DISQUS

KatieBee RN · 7 months ago

Oh Dr. Val. Oh. I have cringed so many times over Ms. McCarthy. I watched the video, expecting my heart rate to increase and to get flushed (which of course is probably because I had milk in my cereal this morning). I just laughed. Laughed so loud my colleagues looked at me funny. I notice that Ms. McCarthy uses a lot of "I think" and "I believe" and "Here's what I think you should do" when discussing her revolutionary scientific findings. I especially found it funny when she discussed the weakness of small children's upper bodies, and how that is attributed to the toxins released from eating gluten. It's not because children do not use upper body muscle like they do lower body muscle. I notice she's hawking vitamins and supplements that are made industrial factories and whose claims are not founded by the FDA, nor are these things regulated, so they might have TOXINS in them.

I really cringe just to think that someone might take this person seriously, and would take her medical/nutritional advice? I've also noticed that Ms. McCarthy is a lead spokesperson for a Suavanomics campaign put on by the Suave product line. Suave products contain things that I would think Ms. McCarthy would consider TOXINS. The chemicals in these products are not regulated by the EPA, and often have to be proven bad before they are given any kind of toxicity rating. Vaccines are tested, tested, tested, and have to meet the highest standards I can think of for safety, unlike their personal product counterparts.

Sure there is research and transparency efforts we can do to improve vaccines image - I fully support people's ability to make decisions. But those decisions need to be made on rational, factual information, not what someone thinks or was told by a celebrity.

I also appreciated the letter from the mother. I hope it doesn't take a return to babies dying of HIB-induced meningitis or whooping cough to have a return to confidence in vaccination.

lisa · 7 months ago

You've put your finger on it - the "whaaaa?" one feels when being criticized for daring to question another mother's rejection of logic and evidence.

I'm afraid to think of how many of the parents at our playground would fall for Jenny saying something like "if you believe it, it becomes your reality." Hello, people? Would you not laugh if you heard your preschooler saying that?

Shirley · 6 months ago

Thanks for posting about this. Just to clarify: I wrote the letter quoted above and I am not a mother (yet). I commented at the original post in Science-based Medicine but it doesn't seem to have been corrected.

Bongi · 6 months ago

i also want to believe there will be peace in the world and that poverty will be eradicated and when i get an email from a nigerian lawyer claiming that i am about to inherit thousands from a long lost uncle that i am indeed about to inherit thousands. but somehow to charge in without proof seems to me to be a bit stupid. to send your children forward smacks of world war one generals. i do not get it.