As pediatricians, one of the common topics of discussion we face is in regards to vaccinations. As a group, Dr. Ababio, Dr. Kumar, Dr. Alessia, Dr. Granoff and I whole-heartedly believe in the necessity, safety and effectiveness of vaccines. We want you as parents to have reliable, scientific, unbiased and ACCURATE information about how to keep your child safe and healthy. Together we hope in this blog post we can answer some common questions, dispel some myths and make you feel confident in your choice to vaccinate your children.

Nicole Keller, D.O.

Why vaccinate?

Vaccines originated as a way to offer the body protection from a disease without getting the illness. Ultimately, they save lives and prevent diseases from spreading. Vaccines mostly protect against sicknesses that are deadly (or have a possibility of being deadly) or can have severe consequences during or after the illness.

Is injecting a disease via vaccination into my child’s body safe?

Yes.

Starting at birth, your child likely comes in contact with thousands (2,000 to 5,000 to be exact) of antigens – “bugs” or “germs” that cause disease – each day.  The entire vaccine schedule put together gives your child about 150 antigens total; way less than what your child fights off on a daily basis (AAP Oct 2008).  Even though we are injecting the vaccine antigens into the body as opposed to passive exposure in the environment, the amount and form of the vaccine antigens are safe and in no way overwhelm the immune system regardless of your child’s age. Your immune system doesn’t know the difference between an antigen that was acquired from chewing on the grocery cart handle versus one that was injected in the body from a vaccine.

In addition, all vaccines are rigorously tested (on thousands of people over years of research) before they are given. It is true that that process is not perfect either – for example, when the first version of the rotavirus vaccine came out it was noted that an increase number of intussusceptions (when the bowel telescopes into itself) were occurring. The vaccine was pulled immediately and re-formulated. We now have a new safe version of this vaccine. I share this example with you to show you that even though the process of testing may not be perfect, our medical system is constantly testing and re-examining the formulations, schedule and effectiveness of vaccines to make sure they are the best they can be.

Once a vaccine or vaccine schedule is introduced, it is only recommended to the public after being approved by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP). That’s a lot of approvals needed from a lot of experts on disease.

There are so many vaccinations – can’t I space them out so I don’t overwhelm my child’s body?

The vaccine schedule is there for a reason – it gives your children the most protection as early as possible in their lives at a time when their immune system can best incorporate the added protection.

The schedule is created to account for when the immune system will best respond to a vaccine as well as the need to protect children at the earliest age possible. The booster shots are there to offer the most immunity possible to a certain disease(s) and work best when spaced out a certain amount – kind of like when you work out a certain muscle group, you need to give it a rest before working it again. We give the body a dose of vaccine, give it a break to account for the new “strength” the immune system is building, and then give another dose to keep boosting the strength of the immunity. We have figured out how many boosters are needed of specific vaccines after years of studies and research determining long-term effectiveness of each vaccine.

If you were to space out the vaccines onto a different schedule you are increasing the risk that your child could get or spread a vaccine preventable illness. Longer time than recommended between vaccines is longer time without protection. And again, remember you are in no way “overwhelming the immune system” by giving vaccines – give your immune system some credit here!

But, I had _____ (insert disease here – chicken pox, measles, the flu, etc) as a child and did just fine – why should my child be vaccinated against this illness that was no big deal for me?

The vaccines we have created came about because there is a risk, no matter how small, of morbidity (getting the disease and its consequences) or mortality (death). The risk of getting a vaccine preventable disease and its possible consequences is much higher than the risk of significant side effects from vaccines – i.e. vaccines are safer than the disease itself.

Even though you, or a family member or friend, might have gotten chicken pox or measles or rubella or WHATEVER illness as a child and recovered without consequence, there are children who don’t fare as well. I think one of the saddest things I have seen as a pediatrician is a child in an ICU with a vaccine preventable illness with their parents hoping, wishing and praying for their child’s recovery. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone and that is why vaccinating is so important to us.  These illnesses are preventable!

I’m still scared about the risk of autism – wasn’t that related to a preservative in the vaccines too?

