Have you been led to believe that vaccination was the magic bullet that saved us from the scourges of the past?

Of course you have. This is the number one claim made by those who market it to us.

Thousands upon thousands of children in the industrialised countries died from measles during the 1800s and early 1900s. The death rate steadily declined from the mid-1800s. Here we see the decline in Australia from 1880 to 1970. The arrow indicates the point at which measles vaccine was introduced. One thing is crystal clear... the vaccine had nothing whatsoever to do with the demise of measles as a killer. Why? Because it wasn't around.

Click on the graph to the right for a collection of six diseases and their death rates - four of which had routine vaccination introduced, two did not. The story is the same for all. The so-called infectious diseases of civilisation declined steadily and consistently for over a century. Vaccination was the equivalent of someone jumping onto the track for the final five minutes of a marathon... then claiming victory. These are graphs for Australia but you will find as you search further that they mirror all the industrialised countries.

The bottom line is if your doctor promotes vaccination being responsible for wiping out the scourges of the past, I suggest you find another doctor... one that is aware of the basics. Likewise if the brochure or booklet you are reading parades the claim... I suggest you discard it. It is marketing propaganda.

Have you been led to believe that if you are vaccinated you are protected?

Of course you have. But hang on... am I about to suggest that it doesn't protect? The answer to that is I don't have to. The figures speak for themselves. When disease outbreaks occur children get sick regardless of whether they are vaccinated.

In 1989 the U.S. health department documented 170 measles outbreaks in the country and found that 89% of the victims had been vaccinated! School outbreaks were reported where ALL the victims had been vaccinated.

In the same year a 20 month study of whooping cough in Nova Scotia was published revealing 96% of the victims had been vaccinated.

In Australia in 1996, the South Australian Heath Commission released seven years of data on whooping cough showing 87% of the victims had been vaccinated.

Statistics such as these abound in the medical literature. Vaccinated  does not mean protected. It means... we believe you may be less likely to get the disease. Good luck! If vaccination does offer some level of protection it is clearly not the level we have been led to believe.