You are in Parenting and Pregnancy . New mom Heather Barnette has heard all the concerns about infant immunizations, but she still took Lucie, now 4 months, to the pediatrician for her first two rounds of injections to protect her from diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis. Tylenol ready, but she cried for two seconds and that was it. But there's no scientific evidence confirming such a link, which was raised in one British epidemiological study.
Doctors believe the real culprit is coincidence.
Out of Sight, Out of Mind Nonetheless, it's enough to make any well-meaning parent wonder. But not getting your child immunized would be a big mistake, say infectious disease experts and pediatricians, and severe side effects are rare. Before the measles vaccine, there were a million measles cases in the United States every year, resulting in 500 to 1,000 deaths and 5,000 cases of brain damage. Now, measles and polio are almost nonexistent in the United States, although just a plane-ride away these diseases are still rampant. The smallpox vaccine was so effective in wiping out the disease that it's no longer needed, and experts maintain that polio, measles and hepatitis B could also be eliminated worldwide with the universal use of vaccines.