Six Months Old

My baby is 6 months old today. It happens to be his cousin's birthday...it's a fun thing to share half birthdays (Hubby and I do!)
So, 6 months...he's old enough for solids now, right? Ah well, he's been nibbling on things for a couple of weeks. Today it was apricots, but in the last two weeks he's also tried banana, nectarine, apple, and watermelon. He liked them all--especially the nectarine, watermelon, and apricot which I put in a *baby safe feeder for him. He wasn't very excited about the whole spoon idea--he doesn't mind chewing on the spoon but doesn't want to eat off of it. But give him a BSF and he can hold it himself and suck out all the juice...and he's in heaven. I'll have to get a picture. Today he had apricot pulp out to his ears. (Oh, he's also tried plain cracked wheat and rice cereal...the rice cereal he feels is not truly food, and I have decided to agree with him and will probably not try it again...especially since it involves prepareing something separate for him. But the cracked wheat is something I eat, and he always wants whatever I'm eating, so he'll get more tries of that!)

*The baby safe feeder was invented by a father whose baby nearly choked to death on a teething biscuit. It has a little plastic handle which the baby can hold, and a mesh baggie into which I can put fruit or veggies. The baby can suck the juice (and a lot of pulp) out of the food, but without danger of choking. It's also nice because not only do I not need to worry about choking, but I also don't have to worry about peeling or removing seeds...I'm so glad someone thought to invent this!

"I Want to be Just Like You"...Thoughts on Parenting

This morning I heard a favorite song of mine on the radio. Sometimes it makes me cry, but it always strengthens my resolve to be a better parent. I wanted to share it here. (It's written from a father's perspective, but is still applicable of course.)

"I Want to be Just Like You"
performed by Phillips, Craig and Dean
Written by Dan Dean and Joy Becker

He climbs in my lap for a goodnight hug
He calls me Dad and I call him Bug
With his faded old pillow and a bear named Pooh
He snuggles up close and says, "I want to be like you"
I tuck him in bed and I kiss him goodnight
Trippin' over the toys as I turn out the light
And I whisper a prayer that someday he'll see
He's got a father in God 'cause he's seen Jesus in me

Lord, I want to be just like You
'Cause he wants to be just like me
I want to be a holy example
For his innocent eyes to see
Help me be a living Bible, Lord
That my little boy can read
I want to be just like You
'Cause he wants to be like me

Got to admit I've got so far to go
Make so many mistakes and I'm sure that you know
Sometimes it seems no matter how hard I try
With all the pressures in life I just can't get it all right
But I'm trying so hard to learn from the best
Being patient and kind, filled with Your tenderness
'Cause I know that he'll learn from the things that he sees
And the Jesus he finds will be the Jesus in me

Lord, I want to be just like You
'Cause he wants to be just like me
I want to be a holy example
For his innocent eyes to see
Help me be a living Bible, Lord
That my little boy can read
I want to be just like You
'Cause he wants to be like me

Right now from where he stands I may seem mighty tall
But it's only 'cause I'm learning from the best Father of them all

Lord, I want to be just like You
'Cause he wants to be just like me
I want to be a holy example
For his innocent eyes to see
Help me be a living Bible, Lord
That my little boy can read
I want to be just like You
'Cause he wants to be like me

I want to be just like You
'Cause he wants to be like me

Cooking With Me

I've done it. I've started a recipe blog.
I try to stick to healthy foods most of the time. I believe that natural (organic) foods taste better, in addition to being better for you, and I try to utilize a variety of foods in my cooking. I get really bored having just the same few things all the time, so I'm always interested in new recipes or different flavors.
In the blog, I'm tagging each recipe with an ingredient list, so if you know that you're fond of tomatoes for example (or you have 14 zucchini and no idea what to do with them all!) then you can search the sidebar by ingredient, and find recipes with that ingredient. I'm also tagging by ethnicity (if applicable), so if you're fond of Indian, well, you can search by that!
I'll also be sharing links to my favorite online recipe sources.
Enjoy!

Vaccines--Hep A

Two doses of Hep A are required for school attendance. The MTC also recommends this vaccination for any missionaries who will be traveling internationally. (The CDC suggests that risk is negligible in USA, Canada, Western Europe, Scandinavia, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand. Risk is particularly high in Central and South America, Asia, the Middle East, most parts of Africa, and the Western Pacific.)

