Where do you stand on vaccinations?

If you had chicken pox as a kid, you are likely to have shingles as an adult.

I had a lite case of it about 5 years ago. I emphasize lite case. And it is really really uncomfortable. It was on my belly and back. The duration (w medical care!) was about 1 week.

Listen carefully … it can be anywhere on the body. Think anywhere! (Like really sensitive areas!).

Recently I have known people who have suffered with shingles for weeks and one for a month.

But there is a vaccine for that!

–––—

Also mumps in children vs mumps in adults (particularly men!): Somehow I missed getting mumps. Males past puberty who develop mumps have a 15–20 percent risk of orchitis - painful inflammation of the testicles. When I was about 32 my Dr (a Christian Dr!) recommended I receive the mumps vaccine. Not sorry I did!

I’ve never been afraid of vaccinations. I know many Christians are, and I’ve heard the stories and read the blog posts. I still don’t get it.

[TylerR]

I’ve never been afraid of vaccinations. I know many Christians are, and I’ve heard the stories and read the blog posts. I still don’t get it.

Retracted autism study an ‘elaborate fraud,’ British journal finds

There’s much more … Google it.

But as we know “If you tell a lie that’s big enough, and you tell it often enough, people will believe you are telling the truth”

Other “big lies” that Christians bought into:

• Giant computer in Belgium called “the Beast” (heard at a Jack Van Impe campaign)
• Bar codes & mark of the beast
• The Illuminati

Some Christians have a Chick Publications-deep theology!

Ed, I voted 3, but could have also voted 5 or 6. It used to be that I could go either way on vaccinations, but then I realized that there was more of a danger of hurting my testimony if our children were not vaccinated, so we now get the one required for school. One of the reasons I used to be a bit leery of them was because I have two nephews with Autism and wondered if maybe our family was more predisposed to Autism from vaccinations. Then I found out that the Autism link was a fraud, so that argument was off the the table. For further insight into my position, you can read my response to another SI post here: http://sharperiron.org/filings/8-26-13/28231

Jim wrote

Some Christians have a Chick Publications-deep theology!

That is so sad but also too true. We struggled to minister to such a family for years. One of their teenage boys wanted us to hand out the Alberto comic books during VBS to the Catholic kids. “Alberto” was supposedly a former Catholic priest who was promoted by Jack Chick. He was later found to be fraud. The problem with the Jack Chick approach is that people become anti-catholic not because of the wrong doctrine that the Catholic church teaches, but because of some sensational conspiracy theory about sculls under monasteries. There is little or no understanding of solid doctrine and thus people take very dogmatic positions, but have little Biblical defense for their positions. At the same time they begin to think that they are the enlightened ones because they found out about these secret conspiracy theories and those who do not buy into the theories must be blinded by the devil. Then if their pastor does not buy into the theories, how can they trust him- especially if he is not KJO?

Pastors, be on guard for Chick deep theology and be willing to take a firm stand against it if/when it causes division in the church. Laymen, back your pastor up when he does.

I needed a choice that says “I’m for all vaccines”. Since I didn’t see that I voted “other”. I do not care what other decisions people (Christians and non-Christians) make concerning their health. They can be as silly as they like.

I also chose “other” for the same reason!

Each immunization has its own risks, and I think it’s ok to pick and choose. One thing that I didn’t like was jabbing 3 shots into a kid all at once. We only allowed one at a time and spaced them out so it took much longer for them to be fully immunized. My daughter had a bad reaction to her first DTaP, so we waited until she was older to begin to give her those. Now it’s time for boosters.

Even if your kids are immunized, that doesn’t mean they are immune. Some shots don’t ‘take’, and if you really want your kids protected, they need to be tested, and so do adults. I think it’s wrong to perpetuate the myth that kids who’ve had all their shots are immune, and everyone else is irresponsible or stupid. If you want to be ‘responsible’, then you need to make sure that the shots have been effective.

i’m generally not a fan of allopathic medicine.

The problem with those who are not vaccinated, is that they feel comfortable in that decision because they feel they are taking the least risky approach. The reason that it is least risky is that everyone else is immunized. Most of the diseases that we are vaccinating from have either been wiped out from vaccination (smallpox) or have been nearly eliminated. Because vaccinations have created a “safe zone” in America, the risk of vaccines appear to rise in relation to non vaccination. I can tell you in the early 1900’s as kids were dying left and right over smallpox parents were scrambling for vaccines.

