As a family we question a lot. We don't accept the status quo and always need to find out for ourselves the reason behind what is being said/ instructed. When Luka arrived I didn't like the way the birth mother's midwife pressured me to vaccinate. We decided to research each and every vaccination and make a decision from there.
Fast forward to this week. Luka cut his finger badly. At the ER I was pressured by the nurse and the doctor to vaccinate against tetanus. Cue a morning of research. It should be said that we are not against vaccinating- we are concerned about the rubbish that is IN the vaccine (binding agents, preservatives etc).
We vacillated back and forward the whole morning as we read the pros and cons and researched the infection. We always thought that at some stage we would need to protect the kids from a potential tetanus infection, particularly active Luka. But we were unsure if this was the time to do it. The side effects can be massive and even the blurb they made me read talked about what could happen. So was the risk of tetanus outweighed by the risk of side effects and other rubbish they would inject into Luka?
It came down to the type of cut it was. It was an open cut which bled profusely. The accident happened inside from a broken glass bowl. The risk of tetanus was very small. If it was a puncture wound which did not bleed a lot (the wound would not be aerated) and happened outside/ from a dirty implement the jab would be needed. The risk of tetanus would be much higher.
So no vaccine at this stage. And we feel good about the decision, we made the best decision we could with the information we had to hand. This was a good decision for OUR family.
Here is a smattering of the research we did:
So what is Tetanus?
“Tetanus is the name of a sickness you get when the bacterium Clostridium tetani enters your body and flourishes (with a life cycle). The emphasis should be on ‘flourishes’ because Clostridium tetani requires an anaerobic environment. What does this mean? It means for the bacterium to survive, it must be in an environment free of oxygen.
In other words, to get sick with Tetanus, you must get the Clostridium tetani into your body, such as through the infamous example of stepping on a nail. Then you must ensure that the wound does not get oxygenated (does not bleed and is not exposed to air) and you must ensure the bacterium multiplies enough to start a life cycle, because the toxins released when they die is what causes Tetanus symptoms.
Summary: Tetanus requires a wound that is deep enough and neglected enough to create an anaerobic environment so that the bacteria can flourish, die off and spread a toxin in the body. The incubation period is 3-21 days, the average being 8 days.
And what does it mean to ‘oxygenate’? It means to bleed. Blood is oxygenated by passing through the lungs and then flowing through the body to oxygenate all the tissues. That is how we live. We are oxygenated creatures. So if you step on a nail and you bleed, the Clostridium tetani cannot live. In other words, Tetanus is almost impossible to get if you are alive, pumping blood normally through your body and taking care of the wound.
According to the CDC’s own website: “Tetanus is different from other vaccine-preventable diseases because it does not spread from person to person. The bacteria are usually found in soil, dust and manure and enter the body through breaks in the skin – usually cuts or puncture wounds caused by contaminated objects. Today, tetanus is uncommon in the United States, with an average of 29 reported cases per year from 1996 through 2009″
Medical News Today
Kids Health
The Modern Alternative Mama
Gianelloni Family
Mommypotamus
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