Hepatitis A vaccines come in 3 forms: Havrix, VAQTA, and Twinrix (which is a Hep A/Hep B combo). Havrix contains the preservative 2-phenoxyathenol, while VAQTA has no preservatives, however the CDC warns that neither is approved for administration to a child under the age of 2. I could not find information about approved ages for Twinrix, but considering that it contains the same Hep A as the others, I presume that the >2 years old guideline holds. [update--Twinrix is an adult dose, and only approved over age 18, so it's not a valid option if you are considering it for childhood vaccinations.]
Full vaccination consists of 2 doses, a minimum of 6 months apart. The vaccination schedule recommends giving this vaccine between the ages of 12-24 months (did they not read the Pink Book?! The CDC even put the "not approved under 24 months" part in boldface!)

Hepatitis A is the most common form of Hepatitis reported in the United States. It is often thought of as a foodborne illness, but that is not entirely accurate. Hep A is actually acquired via fecal-oral transmission (yes, you heard that right--you get sick when poo from an infected person gets into your mouth). So, in other words, if someone with Hep A neglects to wash their hands after using the toilet, and then handles your food, then yes, you could get Hep A 'from food'...but it wasn't really the food.
In the United States, approximately 14% of reported cases of Hep A come from 'personal contact' with an infected person (this could be sexual, or just regular household contact such as diaper changes, cleaning the bathroom, etc). 10% of cases came from male homosexual activity; 8% were daycare related; 6% drug use; 5% international travel; and 4% foodborne. However, since 45% of Hep A infections came from 'unknown sources,' we actually have no way to know if any of the data here is actually correct...
Risk groups for Hepatitis A are: international travelers, homosexual men, illegal drug users, those with blood clotting disorders, and people who work with Hep A-infected primates. Food handlers, health care workers, and waste management workers are NOT at increased risk, although their diligence or negligence could affect the risk of others.

As an interesting note, Hepatitis A rates are disproportionately high in the western part of the United States in recent decades. Between 1987-97, 11 states (AZ, AK, OR, NM, UT, WA, OK, SD, ID, NV, and CA) reported 50% of the nation's cases of Hep A, in spite of the fact that they have only 22% of the nation's population. So, for those living in those states, I would infer that risk is somewhat higher than for those residing in other parts of the country.

If one is infected with Hepatitis A, it is almost always very mild. The highest rates of infection are between the ages of 5-14 years old, but as many as 70% of children under age 6 are asymptomatic (this means that the virus gets into their system, but nothing happens). Asymptomatic infection does increase the risk for those around the child though, since nobody knows they are infected, and may not take proper hygenic precautions (with a potty-training child for example). In older people, asymptomatic infection is not common, and >70% get jaundice.
Hepatitis A is fatal in about 0.3% of acute cases (increasing to 2% of cases where the person is over 40 years old). That may be an inaccurately high number though, since so many cases are asymptomatic that it is virtually impossible to know how many people are or have been actually infected.

In the event of an outbreak, vaccination seems to be effective at disrupting continued spread of the infection.
At this time, no serious reactions have been attributed to any Hep A vaccine. The vaccines are too new for comprehensive studies to be completed about duration of efficacy, however the CDC estimates that immunity is effective for 20+ years.

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My conclusions:
While the true danger of this disease seems minimal, and the risk of acquiring it also fairly low, it does seem a wise precaution for international travel--especially to third world countries. Considering that we hope/plan to travel, and also that we live in one of those western states, we will be getting this vaccine for our children, however we will wait until they are at least 2 before beginning the series.

And the Doctor says...

Here are some quotes from educated people--most of them doctors--about vaccination: (thanks to my friend Alisa for the references! She has a WEALTH of carefully-researched information at her blog)

Boldfacing found within the quotes is mine.


