MUMPS THE WORD -- Are Vaccines Necessary?

By: William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.


As you know, I'm not exactly a fan of vaccinations. At best, they're unnecessary. At worst, they're downright deadly. But the fact is that the medical community (read: BIG PHARMA) has done such a bang-up job of convincing everyone that they're an absolute necessity that in many cases, you are LEGALLY REQUIRED to be vaccinated.

This gross violation of personal freedom was on full display recently when the University of Southern Maine sent out notices to 400 students that they were being banned from campus for failing to meet the latest vaccination requirements for mumps. Yes, banned. This isn't anything new, you understand. In the not-so-politically correct past, lepers were cut-off from society and left to literally rot in colonies on remote islands. But these students don't have mumps--they just haven't been vaccinated against mumps.

Anyone else think this is a violation of personal rights?

These notices went out after a recent mumps outbreak throughout the state of Maine (officials believe this spread down out of Canada). Among the 400 who've been banished from the halls of learning (you'd have to wonder exactly what they'd learn at a university that's so willing to employ these kinds of extreme, Draconian tactics) are 20 students who have declined the vaccinations on religious or philosophical grounds. In other words, those that stood up for their rights.

How seriously is the University of Southern Maine taking this "dangerous" mumps health threat? So seriously that students who are medically exempt from the vaccination are allowed on campus with "special passes." (Reminds me of the Nazis in old movies: "Show me your papers, please!") So now you're thinking, "Hold on, Douglass -- there's got to be a very good reason for this. Mumps must be a deadly virus, right?"

Wrong.

The mumps are painful. There's fever. There's a swelling of the salivary glands around the jaw. It's not pleasant, and it's another of those childhood diseases like chicken pox which is much more painful to weather as an adult. But to be clear: it's not gonna kill you. In fact, most common treatment for the mumps is an ice bag and a couple of aspirin.

In the rarest of rare cases, the results could be a mild form of meningitis, organ infections, Encephalitis (rarely fatal), and sterility in men. And I suppose these "risks" could be considered serious if the University of Southern Maine happened to be located somewhere in the Congo where disease is rife, sanitation poor, and medical aid practically nonexistent. But this is Maine -- and last I heard, that was one of the forty-eight contiguous States. Hardly the wilds of Africa.

So where did the University get the wrong-headed idea that they needed to treat 400 of their student body like disease-ridden pariahs? From Maine's state government, of course (I love putting blame where it so often belongs: in the laps of unthinking, butt-covering bureaucrats). The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that these actions be taken, and they have amended the health codes on states college campuses to require two doses of the vaccine. Most people receive their first and only mumps vaccination not long after birth -- it's known as the MMR (the same one that has been linked to the rise in the number of cases of autism in
children...).

The campus ban has caused all kinds of issues, especially for the University, since it's now their responsibility to work to find off-campus housing for the 400 affected students, and to make special arrangements to allow these students to complete their coursework for the semester.

Of course, I'm probably the lone voice in the wilderness decrying this act -- yet another case of something stupid and dangerously wrong being enacted in the name of "the common good." But as if to underscore my point, there have been a whopping eight laboratory-confirmed cases of mumps in the entire state of Maine, and just thirty-five suspected cases. So I know who's being ridiculous here. It's not the students -- especially not the 20 students who stood firm against the vaccination fascists. And it certainly isn't me. Who's left? You do the math.

A sweet solution for kids' coughs.

Fortunately, not all research concludes that the best cure is always found at the business end of a hypodermic needle. In a nice counter to that enraging vaccination story, there's a new study out about a simple, non-medical, and darn tasty solution for children's coughs: a teaspoon of honey. According to a study published in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, this homey folk remedy was better than cough medicine for children. It calmed the cough, helped kids sleep better, and coated and soothed the irritated throat.

This report is like a breath of fresh air. There have been recent warnings about the dangers of over-the-counter cough and cold medicines for children younger than age six, and (shockingly) some Big Pharma companies even removed their baby cough-and-cold products from the market. Of course, many parents already know that honey shouldn't be given to kids from birth until after age one (there's a rare but serious danger of botulism).

I love it when grandma's old remedies are verified by research. This particular study used 105 kids with upper respiratory infections, some were given honey, others a honey-flavored cough medicine. All the kids got better but plain-old honey consistently scored higher than the drugs at combating the symptoms.

Pretty sweet, huh? Helping to keep the needles at bay.