[Anne Sokol]

i’m generally not a fan of allopathic medicine.

Defined: allopathic: “relating to or being a system of medicine that aims to combat disease by using remedies (as drugs or surgery) which produce effects that are different from or incompatible with those of the disease being treated”

Really at my age, 64, I don’t care who vaccinates or not so it is really your decision. I can tell you that growing up in the polio-era frightened me as a child. I had friends who were crippled by it. I have an adult friend (now retired) who still suffers the after-effects of polio.

In my mind, to be a parent in the ’50s AND NOT vaccinate one’s child against polio would have been cruel and unloving.

Because of the effective use of the polio vaccine polio has been virtually wiped out.

I’m sure you’ve heard of the iron lung?! Imagine a room full of them! And your child is there!

dgszweda, that was a Huge reason for us deciding to vaccinate. Susan mentioned how for some people the vaccinations do not even take. That was another reason we decided to vaccinate. With more people vaccinated there is less risk for those whose vaccines do not work because there are fewer people spreading it. What convinced my wife was when she read a novel where the subplot had an unvaccinated child that ended up infecting someone else and I think that person died. With more people avoiding vaccinations the risk is only going to get higher. I realize that my kids might get sick from vaccinations, but I also realize that the risk of not get getting them affects not just my kids, but my neighbors as well and I need to love my neighbors as myself.

My decision on this is a work in progress, so I guess “Other” applies.

I want to be cautious on an issue like this, so I am thinking about how best to approach it.
As a child my parents had us vaccinated at a later age (just before entering school), and that seemed to work out pretty well. The only issue for me (and why for the moment I am using the standard method) was that I had to get a large number of vaccinations all at once. That memory still gets to me and has led to my pretty strong fear of needles.

I also know people that used the standard vaccination schedule for a child and had something go wrong. One’s child had a very severe reaction and spent months in the hospital.

Having a 16 month-old, this issue is important to me.
I have heard both sides, and both have interesting points.

For the moment, my daughter is getting the standard vaccinations, but on a slightly slower pace.
Her second batch led to a couple of days of fever and discomfort for her, so we might slow it down to one at a time, just to be careful.

My husband told me this conversation was happening and that I should share. I grew up in a time where my parents were debating vaccinations. I was fully vaccinated, but as each of my siblings came along they were getting fewer and fewer shots until I now have siblings who have not received a shot other than tetanus-because they live on a farm. Once I had my own children I really struggled with my husbands thoughts that we should vaccinate the boys. He saw how much of a struggle it was for me as I was very anti-vaccines,so he backed off and told me to keep researching. I read anti-vaccine stuff left and right trying to convince him of the arguments. I had to do a book review for someone else and the book presented some interesting things for me to think about. The plot to the story was that a gal’s unvaccinated son got a disease (I forget which one right now) that was vaccine preventable. They didn’t know he was a carrier until a lot of people they came into contact with were already sick. One was a baby, another an elderly person. There were also some children from his daycare or school got sick. The author was respectful to the one characters beliefs about vaccinations, but also presented some thoughts from those on the other side of the “debate” as well. The big one that stuck out to me was the idea of our testimony as Christians. What would our testimony be if we refuse to vaccinate our children (against medical advise) and our children carry a disease to immune compromised individuals (a group that we have frequent contact with-nursing homes, hospitals)? On the other hand, Say we HAVE vaccinated our child. They happen to get the disease anyway and still pass it to an immune compromised group. In that case I don’t believe our testimony would be harmed-because we have vaccinated our child and it can’t come up as a “those weird Christians who wont even listen to medical advise”

The other deciding factor for me came when I finally grabbed a pro vaccination book. The book talked about HOW vaccines work-and that they aren’t 100% for everyone. They also mentioned how a lot of the arguments about multiple shots at once were at one time in history a valid argument-but that the way vaccines are made and work now has changed and that even with multiple shots at once the child’s immune system is still under attack more from being alive one day than from all of those shots together.