"There is a great deal of evidence to prove that immunisation of children does more harm than good."
Dr J Anthony Morris, former Chief Vaccine Control Officer, US Food and Drug Administration

"Official data have shown that the large-scale vaccinations undertaken in the US have failed to obtain any significant improvement of the diseases against which they were supposed to provide protection."
Dr A. Sabin, developer of the Oral Polio vaccine (lecture to Italian doctors in Piacenza, Italy, Decemeber 7th 1985)

"Laying aside the very real possibility that the various vaccines are contaminated with animal viruses and may cause serious illness later in life, we must consider whether the vaccines really work for their intended purpose."
Dr W.C. Douglas (Cutting Edge, May 1990)

"No batch of vaccine can be proved to be safe before it is given to children"
Surgeon General Leonard Scheele (AMA Convention 1955, USA)

"The only wholly safe vaccine is a vaccine that is never used"
Dr James A. Shannon, National Institute of Health, USA

"Live virus vaccines against influenza and paralytic polio, for example, may in each instance cause the disease it is intended to prevent..."
Dr Jonas Salk, developer of first polio vaccine (Science 4/4/77 Abstracts)
[It should here be noted that no 'wild' polio has been recorded in the United States in the last decade or so...but that ALL cases of polio have been the result of vaccination...]


On Smallpox

"Vaccination does not protect, it actually renders its subjects more susceptible by depressing vital power and diminishing natural resistance, and millions of people have died of smallpox which they contracted after being vaccinated."Dr J.W. Hodge (The Vaccination Superstition)

"Immunisation against smallpox is more hazardous than the disease itself."Professor Ari Zuckerman, World Health Organisation


Whooping Cough

"There is no doubt in my mind that in the UK alone some hundreds, if not thousands of well infants have suffered irreparable brain damage needlessly and that their lives and those of their parents have been wrecked in consequence."
Professor Gordon Stewart, University of Glasgow (Here's Health, March 1980)

"My suspicion, which is shared by others in my profession, is that the nearly 10,000 SIDS deaths that occur in the US each year are related to one or more of the vaccines that are routinely given to children. The pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine is the most likely villain , but it could also be one or more of the others."
Dr R Mendelsohn, Author and Professor of Paediatrics (How To Raise A Healthy Child In Spite Of Your Doctor)

"The worst vaccine of all is the whooping cough vaccine...it is responsible for a lot of deaths and for a lot of infants suffering irreversible brain damage.."
Dr Archie Kalokerinos, Author and Vaccine Researcher (Natural Health Convention, Stanwell Tops, NSW, Australia 1987)


Polio

"Many here voice a silent view that the Salk and Sabin polio vaccine, being made of monkey kidney tissue has been directly responsible for the major increase in leukaemia in this country."
Dr F. Klenner, Polio Researcher, USA

Vaccines--HiB

The Hib vaccine is not required for school, so it an optional vaccine, even for those who believe in full, on schedule, vaccination.

It is an inactive vaccination, which means that they kill the virus before injecting it. This means that it is a reletively safe in that regard (you're not terribly likely to catch the actual disease from the vaccination). However, the vaccination also contains ethanol (toxic, a depressent and tranquilizer) and aluminum hydroxide (which causes constipation, loss of appitite, tiredness, and muscle weakness). Aluminum is also a heavy metal, and getting too much into your system at once will poison you; especially if you are small. This vaccine is also one (of several) which has been linked to increasing rates of Type1 Diabetes in children.

The first HiB vaccine came out in 1983, but was pulled in 1985, because it was not effective for children under 18 months old (which is when the primary danger is), and furthermore it actually caused a few cases of HiB. In 1990 a new HiB vaccine was licensed. The current vaccination is successful (gives immunity) approximately 93-95% of the time

It is on the schedule at 2m, 4m, 6m, 12-15m (booster) and 'catch-up' doses can be given up to age 3. If the child has not been vaccinated for HiB at all, and is over 15m, then the CDC says that one dose is considered sufficient for full vaccination. Doses must be a minum of 4 weeks apart, but 8 weeks apart is optimum. The last dose must be given after the age of 12m and must be a minimum of 8 weeks after the prior dose.
The CDC states that the HiB vaccine does not require booster doses (although one is on the schedule!!) It is not given to older children or adults. (We shall soon see why!)