We can conclusively say that there is no link regarding vaccines or their preservative components and autism.

The “vaccines causing autism” scare started years ago after an article was cited stating this correlation. That article has since been debunked – the physician who wrote it falsified evidence and has since has his medical license stripped. Even so, since the scare started, numerous studies have been done to analyze the risk of autism in relation to vaccines – and every study has found no link – zero, zip, zilch! It is true that the number of cases of autism is on the rise. The medical community is actively working on finding a reason for this. What we do know at this point, though, is that vaccines have not been the reason for the increase in the incidence of autism.

This autism scare changed the way the public viewed vaccines and really has altered medicine, in a very unfortunate way. The good that came out of this, though, is that we have now conducted even more, large population, long-term, scientific research studies on the safety of vaccines; and we keep finding that vaccines are safe and they save lives.

Of note, there was a fear of thimerosal (a preservative in some vaccines) being the cause of autism as well. Also found to not be true – but regardless, this component was taken out of routine childhood vaccines in 2001 while the research was being conducted. So no worries there either.

Can’t my child just rely on herd immunity to stay healthy?

No.

This is unreliable and defeats the purpose of herd immunity. To keep herd immunity intact, >95 percent of the population has to be vaccinated. That remaining 5 percent should be reserved for children who cannot receive vaccines for reasons of severe medical consequence (for example, they don’t have working immune systems, post-chemotherapy, transplant recipients, etc). If people started relying on herd immunity that 95 percent would start to drop quickly and place everyone at increased risk of acquiring a vaccine preventable illness.

These diseases aren’t around anymore – why does my child need to get vaccinated against them?

They are around!

Data from the CDC – these are reported cases and there are likely more that go unreported.

Measles cases in the US in 2014: 288 thus far (highest number since 2000), 90 percent are among unvaccinated

Mumps cases in the US in 2014: 796 thus far

Pertussis (whooping cough) cases in the US in 2014: 9,964 thus far

I could go on, but you get the point. Even if in the US these illnesses didn’t exist, there is always a threat of acquiring them from travel – either traveling to a country where the disease is present (England, for example, has a huge risk for mumps) or people traveling to/visiting/immigrating to our country and bringing the disease to us.

True or False: My pediatrician gets a monetary bonus for giving my child vaccines.

False!

We became pediatricians because we want to help kids stay healthy. Our recommendation to vaccinate your kids is based solely on what we as medical experts in pediatric healthcare think is best for your child’s health. That’s it! (Oh, and we all vaccinate our own kids by the way – we wouldn’t do that if we thought they were bad!)

If you would like more information on vaccines we recommend you visit one of these reliable sources: the CDC website http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/default.htm, the AAP website www.AAP.org or the AAP’s website for parents www.healthychildren.org.

Of course, you can always ask your pediatrician at any visit about vaccines as well – we do believe in them and would like to educate you on the truths and benefits of vaccinating your child. Please let us know if you have any questions.

Thanks for reading!

In my last blog post I talked about healthy eating habits to start with you and your family.  To round out the discussion on leading a healthy lifestyle, I now want to discuss how to get your kids active and healthy along with the rest of the family. It is recommended to get 60 minutes of physical activity 5 to 6 days a week – that’s a lot!  But I know you can get your kids (and yourselves) there if you make some effort during your everyday activities.

Here are my tips:

Nicole Keller, D.O.

Change your family’s daily habits – Instead of taking the elevator or escalator, take the stairs together. Instead of finding the closest parking spot at the store, park far away. Little changes like this can add up to make a big difference if done consistently.

Exercise during your favorite TV show – Instead of fast-forwarding through commercials, let them play and get off the couch!  Try running up and down your stairs, doing push-ups or jumping jacks, or running in place during commercials. Those two minute breaks during a TV show (or two) will add up to a good workout!

Better yet, ditch the TV (or tablet/computer, etc) – Instead of sitting in front of a screen, get your family moving!  Go for a walk, take a bike ride (don’t forget your helmets), or play running bases or tag.  Doing this with your kids will help them want to forget about their favorite electronic gadgets to spend fun active time with you.

