What to do about vaccinations

I was vaccinated as an infant, and a child, and I never had a bad reaction (that I can remember).  Nor has my mother told me that I had a reaction to a vaccination.  I was raised to trust doctors, they are the ones that went to medical school, they have the most current information etc.  Not that it has stopped me from doing my own research on the matter.

So now that I am growing my own tiny human, and with the digital age and all of the information out there...I have begun to think about what I will do with my own Baby Fish when she arrives.  A few weeks ago I was adamant that I would NOT allow Hep B, or the Vitamin K injections, the so called "risks" were just too great...but after more research, and talking to the hospital staff where I will deliver, and the pediatrician I have chosen, I have decided to allow it, I asked that they give a preservative free version.  My pediatrician said that all of their vaccines are preservative free except for the one multi shot they give.  There are groups on Facebook that spout the evils of the pharmaceutical companies, people that I know that area also against vaccinations, citing aluminum as their reasoning against them.  So I did more digging...turns out the vitamin K injection does NOT contain any aluminum...

Photo from http://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/

And there is a preservative free version of the Hep B vaccine....so why the big fuss?  The warnings are clear to physicians and nurses alike that there are precautions that need to be taken to ensure that the infant being immunized is safe to do so.  Mostly relating to a latex allergy, vaccinating premature babies (under 2000g at birth) and supervising post shot to watch for anaphylactic reactions.  This seems normal for ANY shot given to ANY person from the flu shot, to a life saving penicillin shot (which my Paternal Grandfather helped test).  Side effects noted for the Heb B vaccine, which I will note happened in 1% of cases were irritability, fever, diarrhea, fatigue/weakness, diminished appetite, and rhinitis.  These cases are listed from most common, and then decrease in order of frequency (found on http://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov).

If you are still questioning if shots at birth are right for you, check out this article on 10 Irrefutable Pro-Vaccine Arguments. If you are looking for something specifically the Vitamin K injection I recommend this article that can be found at Evidence Based Birth.  Because bleeding in infants is no joke!  And while you are there check out more of their articles...I'm so glad I found them before I made a silly decision based on the fear mongering that happens in online birth groups and other websites!!!

And there is one more thing I would like to leave you with regarding the subject of vaccinations and autism.