In the United Kingdom, the NHS (Britain’s National Health Service) recommends 9 vaccines with 23 immunisations by 16 weeks of age.

If you were to assume that immunising infants is to protect them and others from susceptibility to diseases and complications post-contraction, you would be right. As with any immunisation (the most obvious case being COVID), vaccines were created to reduce the spread and minimise the consequences if people contracted a virus. However, one thing I cannot wrap my head around is why we, as a nation, not only accept but encourage the immunisation of newborn babies for diseases like hepatitis B (a sexually transmitted illness), polio (no confirmed cases since 1984), and diphtheria (no confirmed deaths for 65 years).

Now, by no means is this going to be a paper criticising vaccination.

The ability to provide preventative medical care for those who need it is a vital piece of intervention that has saved countless lives. But this also does not disregard the overreach I perceive in terms of certain immunisations. So, my main point of concern is that we over-vaccinate our infants, assuming that each individual fits into a one-size-fits-all programme, and completely ignore any damage caused by immunisations.

To start, I want to question why we are giving infants as young as 8 weeks old a hepatitis B vaccine in the UK. This viral infection can become a chronic condition that causes serious liver damage. But transmission can only occur through contact with infectious bodily fluids such as blood, semen, and vaginal fluids. So, the only way a young infant could contract Hep B is through mother-to-child transmission during childbirth or through such an unthinkable act. However, Heo p B screening is part of the usual NHS cervical screening programme during prenatal care. This means we are vaccinating our 8-week-old infants for a sexually transmitted disease that can only otherwise be contracted if a mother does not get a routine Hep B check-up during pregnancy.

As most people would assume, this vaccine has minimal iatrogenic effects. But even though the damages are difficult to quantify, it is commonly known in the medical community that the Hep B vaccine, especially when given to newborns, has a risk of causing fever, irritability, muscle weakness, severe skin reactions, and breathing that stops during sleep. Also, even though it is one of the most contentious subjects in modern history, the Hep B vaccine has been seen to correlate with autism in children.

Next, we provide 8-week-old infants with a polio vaccine. This highly contagious infection caused by the poliovirus has had no confirmed cases since 1984. One could state that this is due to the vaccine rollout, but these occurred in 1956. However, the biggest changes from then to the mid-80s are the level of hygiene within our general population, especially within our hospitals. The biggest killer of the poliovirus is poor hygiene. This infection spreads easily through unclean water sources, improper handwashing, and inadequate sewage disposal systems. But there is a lot of credit given to the vaccine rollout. Before 1956, there were about 4,000 cases a year in Britain. After its introduction, 90% fewer cases were observed until 1984 when there have been none. So, why do we still vaccinate infants for this virus three times, when no cases have been observed in 40 years?

Similarly to Hep B, the polio vaccine has a number of side effects including fever, swelling, and the creation of allergic reactions. In rare conditions, infants could develop neurological complications like muscle weakness, numbness, and even paralysis. The most interesting part of this vaccination programme is its aluminium-adjuvant base. This means the vaccine temporarily hyperactivates your immune system to make sure a weakened immunisation can function in the way it is intended. However, this means an infant is living with a weakened immune system for a number of days until it is able to fight off the small infection. In theory, this sounds extremely safe: weaken the immune system so it can fight off a minute virus, so your body becomes less susceptible to a stronger version.

But unfortunately, this hyperactive immune system can see usual suspects as foreign invaders. For example, during this period, if your microbiome composition is disrupted, your body can see certain elements as pathogens that it needs to fight off. Prime examples of this are pollen, gluten, dairy, mould, and nuts. Even though these are rare, you must consider the trade-off, especially considering you are vaccinating a child for a virus that has had zero cases in 40 years. Furthermore, this can be related to all aluminium-adjuvant-based immunisations. Other huge contenders are: Hep B, DTaP, Anthrax, Tetanus, MenB, and almost all mRNA COVID-19 vaccines.

The UK alone has paid £74,690,000 in damages for vaccine injuries. The United States has paid almost $5 billion.

By no means am I suggesting you should never get your child vaccinated for any illness. In fact, I believe that in principle, vaccines are the biggest stepping stone in medical human history, maybe just below antibiotics. But, in practice, we have created a culture that fearmongers, and coerces people into vaccinating children, even though there is no difference in mortality between vaccinated and unvaccinated.

My suggestion? Do your own research. Form your own opinion. And do with your child what you see fit. Don’t be coerced into any immunisations without doing your own research. This article only outlined two out of the nine vaccines we give to children by 16 weeks of age. If you take it further, by the age of fifteen, our children have had 23 weakened diseases injected into their bodies.

Don’t take this as an anti-vax workpiece. It is directly the opposite. I firmly believe that every person should understand the possible consequences and make an informed decision themselves. I just hope this is an eye-opener for those who either blindly follow recommendations, and for those who subject themselves to anti-vaccination arguments.