Make a plan and get in a routine – Pick a time of day that works best for your kids and you to get active. For some people taking a walk after dinner might be a way to ensure the family gets moving. For others, you may want to set the alarm a half-hour earlier to get up and fit in some exercise in the morning. No matter when you do it, plan for it in your day and make it part of your everyday lives.

Small amounts often – You might see a trend here.  All my tips involve doing little things through your day to add up to a larger time being active at the end of the day. Exercising does not have to happen all at once.  If the kids are waiting for a friend to pick them up, go play catch until that happens.  Take 10 minutes together to jump rope, do some jumping jacks or run in place together in the home.  Whatever it is, by fitting in small activities during the day you’ll much more easily reach your activity goals.

Getting fit and staying active doesn’t have to be expensive, doesn’t need special equipment and doesn’t need to take up all your free time.  Find creative ways to encourage your kids get off the couch, turn off the electronics and get moving.  Good habits started earlier in life are more likely to stick later on when they are adults.  Plant the seeds now and go have some fun as a family!

Enjoy this warmer weather and stay safe everyone!  Don’t forget to look back at some of our older posts about staying safe around water and in the sun too.  Cheers!

As a parent-to-be you undoubtedly have done a ton of research on everything you need to complete your bringing home baby checklist. You have the adorable outfits, the safest car seat, the functional diaper bag, and much, much more.  But  there is just one more thing that would make your list fully complete… a Bringing Home Baby class.

Come join me on Wednesday, June 18 from 7 to 8 p.m. at Rush-Copley.  I will discuss lots of important information about caring for a newborn including:

What is normal and what is not
Feeding
Sleeping
Crying
Fever
When to call the doctor
How to choose a doctor
And a lot more!

Bring your questions.  Hope to see you then!  This program is free, please register at rushcopley.com or 866-4-COPLEY (1-866-426-7539).

Finally, after the long, cold and snowy winter, summer is here!!! And what better way to cool down than a dip in the water. Families are heading to the pool, waterparks, lakes, rivers, etc to relax, have fun and get wet. Here are some tips to stay safe, so that your family outing does not end in tragedy.

NEVER, EVER leave your child alone near a body of water. It is so important, that I am going to say it again: NEVER, EVER, even for a moment, leave your child alone near a body of water. This includes kiddie pools, buckets of water, tubs containing water, toilets, spas/hot tubs, retention ponds, etc. Anywhere water can collect is dangerous to a child. Even one inch of water in a bucket (or anywhere) can result in drowning. An infant is so “top heavy” that if they fall in, they fall in head first and can have their nose and mouth underwater. Buckets and tubs are #1 cause of drowning for children <12 months. Pools are #1 for ages 1-4. Rivers and lakes for 5 and older.

Drowning is the second leading cause of death in middle childhood, after car accidents.  Empty containers of water and kiddie pools after using them.  Home pools need to have four sided fencing. The fence should be 4 feet high with a self closing and latching gate. There should be nothing around the fence that children can use to climb over it.  Rigid motorized pool covers alone will not cut it. “Water-wings” are junk and inflatable pool toys and mattresses are not life preservers.  Always wear a lifejacket. Take toys out of the pool afterwards, so the kids won’t be tempted to play with them. For children under 5, an adult has to be within arm’s reach at all times around bodies of water. For older children, the supervising adult should have their complete attention on the children. That means no texting, no internet, no phone calls/socializing, chores or drinking alcohol. Preferably, the adult watching the kids should know CPR. Older kids/teens should never swim alone.

I have focused mainly on summertime, but wintertime is dangerous as well.  Frozen retention ponds, lakes, rivers are unsafe. The ice needs to be 4-5 inches thick to support a child. The ice should be free of cracks, bubbles, slush and dark areas. Snowcover may actually insulate the water from freezing. Best thing is to stay off frozen bodies of water and go skating at a rink.

For more information, please check out this link: water safety

Have a safe summer!