Childhood Vaccinations – Necessary or Overkill?

Clicking any link brings up a page containing a description of the condition plus information about causes and treatments taken from the second edition of Prescription for Natural Healing, by James F. Balch, Jr., MD, and Phyllis A. Balch, CNC [4] James F. Balch, Jr., is a urologist who practiced in Indiana but is no longer listed as licensed in the state medical board's directory, so I assume that he now devotes his time to writing. In a predecessor book published in 1987, he described how Phyllis had counseled hundreds of his patients and used hair analysis and cytotoxic testing as a guide [5]. (Both are quack tests [6,7].) During the mid-1990s, James was also associated with A. Glenn Braswell, a mail-order retailer who flooded the country with brochures (some accompanied by letters under Balch's name) for dubious herbal and supplement products [8].The book's back cover describes Phyllis Balch as "a certified nutritional consultant who received her certification from the American Association of Nutritional Consultants and has been a leading nutritional consultant for almost two decades." She also founded "Good Things Naturally,"a health-food store in Greenfield, Indiana. AANC is a thoroughly disreputable organization whose only membership requirement has been payment of a $50 fee and whose "CNC" designation is based on passage of an open-book examination based mainly on the contents of quacky books [9]About 450 of the book's 608 pages provide an A-to-Z compendium of health problems and the authors' lists of nutrients that are "essential," "very important," "important, "or "helpful." Some lists contain more than thirty items. The authors recommend daily dosages of 3,000 mg or more of vitamin C for everybody ("for maintaining good health") and higher doses (up to 20,000 mg/day "under a doctor's supervision") for dozens of problems. They also recommend daily dosages of emulsified vitamin A ranging from 50,000 to 100,000 IU for many conditions and 75,000 IU for "maintaining healthy eyes." [4:258] The vitamin C dosages are high enough to produce severe diarrhea; and the vitamin A dosages are high enough to cause liver injury. From a scientific viewpoint, the book's advice is loony from beginning to end, but the dietary supplement industry loves it because it enables retailers to refer their customers to an "authoritative" source of advice for nearly every problem the customer may have [10].In 1993, posing as potential customers, FDA agents visited health food stores in 20 communities and asked (a) "What do you sell to help high blood pressure?" (b) "Do you have anything to help fight infection or help my immune system?" and (c) "Do you have anything that works on cancer?" In response to about 20% of the queries, the retailer looked up the answer in Prescription for Nutritional Healing or advised the agent to refer to or purchase it [11].

The best way to avoid being quacked is to reject quackery's promoters. Each item listed below signifies that a Web site is not a trustworthy information source. The hyperlinks will take you to articles on Quackwatch that explain why. The same criteria can be used to identify untrustworthy books, talk-show guests, etc.General CharacteristicsAny site used to market herbs or dietary supplements. Although some are useful, I do not believe it is possible to sell them profitably without deception, which typically includes:(a) lack of full disclosure of relevant facts, (b) promotion or sale of products that lack a rational use, and/or (c) failure to provide advice indicating who should not use the products. During more than 35 years of watching the health marketplace, I have never encountered a seller who did not do at least one of these three things.Any site used to market or promote homeopathic products. No such products have been proven effective.Any site that generally promotes "alternative," "complementary," and/or "integrative" methods. There are more than a thousand such methods. The vast majority are worthless.Any site that promotes "nontoxic," "natural," "holistic," or "miraculous" treatments.False Statements about Nutrition:Everyone should take vitamins.
Vitamins are effective against stress.
Taking vitamins makes people more energetic.
Organic foods are safer and/or more nutritious than ordinary foods.
Losing weight is easy.
Special diets can cure cancer
Diet is the principal cause of hyperactivity.False Statements about "Alternative" Methods:Acupuncture is effective against a long list of diseases.
Chelation therapy is an effective substitute for bypass surgery
Chiropractic treatment is effective against a large number of diseases
Herbs are generally superior to prescription drugs.
Homeopathic products are effective remedies.
Prayer can influence the course of disease.
Spines should be checked and adjusted regularly by a chiropractor.False Statements about Other Issues:Fluoridation is dangerous.
Immunizations are dangerous or do more harm than good.
Amalgam ("silver") filings should be removed because they make people sick.
All teeth that have had root-canal therapy should be removed because they make people sick.

Although government “experts” continue to maintain there is no link between autism and vaccines, they offer no alternative theory for the skyrocketing number of cases.

Such as, why is it necessary to give a newborn baby a Hepatitis B vaccination right out of the womb? Supposedly the only means of contracting the disease for an infant is through it's mother who can be tested for the disease. Is it really necessary for all infants to have the vaccine?

Buzsaw quoted from (DV) Pringle: Get Mercury Out of Vaccines -- NOW! :Although government “experts” continue to maintain there is no link between autism and vaccines, they offer no alternative theory for the skyrocketing number of cases.

We avoid the natural way to keep population down.

But Juggs, using herbs IS pharmacology. They are drugs.

If herbs weren't drugs, then taking them wouldn't have any effect. That's WHY people take them, isn't it? That's why they are called "medicinal herbs", right?

We literally do not know what chemicals many of these herbs contain, and some of them have hundreds and even thousands of compounds. Some might be useful, some inert, and some toxic.

Curare is natural. Arsenic is natural. Cyanide is natural.

But Juggs, using herbs IS pharmacology. They are drugs.

If herbs weren't drugs, then taking them wouldn't have any effect. That's WHY people take them, isn't it? That's why they are called "medicinal herbs", right?

We literally do not know what chemicals many of these herbs contain, and some of them have hundreds and even thousands of compounds. Some might be useful, some inert, and some toxic.

Curare is natural. Arsenic is natural. Cyanide is natural.

When potent natural substances are discovered, drug companies try to isolate and synthesize the active chemical in order to provide a reliable supply. They also attempt to make derivatives that are more potent, more predictable, and have fewer side effects. In the case of digitalis, derivatives provide a spectrum of speed and duration of action. Digitalis leaf is almost never used today because its effects are less predictable. Many herbs contain hundreds or even thousands of chemicals that have not been completely cataloged. Some of these chemicals may turn out to be useful as therapeutic agents, but others could well prove toxic.