I took Mallory to the Dr. for her 4th grade physical the other day. They wanted to give her the Human papillomavirus vaccine, (HPV or Gardasil) but I opted out on it. These are my reasons for opting out on the immunization.
- I think she is just way to young to be messing with her hormones.
- She just turned 9 so she isn't sexually active and not being a naive mom, I'm still guessing she won't be sexually active for a few more years.
- The Journal of American Medicine Association (JAMA) states in it's 8/19/09 issue "it is impossible to predict exactly what effect vaccination of young girls and women will have on the incidence of cervical cancer 20 to 40 years from now. The true effect of the vaccine can be determined only through clinical trials and long-term follow-up."
So I'm comfortable with my decision to opt out and will probably be opting out for at least the next 3-4 years.
What's your opinion on the vaccine?