Another bend in my story is that while I have been fully immunized (and more-I was out of the country and had to get extra shots) I was told after my 2nd son was born that my tests show that I am not immune to Rubella (German measles) and that there had been a small outbreak in our area while I was pregnant. Rubella is NOT a safe disease to be exposed to while pregnant. A lady I have met online has a brother in his late 30s if I remember correctly. He is an adult sized and strength baby. He is not safe to be around sometimes because of his total inability to comprehend and even follow orders. She has gone to give him a hug many times-and was grabbed so hard that he hurt her. He has no idea what he is doing. The culprit? Rubella while his mother was pregnant. My Dr told me that he has a couple other cases of women in his practice who also are not immune to Rubella. He advised me that it is not worth the bother of getting the shot again-it would still not work in my body- and to be VERY careful while pregnant if I hear anything about rubella or unexplained rashes going on. Essentially, if I hear someone has any of the symptoms of Rubella neither me nor my family should be anywhere near them if I am pregnant. It kind of makes you think when you are for one reason or another forced to look at the world (and vaccine debate) through the lens of an immune compromised person.

Since Vaccines are not always 100% effective, the community effect of vaccines is very powerful and adds to the strength of the vaccines. Vaccines are very safe, and yes there are chances where your child can develop a reaction or could even die. But the fact is that God has given us the ability to control the diseases we face. These are well tested processes that have stood up to the rigors of science for hundreds of years. We face much more riskier decisions all the time. At some point you need to have faith that God is ultimately in control of all situations.

Some vaccines that are being given out today really aren’t needed.

For instance, I fully intend to decline the HPV vaccine for my daughter, since there is a risk (however small) from vaccines in general and there is no need for her to have it.

Sure, if there is a legitimate need for someone to have a vaccine and there is a small risk that comes along with that, the greater good is what should be viewed as important. However, a small risk being undertaken for something that is not needed doesn’t make sense.

[dgszweda] Vaccines are very safe, and yes there are chances where your child can develop a reaction or could even die.

I think it is OK to wait on certain immunizations until there is a risk factor. For instance, if a child regularly attends camp or is going to college and living in a dorm, they are at risk unless they’ve been immunized against Hepatitis A&B, which can be communicated by something like a toothbrush or razor. It is also recommended that they receive a meninogococcal vaccine, because bacterial meningitis can be spread by sharing drinking glasses/bottles and eating utensils, towels, and lip gloss/lipstick.

I agree about not giving the HPV vaccine to young girls. There are about 100 strains of HPV, and a vaccine doesn’t protect against every strain- only against a few strains that can cause cervical cancer.

[Jim]

If you had chicken pox as a kid, you are likely to have shingles as an adult.

I had a lite case of it about 5 years ago. I emphasize lite case. And it is really really uncomfortable. It was on my belly and back. The duration (w medical care!) was about 1 week.

Listen carefully … it can be anywhere on the body. Think anywhere! (Like really sensitive areas!).

Recently I have known people who have suffered with shingles for weeks and one for a month.

But there is a vaccine for that!

We do refuse to have our children vaccinated for chicken pox. We believe it poses an ethical issue because it was developed using cell lines from the tissue of aborted fetuses:

CDC is aware that some, but not all, vaccines are made from human cell-line cultures, and some of these cell lines originated from aborted fetal tissue, obtained from legal abortions in the 1960’s. No new fetal tissue is needed to produce cell lines to make these vaccines, now or in the future. Fetal tissue is not used to produce vaccines; cell lines generated from a single fetal tissue source are used—vaccine manufacturers obtain human cell lines from FDA-certified cell banks.

Source (also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varicella_vaccine#Controversy)

The Varicella vaccine used to counter chicken pox is derived from one of those cell lines.

For the most part, this decision has not created much difficulty for us. In fact, one of our local doctors contacted my wife this week to arrange a play date for our kids with a family who has an active case… Jennifer did get some guff on it just today, though, with a doctor during a walk-in appointment, who couldn’t understand why we were deferring on the second shot (our daughter had received the first one before she came into our care).

To this point, we have deferred the HPV vaccine for our children as well.

[Chip Van Emmerik]

[dgszweda] Vaccines are very safe, and yes there are chances where your child can develop a reaction or could even die.

Seems like you are defeating your own argument. “Yes they are safe - yes they may kill you.” On what authority are you pronouncing vaccines safe?

