About this Blog
Momfidence! cheers on commonsense parenting and sighs at the rest. How to worry less, wing it more. A.k.a. parenting by the seat of my mid-rise mom jeans.
About Paula SpencerI'm the author of Momfidence! An Oreo Never Killed Anybody and Other Secrets of Happier Parenting, and a mom of four in Chapel Hill, North Carolina (where you can't even buy Oreos at the two wholesome groceries nearest to my home). 
A rare foto in which all six Spencers face the camera! by Charles Harris
Some Kindred Blogs
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No Thanks to Gardasil; Here's the Best Answer WhyAugust 21, 2008
Didn't get around to pointing this out yesterday: Excellent must-read summary of the history and status of the controversial Gardasil vaccine in NYT. I've been opposed to vaccinating my preteen and teen daughters ever since I first heard about it -- and will fight tooth-and-nail against any push to make the vaccine mandatory for school attendance -- and this article reassures me that I'm correct.
I'm wildly pro-vaccine. BUT not for any ol' germ out there that my kids a) can't catch easily b) won't put them in mortal danger anyway, c) is not evaded by herd immunity and d) involves a vaccine untested on the young and rammed through to the public with tactics better suited to, uh, Frosted Flakes. Elisabeth Rosenthal's priceless lead says it all: "In two years cervical cancer has gone from obscure killer confined mostly to poor nations to the West's disease of the moment." More key sentences: "Cervical cancer is classified as very rare in the West because it is almost always preventable through regular Pap smears." "Indeed, because the vaccines prevent only 70 percent of cervical cancers, Pap smear screening must continue anyway." The two-page story goes on to point out that they have no idea how long protection lasts (vaccinate an 11-year-old and maybe it wears off by the time she's sexually active anyway); that HPV is sexually transmitted (not something preteens can catch in the air, like measles or polio) and anyway usually benign; that the process for its approval was deeply suspect and driven by marketing; and it's a drain of healthcare resources away from true killers. UPDATE: And it's not cost-effective, either, says new study. SECOND UPDATE: As Cathy points out in Comments: Worst measles outbeaks in a dozen years; feds blame parents refusing vaccination (with a proven, safe, and necessary vaccine). |
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