Miller, Older, Drake, Zimmerman, American Journal of Diseases in Children. Mar;123(3):197-9.
This is a very old paper, but maybe it’s time we paid attention — even that long ago, they KNEW that the diphtheria vaccine did not prevent contagion and they didn’t tell us, did they? No … the very reason that they told us why we had to vaccinate our children in order to go to school was to prevent contagion …. with a vaccine that doesn’t do it.
In other words, you should be able to decide whether or not this vaccine is appropriate for your child — for his/her personal benefit — rather than be told you have to do it to “protect others.” Why? Because it doesn’t protect others. And they knew it in 1972.
QUOTE: “Diphtheria toxoid helps prevent symptomatic disease but does not prevent the carrier state nor stop the spread of infection.”
QUOTE: “… the known importance of carriers in the spread of diphtheria, and the demonstrated failure of toxoid to prevent the carrier state lead us to conclude that the concept of herd immunity is not applicable in the prevention of diphtheria.”
NOTE: Today Diphtheria can be treated with the antibiotic Azithromycin (the z-pak)