I am pronouncing vaccines safe based on the authority of the FDA, EMEA, CDC, WHO and other leading health organizations. Safe doesn’t mean zero risk. My mom’s life was saved in a severe car accident because she didn’t have her seat belt on. Does that warrant to say seat belts are unsafe? Just because anyone can throw up a website or write a book doesn’t give them any authority. Every major medical institution has indicated that reactions to Vaccines are rare, and severe reactions are considerably rarer. In addition, vaccines are the safest way to prevent major diseases. I am not saying take every vaccine, but I think it is foolish to write off all vaccines.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smallpox_vaccine

We (my wife and I) received at school back in the ’50s

Left a very nasty welt and long term scarring

I know allopathic refers specifically to drugs and surgery, but i used it anyway, non-accurately, to refer to the larger system of medicine that is popular in the U.S., among whose practitioners usually advocate for vaccinating.

vaccinating is a matter of conscience. we don’t vaccinate. that is our choice before the Lord, and we do work where we are exposed to nasty people, in the sense that a lot of the guys in our center are homeless, who knows what they have, and some have to be sent away for isolated treatments for active TB, etc.

from our research, we have chosen not to risk vaccinating our kids nor trust to that system of protection. And trust God with the other side of risks. for every story of not-vaccinating-gone-wrong, there is a vaccinating-gone-wrong story. For every historical fact cited to support vaxing, another can be cited to not support it. It’s a circle. You do your research, make choices, live with the consequences. This is how God has led us.

May we each stand in our clear consciences before God :D

Amen. :D :D :D

Jim, how is the Mark of the Beast a lie?

Conspiracies don’t exist?

Jim, let me ask you only this. Do you believe the official story about what happened on September 11, 2001 in New York?

If you answer No, then you are are admitting that the government and media were involved in orchestrating the attacks and deceiving the public.

If you answer Yes, then you are admitting that a group of Muslims, under the leadership of Osama Bin Laden, conspired together for years to carry out a massive and complex terrorist attack that would take place on September 11, 2001.

[christian cerna]

Jim, how is the Mark of the Beast a lie?

Bar codes & mark of the beast

Well, unless either of us know the future, then we have no way of knowing if the mark will have a barcode. One thing is certain, the technology exists that allows people to be implanted with a chip, so that they can be tracked and identified, and they can also use it for purchases. There have been news stories about it. Even about wealthy people getting chipped so they don’t have to pull out their credit card when making purchases at bars.

http://www.zdnet.com/news/implanted-id-chip-finds-way-into-ers-bars/140…

That article is almost 10 years old. Imagine the technology they have now.

I don’t think this line of conversation is relevant. The point was that some Christians are very gullible, and will believe whatever they are told without investigating for themselves.

I think Anne’s point is relevant, in that we mustn’t take medical advice and treatment at face value, or abdicate our responsibility to educate ourselves about medical treatments like vaccinations. You must make these decisions in good conscience before God.

When you’ve been with a family who has suffered the gruesome and horrific death of an infant because of a reaction to an immunization, you understand the enormous amount of trepidation one feels when deciding whether to immunize one’s own child. Not everyone who decides to not to immunize is gullible.

I will grant that there are some who seem look for evil under every blade of grass and are constantly warning others about the dangers of everything from deodorant to microwaves. We shouldn’t allow ourselves to get caught up in fear-mongering of any kind.

In my opinion, it is hard to see how the anti-vaccine rhetoric is not a close cousin to conspiracy theory. There are credible organizations that have spent decades and huge amounts of money studying this topic. For someone to take the word of the very small number of anti-vaccine authors over an organization like the FDA is almost unexplainable unless that person believes that somehow the FDA has nefarious motives.

I am not saying the FDA is always right but they are certainly going to be more often right than a few writers here and there with no real research capacity who cherrypick studies and write alarmist materials.

The whole alternative medicine industry loves to challenge the FDA and mainstream research. They find a few studies out of hundreds that might support their view and then try to say that the FDA is in the pockets of drug companies. People should not be deceived by those tactics.

So while I agree with the idea that we should not take everything in the medical community at face value and should educate ourselves, my question is why go to sources that are infinitely worse than the medical community? That is what people are doing in the interest of “educating” themselves. It is a shame. They should spend a few minutes on a site like Quackwatch instead.

Greg, if it wasn’t for people who support natural health alternatives, we wouldn’t have more healthy food choices in the supermarket. It is people like those which you belittle who have taken the time to inform the public about the benefits of natural whole foods. People are starting to wake up and see that corporations don’t care about people’s health unless people demand change from them. Thanks to sites like Natural News, I have learned about the benefits of eating more organic foods, and natural supplements, and about the benefits of fasting. I have never felt better in my life.

More and more research is being done in place like the Amazonian Rain Forests? Why? Because they are discovering new species of plants and herbs, many of which have therapeutic and medicinal properties, which the natives have known about for centuries.

People who put down those who believe in certain conspiracies, are usually people who are too lazy to think for themselves, so the let the TV do it for them. I am not saying that all conspiracy theories are true, but many of them are. And many probably contain hints of the truth that we can learn from.

