Health Answers

A very common vaccine that is used for adults and children alike is the Flu vaccine. There are some mild allergic reactions to this vaccine, however rarely any serious problems arise.

The flu virus itself has been deactivated so that you don’t actually get the flu from the flu shot. The most common reactions include redness, swelling and soreness.

You may even experience flu like symptoms with aches, pains and a slight fever that can last for a couple of days. If there is a more severe allergic reaction it will usually appear within a few hours of receiving the injection.

The vaccine that is given to children to fight against mumps, measles and rubella is the MMR vaccine. The allergic reactions are from mild to moderate and there is a bit of concern about whether or not it has been linked with the onset of autism.

The reactions that are mild include swelling of the glands in the neck and cheeks, although rare, a mild rash and fever. The more severe allergic reactions include temporary stiffness and pain in the joints, seizures and low platelet count that causes a bleeding disorder.

A severely debilitating disease that once left it’s victims with physical disabilities and paralysis has been all but eliminated since the creation of the Polio vaccine. The inactivated polio vaccine, referred to, as IPV should never be given to someone that has had a prior allergic reaction to streptomycin, neomycin, polmyxin or IPV.

When it comes to immunizing your children, it is best to do some research and decide for yourself if the risk of serious reactions are worth the benefit of the shot. One thing you can do if you decide to immunize your children is to give the shots at intervals.

Doctors are very quick to give several shots at the same visit. Tell your doctor you would rather get one immunization that day and come back for several visits to get the rest. This could eliminate some of the problems parents are seeing in their children.

I will never forget when I took my youngest in to get her shots. They gave her 5 different things in one visit. She wasn’t the same sweet little girl for a week or two after that, and I wonder what all those chemicals did to her. After that, I was much more careful and only allowed one vaccine at a visit.

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