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> the risk of your child dying from, say, polio is much much higher than the risk of him/her dying from the vaccine. That isn't the case, assuming you're non-A

> the risk of your child dying from, say, polio is much much higher than the risk of him/her dying from the vaccine. That isn't the case, assuming you're non-Amish in the US is it? The last naturally occurring case of polio in the United States was in 1979, and health officials consider the disease eliminated in the Western Hemisphere. So your risk of contracting wild polio is effectively 0. If the death risk of the polio vaccine is 1:1,000,000, you would still have a higher risk of dying from the vaccine. NB: I believe in vaccines, but I don't think it's wise to try and make arguments in the quoted way.

hobs 13y ago
What about herd immunity? We all need to get the vaccine so that those who definitely cannot are protected from the fact that they cannot contract it from anyone around them. Polio still exists, and not vaccinating yourself might just start to wear away at that defense. Earlier this year, researchers confirmed that a 2010 whooping cough outbreak in California, the nation's worst in over 50 years, was spread by children whose parents applied for non-medical exemptions to school vaccination requirements, many for religious reasons. http://www.healthline.com/health-news/children-anti-vaccination-movement-leads-to-disease-outbreaks-120312 http://www.healthline.com/health-news/children-anti-vaccinat...
ars 13y ago
> So your risk of contracting wild polio is effectively 0. Hardly. Polio has been detected in sewage in the Middle East (multiple countries). So far the only actual cases are in Syria, but that's pure luck (1% chance per disease per person), it could spread very very easily.
- Domenic_S 13y ago
  I can't believe you quoted that and missed where I said specifically I was talking about the non-amish US population, and the western hemisphere.
  - ars 13y ago
    I didn't miss it at all. That was exactly what I was replying to! There is this perception of immunity in the US, but people travel. A lot. If the US slows down polio immunization they will see cases. (Not sure what Amish has to do with it, but Amish have lots of contact with non-Amish people. Most especially they grow food which is a very common vector.)

hobs 13y ago

What about herd immunity? We all need to get the vaccine so that those who definitely cannot are protected from the fact that they cannot contract it from anyone around them. Polio still exists, and not vaccinating yourself might just start to wear away at that defense. Earlier this year, researchers confirmed that a 2010 whooping cough outbreak in California, the nation's worst in over 50 years, was spread by children whose parents applied for non-medical exemptions to school vaccination requirements, many for religious reasons. http://www.healthline.com/health-news/children-anti-vaccination-movement-leads-to-disease-outbreaks-120312 http://www.healthline.com/health-news/children-anti-vaccinat...

ars 13y ago

> So your risk of contracting wild polio is effectively 0. Hardly. Polio has been detected in sewage in the Middle East (multiple countries). So far the only actual cases are in Syria, but that's pure luck (1% chance per disease per person), it could spread very very easily.

Domenic_S 13y ago
I can't believe you quoted that and missed where I said specifically I was talking about the non-amish US population, and the western hemisphere.
- ars 13y ago
  I didn't miss it at all. That was exactly what I was replying to! There is this perception of immunity in the US, but people travel. A lot. If the US slows down polio immunization they will see cases. (Not sure what Amish has to do with it, but Amish have lots of contact with non-Amish people. Most especially they grow food which is a very common vector.)