Ways to prevent or minimize vaccine reactions
Before vaccinating your child(ren), ask yourself the following questions to assess their risks.
- Is my child sick right now?
- Has my child had a bad reaction to a vaccine before?
- Does my child have a personal or family history of vaccine reactions? Convulsions or neurologic disorders? Severe allergies?
- Immune system disorders, such as autoimmune disease?
- Do I know if my child is at high risk of reacting?
- Do I have full information on the vaccine’s side effects?
- Do I know how to identify a vaccine reaction?
- Do I know how to report a vaccine reaction?
- Do I know the vaccine manufacturer’s name and lot number?
The following things are recommended to minimize and/or reduce vaccine reactions.
- Get a copy of the Vaccine Information Statement before your child’s immunization visit so you can read it before the scheduled appointment and formulate questions. These statements are available from your pediatrician or from www.immunize.org.
- Tell your doctor if your child has been recently ill, or anyone in the family is currently ill. Evidence suggests that having a viral or bacterial infection may prevent the body from mounting an adequate antibody response to vaccination.
- Compile a complete family history, including adverse vaccine reactions, a history of seizures or autoimmune disease, neurologic disease or severe allergies. Give a copy to your child’s doctor and ask that it be included in their medical record.
- Apply pressure to the site of injection before and after the vaccination to minimize pain.
- An ice compress applied following vaccination can reduce local reactions.
- Vitamin A (cod liver oil) at the daily recommended intake level for age. This varies between 1250-1500 IU/day. Ask your child’s doctor.
- Give Vitamin C on the days before and following vaccination. It protects against adverse reactions. Give 150 mg liquid Vit C twice a day for infants the day of and after vaccination. Toddlers should be given 300 mg twice a day, in liquid or chewable form.
- As much as possible, give vaccines one at a time. It minimizes the chance, however small, that the vaccines may interact with each other or stress the immune system too much, and ensures you’ll know which vaccine is to blame if your child reacts.
- Homeopathic Ledum 30C for puncture wounds.
- Homeopathic Silica 30C for reducing the risk of neurological sequelae.
- Homeopathic Thuja 30C for minimizing adverse reactions.
- Keep your kids healthy, with good nutrition, healthy exercise and low stress. Healthy kids are less likely to react to any given vaccine, and less likely to become severely ill following infection.
- Essential fatty acids and probiotics for at least a month prior to vaccinating, to stimulate the appropriate immune reaction to the vaccine.
Kelly Owens, ND. Last revised 4/06