HiB itself is NOT a type of flu, but is mis-named because the doctor who originally identified it thought that it was related to the flu which was going around at the time, and named it accordingly (Haemophilus influenza type B). Nobody has bothered to correct the name. In and of itself, HiB is really not dangerous, but has been found to lead to meningitis (inflamation of the brain), which, of course, is dangerous. HiB was almost unknown until recent decades, and the medical community believes that it is probalby the result of a mutation of an older bacteria, and that the mutation probably resulted from increasing usage of antibiotics. HiB is usually ampicillin-resistent--a confirmed example of mutation and resistence to antibiotics. (Yes, boys and girls, we are making super bugs now.)
Risk factors for Hib include: weak or weakened immune system, poor diet, being in daycare, smoking (including second-hand smoke), bad housing/living conditions, and not being breastfed. The risk of getting HiB is also somewhat increased during the 7 days immediately following a HiB vaccination. HiB is almost unheard of among breastfed, non-daycare children (whether vaccinated or not). Getting an invasive (ie-serious) infection of HiB is very rare even among higher risk groups. (In other words, even if you get it, you will most likely just get a really mild case.) HiB is most common around 6-7m old, and is virtually non-existent in children over the age of 5.

Prior to the invention of the HiB vaccination, most children acquired natural immunity by 5 or 6, via asymptomatic infection (ie, they got the virus but had no symptoms or 'sickness' from it).
One interesting observation is that HiB via vaccine introduces only one type of antibody, whereas natural HiB introduces several types, and may provide more complete protection than the vaccine is able to.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There you have it. That is the research.
My conclusion? Unless the baby will be in daycare, or will not be breastfed, there is not much point in getting this vaccine. If your child is in a low risk group, and since getting the vaccine increases the risk of infection, I would venture to say that for some people getting the vaccine may actually make them more likely to get HiB than if they did not get it. Something to think about! If you do want to get it, your child can get 'fully vaccinated' in just one dose (rather than four) if you do it at age 15m or later. However, since the primary risk is around age 6m, is there a point in vaccination at 15m?!

Vaccines--Introduction

Today I am beginning a series of entries about vaccines. I believe that vaccines are good in general, but that there are dangers associated with them, and that it is a poor parent who does not take some time to research them and make choices for their child, rather than just blindly accepting the "recommended schedule" pushed by most pediatricians. Many vaccines are not safe for some children (such as those with milk or egg allergies), or are not safe at certain times/ages. Some vaccines are not safe for any children (such as the recent rotateq--which has killed more babies than the last rotovirus vaccine which was pulled from the market because it was killing babies...). Some vaccines are not even effective (such as the varicella vaccine, which even the manufacturer discribes as being effective for a maximum of 10 years--in other words, as soon as the child is old enough that chicken pox would actually be a severe disease, their vaccination wears off...) Futhermore, many new vaccinations are being released to the market without sufficient testing (the HPV vaccination is causing paralysis, Rotateq is causing death...how did we not test for these things prior to injecting the unsuspecting public?!)

I wish to make one thing very clear right from the beginning--vaccination is NOT the same as immunization. When one is immunized, one is immune from the effects of a disease--this can happen by getting the disease and building up sufficient antibodies, OR (thoretically) by vaccination--by being injected with some form of the disease which is supposed to trigger that same buildup of antibodies. Therefore, I am very careful about which term I use--vaccination and immunization are two very different things, and one is not always connected to the other.

Now, as I said, I do believe in vaccinating. BUT, I do not believe in getting all available vaccinations, nor do I believe in getting as many doses or as early as the schedules recommend. I have been researching this at length, and my research comes from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control), the Pink Book (the CDC's official vax information book), and the package inserts that come with the vaccines themselves. I am not making this up. I am not being suckered in by emotional inflamatory arguments. I am basing my choices on hard science. Facts. If you are bothered by that, or if you have neglected to do the research for your own family, shame on you.

The sites from which I have gleaned my information:
Center for Disease Control
CDC's Pink Book
Utah Public Schools Requirements for Vaccination
Utah Health Department's Recommendations for Vaccination (Also includes listings of the MTC's recommendations for missionaries)
Health Sentinel (this site has graphs of infection rates, and shows their changes over time, including the affect of the introduction of various vaccines.)
Package Inserts (This is actually a series of articles which summarize the contents of the package inserts. Each article includes a link to the original insert, but those are hard to slog through. I know this author personally, and hold her above reproach in her research. All the research I have done backs up everything I have found in her articles.)

