Infections or injections? Vaccines, heart disease and cancer

Thursday, December 03, 2015 by: Neil Z. Miller
Tags: MMR vaccines, cancer risk, heart disease

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(NaturalNews) Although cases of measles and mumps declined after measles and mumps vaccines were introduced, scientists now realize that childhood infections serve a valuable function and may be necessary for normal development of the immune system. For example, earlier this year, a large Japanese study found that a history of measles and mumps in childhood is significantly protective against deadly heart attacks and strokes during adulthood.⁽¹⁾ In this study, more than 100,000 men and women 40 to 79 years of age were followed for several years to determine their rates of mortality from atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

Men who contracted measles in childhood were significantly less likely to die from total cardiovascular disease than men who were not infected with either measles or mumps. Men who had mumps were significantly protected against dying from a stroke. Men who had both measles and mumps in childhood were significantly less likely to die from a myocardial infarction, that is, a heart attack.

Women who had both measles and mumps in childhood were significantly less likely to die from total cardiovascular disease than women who had neither infection. They were also significantly protected against dying from a stroke. The results of this study may be explained by the "hygiene hypothesis," which proposes that infections suffered during childhood are necessary for normal development of the immune-system-regulating T helper cells, Th1 and Th2, which control inflammation at the arterial wall leading to atherosclerosis.

In another recent study, scientists found that adults who contracted chickenpox during childhood were significantly protected against coronary heart disease such as angina pectoris and heart attacks.⁽²⁾ They were 33% less likely to develop coronary heart disease than adults who never contracted chickenpox. Each additional contagious disease contracted during childhood, such as measles, mumps or rubella, increased the protective effect against acute coronary events by 14%. According to the authors of this study, "Childhood contagious diseases had a protecting effect against coronary heart disease. The risk for acute coronary events decreased significantly with increasing number of childhood contagious diseases."

Vaccines and cancer

Several diseases have oncolytic (anti-cancer) properties. For example, tumor remissions after measles infection are well documented in the medical literature. Scientists have known for quite some time that infections in early life protect against various cancers in later life. Later-born children have less cancer than first-born children because they are exposed to more infections in early life from their siblings. Children who go to daycare in early life are more protected against cancers for the same reason. Vaccinations denied babies opportunities to become naturally infected, and with this reduction in exposure to disease there was a tradeoff – increased rates of cancer.

In Miller's Review of Critical Vaccine Studies, ample scientific evidence is presented showing that infections protect against cancer while vaccines – which are designed to prevent infections – increased cancer rates.⁽³⁾ For example, Newhouse found that women who contracted mumps, measles, rubella or chickenpox had a statistically significant reduction in the risk of developing ovarian cancer. Kolmel found that individuals who contracted influenza, measles, mumps or chickenpox had a decreased risk of developing skin cancer later in life. Other researchers found that people with a history of chickenpox or influenza are significantly protected against brain tumors.

Albonico found that that adults are significantly protected against non-breast cancers – genital, prostate, gastrointestinal, skin, lung, ear-nose-throat, and others – if they contracted measles, rubella or chickenpox earlier in life. Montella found that contracting measles in childhood reduces the risk of developing lymphatic cancer in adulthood. Alexander found that infection with measles during childhood is significantly protective against developing Hodgkin's disease. Glaser also found that lymph cancer is significantly more likely in adults who were not infected with measles, mumps or rubella in childhood.

Gilham found that infants with the least exposure to common infections have the greatest risk of developing childhood leukemia. Urayama also found that early exposure to infections is protective against leukemia. Other studies confirm that children who receive MMR, pertussis or hepatitis B vaccines have a significantly elevated risk of developing leukemia.

Summary

Heart disease, cancer and strokes cause more than half of all deaths in the United States. People may legitimately argue over whether the reduction in childhood ailments in exchange for an increase in deadly heart attacks, cancer and strokes is a good thing or a bad thing but the tradeoff is a real thing that must be considered when weighing the honest risk-to-benefit ratio of vaccinations. This information must be given to parents and they must be free to accept or reject vaccinations if they are to retain true informed consent and have their human rights preserved.

References:

1. Kubota Y, Iso H, et al. Association of measles and mumps with cardiovascular disease: the Japan Collaborative Cohort (JACC) study. Atherosclerosis. 2015 Jun 18; 241(2): 682-86.

2. Pesonen E, Andsberg E, et al. Dual role of infections as risk factors for coronary heart disease. Atherosclerosis. 2007 Jun; 192(2): 370-75.

3. Miller, NZ. Miller's Review of Critical Vaccine Studies: 400 Important Scientific Papers Summarized for Parents and Researchers. New Atlantean Press. 2016: VacBook.com

About the author:
Neil Z. Miller is a medical research journalist and the Director of the Thinktwice Global Vaccine Institute. He has devoted the past 25 years to educating parents and health practitioners about vaccines, encouraging informed consent and non-mandatory laws. He is the author of several books on vaccines, including Miller's Review of Critical Vaccine Studies: 400 Important Scientific Papers Summarized for Parents and Researchers (2016) and Vaccine Safety Manual for Concerned Families and Health Practitioners (2015). Past organizations that he has lectured for include the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association, the International College of Integrative Medicine, Maximized Living, Autism One, the Hahnemann Academy of North America, and Dr. Gabriel Cousens' Culture of Life Institute. Mr. Miller has a degree in psychology and is a member of Mensa.