Although the vaccine has many individual and social benefits, ‘Vaccine Hesitancy’ has led to an increase in the number of vaccine-preventable diseases.
The aim of this study is to determine the effect of ideas that cause vaccine hesitancy to comply with traditional medicine practices and drugs and to determine the ratio of parents’ preference for so-called alternative medicine (SCAM).
This study was performed on the parents who refused vaccination in their children under the age of 8 between the years 2017-2022. Parents of the vaccinated children who were matched for age and gender were determined as the control group. Demographic characteristics of families, education levels, compliance ratios for well-child follow-up and pregnancy follow-up, preference ratios for traditional medicine and/or SCAM applications were compared.
A total of 123 families, 61 of whom were vaccine refusal and 62 of the control group, were included in the study. It was determined that the ratio of parents who refuse vaccination have increased in the last five years. The education level was found to be higher in the SCAM group (p=0.019). The most common reasons for vaccine refusal were distrust of the vaccine content (72.1%) and noncompliance with religious beliefs (49.1%). It was also found that the ratios of prophylactic vitamin use and tetanus vaccination of mothers during pregnancy were lower in the SCAM group. While the rate of compliance with vitamin D and iron prophylaxis for infants was lower in the vaccine refusal group, the ratio of preference for SCAM was higher.
The authors conclused that vaccine hesitancy is a complex issue that affects public health, in which many individual, religious, political and sociological factors play a role. As with recent studies, this research shows that the most important reason for vaccine rejection is “lack of trust”. The higher education level in the vaccine refusal group may also be a sign of this distrust. Not only the rejection of the vaccine, but also the lack of use of vitamin drugs seems to be related to lack of trust. This may also cause SCAM methods to be preferred more. These results show that providing trust in vaccination is the biggest step in the fight against vaccine hesitancy.
We have discussed the link between SCAM and vaccination hesitancy many times before, e.g.:
- How to reduce vaccination hesitancy?
- Reasons for parental hesitancy or refusal of childhood vaccination
- Anthroposophic medicine and vaccine hesitancy: are there links?
- Endorsement of so-called alternative medicine (SCAM) and vaccine hesitancy among physicians
- So-called alternative medicine (SCAM) and vaccine hesitancy among physicians: findings from Germany, Finland, Portugal, and France
- Echo chambers of vaccine hesitancy and so-called alternative medicine (SCAM)
- Intelligence, Religiosity, SCAM, Vaccination Hesitancy – are there links?
- Vaccine hesitancy and so-called alternative medicine (SCAM)
This new study seems to imply that the common denominator of both SCAM use and vaccination hesitancy is distrust, distrust in vaccinations and distrust in conventional medicine. That makes sense at first glance but not when you think about it for only a minute.
I can see why people distrust conventional medicine (to some extend, I do it myself). But why should distrust motivate some people to put their trust into SCAM which is even less trustworthy than conventional medicine. The rational thing for a distrusting person would be to critically assess the evidence and go where the evidence leads him/her. This path cannot possibly lead to SCAM but would lead to the best available evidence-based therapies.
If we consider this carefully, we arrive at the conclusion that not distrust but a degree of irrationality is more likely be the common denominator between SCAM use and vaccination hesitancy.
What do you think?
8 Responses to Attitudes of Vaccination-Hesitant Parents Towards So-Called Alternative Medicine (SCAM)
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“Motivation is the master of reason, always. Reason is never the master of motivation” – as the fella said.
So I previously believed utterly in vaccination, as did/does everyone else: you remove the “sting” and inject the remains, hence the body gets to learn and to defend itself against a harmless form of the pathogen. It is the perfect solution and so obvious that a child can understand it, what’s not to like?
Hence the motivation is just that: vaccination is the perfect solution: avoid getting sick in the first place + never get sick from that thing again!
But evidently, some folks (including me) have changed their minds, despite their “reason” (motivation) – how come? From direct experience (in my case, what happened to my wife).
Once trust is broken, that’s it, because… how many lies does it take?!
If one is lied to once, the motivation switches from blind-trust to alert-distrust, “Let me take a look at that first… perhaps I’ll wait until the phase IV trials are over!”
What lie were you told, Old Bob?
The Mother of All Lies, is of course, that your government has your best interests, and that leads to all the other lies.
A tougher question is: When did your government last tell the truth? E.g. when was the last time we were only promised “…blood sweat and tears…”?
@Old Bob
“At a press conference on August 12th, 1986, US President Ronald Reagan said, “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.””
However the medical establishment in this country (UK) was fully behind vaccination. So was the govt but I did not look to the govt (it was led by a moron). But the medical establishment and my own knowledge of how RNA/DNA vaccines work which made me trust.
In essence they get the cells they go into to make the viral protein part which would be in a protein vaccine. When cells are made to do that they put some of those proteins in concert with an immune protein complex on their surfaces saying “I think I’m infected”. A Dentritic cell comes along and takes it then presents it to a T-Cell which learns it and starts making antibodies.
We can change the protein as it changes in the vaccine by just tweaking the RNA/DNA sequence. In the past you would have get some tissue culture cells to make lots of the protein then purify it through numerous steps. Then test it it phase 1 trials etc. It takes years to bring a protein vaccine to market.
RNA/DNA vaccines were the coming thing anyway. Covid was just their first big use because we needed it fast and they could produce it fast.
Some people sadly are harmed by vaccines. We try to learn which ones and avoid them. My sisters in 1972 could not have the smallpox vax I had because they had excema & it inflames the skin. I still bear the scar from it on my shoulder.
“I still bear the scar from it on my shoulder.”
The scar was not caused by the smallpox vaccine itself:
@Obsolete Currency
Ah, it’s Fallacy Bingo time!
I believe I spotted the nirvana fallacy, a hyperbole, a straw man, projection and false framing.
Anyone else found any more?
No, I didn’t look for any more,but , surely, that is more than enough.
@aged,,_duck has proven a lack of grasp of reality.