One more thing, have you ever read the warning label on a prescription drug bottle? It will sound something like…

Beware, this drug may cause harmful side effects such a nausea, vomitting, dizziness, dry mouth, ulcers, kidney disease, liver damage, high blood pressure, fainting, stroke, depression, mood swings, and even death.

Sounds wonderful. Where can I get some??

Yet you will belittle someone who wants to try a natural remedy or suplement that has been proven for centuries to work, and has no real harmful side effects. And you call us crazy???

? for christian cerna re natural foods.

Please reflect upon how natural foods would have stopped polio or small pox? Or mumps? (all mentioned earlier in this thread. The small pox vaccine is no longer given because a previous generation received it leading to its eradication.

My son is currently serving in Afghanistan - a region where malaria is a year round threat. The soldiers take anti-Malaria drugs. How would natural foods solve that disease?

[christian cerna]

One more thing, have you ever read the warning label on a prescription drug bottle? It will sound something like…

Beware, this drug may cause harmful side effects such a nausea, vomitting, dizziness, dry mouth, ulcers, kidney disease, liver damage, high blood pressure, fainting, stroke, depression, mood swings, and even death.

Sounds wonderful. Where can I get some??

Yet you will belittle someone who wants to try a natural remedy or suplement that has been proven for centuries to work, and has no real harmful side effects. And you call us crazy???

Yes, 1 out 1,000 have nausea in a study and because it might possibly be connected to the drug, the FDA forces them to put it on the label. That is the way it often works. If you would refuse to take a helpful drug because there is a slight chance of dizziness, that is your prerogative of course. But over all, drugs have real data behind them and they are safe.

You want to give the rigorous process and scientific research behind drugs for natural remedies that “have worked for centuries”? Let me tell you how that industry often works. Somebody with a theory or legend about a supposed natural remedy throws it into capsules and is selling it a month later. There is very often no data, no studies, and no oversight.

By the way, supplements have side effects too. There is just no requirement to put them on the label.

my parents, once missionaries in togo, west africa, they took malaria meds all the time. my dad contracted it 3 times in their decade+ even with that.

the togolese get it all the time. i think they die from it if it’s a child under 5 or from dehydration if it’s untreated. So it’s more lack of medical care than the disease itself.

so yes, food and general health is important.

Greg Linscott noted that he and his wife choose not to use the Varicella vaccine due to its link to fetal tissue usage. I know several who have used the same reasoning for not using the vaccine and I appreciate their efforts to be consistent in their beliefs. Although, Greg also mentioned there is a vaccine for shingles and according to my understanding that vaccine is nothing more than a larger dose of the Varicella vaccine.

I understand the reasoning behind choosing not to use the vaccine, but it raises a larger question in my mind…one that perhaps has been discussed and I missed it. In the early 1960’s a mother decides to abort (murder) her unborn child. A doctor takes some of the tissues from that aborted (murdered) baby and begins research that leads to a stem-cell line that is used in the production of a vaccine that has at the very least saved hundreds of thousands of children from unnecessary suffering, saved others from serious complications, saved others from death, and has saved yet others from shingles and the complications it brings. What if the mother had chosen not to abort (murder) that baby? What if the child had been born and lived to be two years old and then was cruelly murdered by the mother’s boyfriend with her approval? What if the mother, in an act of remorse, decided to allow the child’s body to be donated to science for research? Or, what if she allowed the child’s organs and tissues to be given to save the lives of others in need of transplants? Would there be any difference and if so, why would this scenario be different than the use of the aborted fetal tissue to save lives? If there is no difference, then why is it okay to use the organs and tissues of older children and adults who die?

These are questions that have plagued me. I would love to hear the thoughts and reasoning of others here on SI.

[GregH]

Yes, 1 out 1,000 have nausea in a study and because it might possibly be connected to the drug, the FDA forces them to put it on the label. That is the way it often works. If you would refuse to take a helpful drug because there is a slight chance of dizziness, that is your prerogative of course. But over all, drugs have real data behind them and they are safe.

You want to give the rigorous process and scientific research behind drugs for natural remedies that “have worked for centuries”? Let me tell you how that industry often works. Somebody with a theory or legend about a supposed natural remedy throws it into capsules and is selling it a month later. There is very often no data, no studies, and no oversight.

By the way, supplements have side effects too. There is just no requirement to put them on the label.

