Should a baby with Food Allergies be Given immunizations?
Posted by: Alan in tree nuts allergies, tags: Allergies, Baby, Food, Given, immunizations, ShouldQuestion by Mackenzie B: Should a baby with Food Allergies be Given immunizations?
My 9 month old boy is allergic to milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts and bananas.
He is up to date on his polio, hib, and DTap.
However, I have not allowed him to have the Hep B, rotavirus, or Prevnar.
I don’t see the point of him having the Hep B. The “newness” of the Rotavirus scares me. The Prenvar fact sheet says if your child has severe allergies to ask your doctor. However, I’m on the 4th pediatrician and they blow me off when I ask them about why kids with severe allergies can’t have the Prevnar, so I keep refusing it and they keep getting mad at me.
The most recent pediatrician told me that since my son has severe allergies, if he did catch a disease, it would be harder for him to fight it, and that is why he needs vaccines more than other children. Is this crap or true?
To me, my son’s immune system is screwed up. It seems overloaded and adding more things might push him over the edge. (He had these allergies before he got his shots in case anyone wanted to know..I agonized over which ones to give him). He’s been ok with no reactions so far.
I’ve also been told that the MMR can now safely be given to kids with egg allergies. I know this is going to be a battle with our doctors when the time comes. Are there individual shots that don’t contain egg that he could be given? There has been a measles outbreak here in the area I live..12 people. All were unvaccinated, so I would really like my son to be vaccinated agains the measles.
Any thoughts? Are kids with food allergies more vulnerable to adverse reactions?? I agonize over this constantly!
Best answer:
Answer by Gina A
Your concerns are validated here… Have you considered the possibility that multiple injections may have contributed or exacerbated his allergies? Several independent studies have drawn coorelations between vaccinations and increased autoimmune/immunodeficient issues. This is the case with our child. She was immunologically damaged by multiple pediatric vaccines (0-6 mos). We stopped all vaccines and are still trying to bring her little body back into balance. Our second child is 2, no vax, ever, and is rediculously healthy, never even needed an antibiotic. Somehow we were all lead to believe that our tiny babies with their tiny immune systems need all these injections to be healthy. We are personally finding the exact opposite is true.
Good for you, declining the Hep B vax as babies are not even in the risk category for this. I also agree that the Rotavirus vax is risky. It caused infant deaths and was subsequently reformulated and re-released. Rotavirus is an intestinal virus that runs it’s course in a week or two. If dehydration occurs, this can be addressed easily by IV fluid supplementation. The Prevnar is one that I am not familiar with, but you can read more about the specifics at http://www.whale.to/v/prevnar2.html along with other informative sites listed below. I have found that doing my own internet searches are very helpful (Google ‘Prevnar and childhood food allergies’ or the like).
Measles… this is a personal decision you will have to research further, but docs used to recommend that parents have measles parties just like they would recommend chicken pox parties, to expose a child while young and build lifelong immunity. Vaccines only offer partial and temporary protection and as such, especially with the new Varicella vax, these illnesses are appearing in adult populations where they are much more dangerous.
These decisions are not easy, especially now that there may be an underlying immune system issue. As parents, we all do the best we can to reduce the risks for our children. In our case, we found that there is much greater risk of damage or injury related to vaccination, than from any of the diseases that they are supposed to prevent.
One more thing that may help you determine a course for your baby boy. CDC lists available vaccines along with ingredients at http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/pinkbook/downloads/appendices/B/excipient-table-2.pdf
Chick embryo is listed in several vaccines, but their little bodies change and develop so quickly and allergies and sensitivities may also change over time. Our daughter has grown into and out of several different allergies and sensitivities in her 5 years of life. I was not a praying person before, but I sure am now. As far as the Ped, an informed partnership is most effective. We already know they will push vaccines, so getting fair and unbiased answers to your questions from this source is unlikely. I am very matter-of-fact with them. These are not emotionally-based decisions, but having a direction before the appointment may help. God bless.
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