You Know You're A Breastfeeding Mom If...

I collected this list from MDC and thought I would share, as it has had me in stitches over and over again...

* you hear the doorbell and look down to make sure you're not hanging out.
* you hear the doorbell and forget to look down and make sure that you're not hanging out (and end up giving the UPS man the surprise of his life).
* you buy clothing based on how well you can nurse in it.
* you feel the almost irresistable urge to nurse other people's crying (or formula fed) babies.
* you think nothing of grabbing and groping yourself in public to figure out which side to nurse on first.
* you wake up with a breast hanging out of your nighty, but can't remember taking it out.
* you are really good at one-handed typing because you are always NAK (nursing at keyboard).
* you blame your typos on NAK.
* your children--female AND MALE nurse their baby dolls.
* your three year old picks up a bottle at playgroup and says "what's this?"
* your five year old loves the new kitten so much she nurses it.
* you don't bother latching up your bra (or wearing a shirt) because you know you'll be nursing again in a few minutes.
* you wake up with hickies on your breast because the baby tried to latch on himself and it took a few tries to find the right spot.
* when your six year old (loudly) announces to a stranger in the store that they need to nurse their crying baby.
* when you nurse while walking around shopping...
* even without a sling!
* you are starving all the time.
* your husband has to cut up your meat for you because you're always eating one-handed (because the baby likes to eat when you do).
* you're not lactating, but still want to nurse sad babies (or grandbabies).
* you squirt things (or people) with your milk. On purpose.
* you take family pictures and don't realize that you have a breast hanging out.
* you have breast pads laying all over the house.


YOU KNOW YOU'RE EXTENDED BREASTFEEDING IF...
* you get out of the shower and are drying your legs and your toddler runs in and latches on...
* when your toddler sees you changing clothes and always want to nurse (because of the sight of the almighty milky maker!)
* you are in a public place and your toddler announces (loudly) "I want booby" or something of that nature...
* your toddler points to the bras in the store and exclaims "milk! milk!"
* your toddler points to busty women and yells "milk!"


YOU KNOW YOU'RE A BREASTFEEDING FATHER (FATHER OF A BREASTFED CHILD) IF...
* you feel sorry for women who feel like they have to hide under huge blankets or covers when nursing in public.
* you feel sorry for bottle-fed babies.
* you know your wife's nursing bra size.
* you know how to disassemble, clean, and reassemble your wife's nursing pump.
* the baby cries so you bring it to your wife to nurse.

"Food is for fun...

...until they are one"

http://www.tribalbaby.org/babyLedEating.html

How nice to know that I'm not the only one who feels this way. :-)

A Horrible Mother

Sometimes I am a horrible mother.
I have all these ideals about how I want to raise my children, but sometimes I don't do them very well.
*I believe in wearing my baby, keeping him close to my body where he feels secure and comfortable...but several times I've carried him into the store in the 'baby bucket' carrier carseat.
*I believe in feeding my family wholesome, natural foods...but right now there are (homemade) peanut butter cups in my fridge, and ice cream in my freezer. And I've eaten from both in the last 24 hours.
*I believe in gentle discipline, with no yelling or spanking or illogical consequences/punishments and no 'because I said so' reasoning...but I've done all of the above at various points.
*I believe in buying locally and supporting small business...but sometimes I go to Target, or even [gasp] to Walmart.
*I believe babies should be 100% breastfed until at least age 6mo...but at 5.5mo when S was begging, I let him start tasting my food. I believe that no baby needs juice, even 100% juice (even watered down), and that if you're going to give it to them you should wait until they are around a year...but today when S was inconsolable, and started reaching for my cup of juice, I put a half oz of juice (and 2 oz of water) in a bottle and let him have it. He ADORED it, and stopped screaming long enough for me to eat some dinner.
Sometimes I feel like such a hypocrite. I believe in these things. I tell the world loud and clear what I think about how we all should be...and then I'm not much of an example of it, am I? I want to be the perfect mother, but sometimes I am just clinging to survival...

S spit up most of the juice afterwards, by the way, but at least he's finally happy.