Anne, there absolutely is a lot of research behind drugs. Getting a drug approved in the US is a multi-billion dollar investment in research. Introducing a natural health supplement in the US? You could easily do it with less than $10,000.

That is not to say the FDA and drug companies do not make mistakes but they are certainly more credible than the alternatives.

People that want to throw away drugs for traditional supplements are living in denial. Back when that was all that was available, the average life expectancy was half of what it is now. The life expectancy in the US has risen 40 years in the past century. That is largely due to drugs and other advances in medicine.

i think the “discovery” of antibiotics, learning about germs, sulfa drugs, etc. has been great, if not used too much (but antibiotics are used too much generally).

pharmeceutical drugs work against the body’s designed ability to heal itself. Sometimes the trade-off is worth it. A lot of times it’s not, and if the body’s own systems were better supported, we just deal with and heal illnesses. Many deaths are caused prematurely by pharmaceuticals.

I also agree with you that pharmaceutical drugs is a billion-dollar industry. I do think we need to be very careful though when listening to its salesmen ;) A lot has changed in human history to improve life, not just drug medicines.

The point of immunizations is to prevent the spread of life-threatening communicable diseases. Chicken pox, for instance, is generally a mild disease, and a small percentage of the population are high risk for complications. Chicken pox is communicated via direct contact with the rash, or coughing/sneezing, so one can limit the risk for others by treating it like any other communicable sickness - stay home.

For parents of young children- keep them home when they have a fever. Period. Thank you.

By the way, I got chicken pox when I was 26. My son brought it home from his preschool. It was not pleasant, obviously, but I weathered it just fine, and went back to work the minute the doc said I wasn’t contagious.

My mom used to get a flu shot every year, and every year she got the flu. When she stopped getting the shot, she stopped getting sick. It’s been at least 8 years since she’s had the flu or the flu shot. Her doctor gets a bit cranky about her not getting the shot, but he can’t argue with the facts. Just because the medical profession recommends a shot doesn’t mean that it will work. You have to use your own discretion.

I think sometimes the desire to cure illnesses ignores the responsibility to live a healthy lifestyle. We take better care of our cars and houses than our bodies, and then expect medicine to fix us.

It is important to eat a healthy balanced diet of real food, and get a reasonable amount of exercise. One of the most neglected areas of health is hydration- people simply don’t drink enough water every day. And they don’t wash their hands nearly enough, which is, like, icky.

We’ve had a couple of pediatricians who were very supportive of our laid back immunization schedule. They’ve acknowledged that our lifestyle is very low risk for exposure. As the kids get older, their risk increases, and so we step it up to give them the protections we think they need.

But nothing substitutes for taking care of one’s body in a sensible manner, and being smart about not eating and drinking after their friends, using their utensils, etc… and other - shall we say - exchanges, that increase their risk.

I am not saying that all prescription drugs are evil. I am just saying that one shouldn’t have an “either or” attitude. Natural supplements and certain foods are good for preventing many illnesses and maintaining good health. Prescription drugs are often necessary for serious medical complications, and can help alleviate symptoms, but often they are merely just masking the pain but not really healing/curing the body. Only the body can heal itself.

[Anne Sokol]

i think the “discovery” of antibiotics, learning about germs, sulfa drugs, etc. has been great, if not used too much (but antibiotics are used too much generally).

pharmeceutical drugs work against the body’s designed ability to heal itself. Sometimes the trade-off is worth it. A lot of times it’s not, and if the body’s own systems were better supported, we just deal with and heal illnesses. Many deaths are caused prematurely by pharmaceuticals.

I also agree with you that pharmaceutical drugs is a billion-dollar industry. I do think we need to be very careful though when listening to its salesmen ;) A lot has changed in human history to improve life, not just drug medicines.

Well, I agree with you in many respects as well. I don’t think accepting drugs for something should be a first resort; it should be toward the end of the options you try.

I know the debate well because I founded a supplement company, ran it for 12 years and recently sold it. I know how the marketing works on the natural supplement side (largely based on attacking the billion-dollar pharmaceutical industry as if the supplement industry was not $10 billion on its own).

In many respects, the marketing on the alternative side is slimy—far slimier than the drug side. And in general, the alternative side does not have 1/100th the data to back up their marketing. At least the pharmaceuticals are required to do real studies. Most products sold in the natural health market have almost no studies behind them (though many of the ingredients have some studies).

A lot of skepticism is healthy on either side of the fence.