies with allergies and vaccinations are rarely a good mix, so not having gotten her shots done was a good thing.

Back to the MMR vaccine 'scare'.  Whether or not there was a valid reason to be concerned about that particular vaccine because of a particular study (which was apparently poorly done), more examination of vaccines and what was in them was brought to light.  And because of that examination, the heavy dose of mercury they were using in vaccines was removed.  For that alone, I find value in the 'scare'.

My girls, when vaccinated, got mercury-free shots, which Eldest wouldn't have if I'd gone with the traditional series of early vaccinations.

As for the fearmongering aspect, that is something I totally find myself agreeing with Goldacre.  The show wasn't doing a reasonable or rational talk on the subject, and that's just pathetic.