Anti-vaccine chiropractors 46

The Chiropractic Board of Australia has had enough:

The Chiropractic Board of Australia cracks down to protect the public.

The Chiropractic Board of Australia is cracking down on chiropractors who step outside their primary role as healthcare practitioners and provide treatment that puts the public at risk.

To protect public safety, the Board has:

– ordered practitioners to remove all anti-vaccination material from their websites and clinics
– removed several courses from the list of approved CPD programs, and
– introduced random audits of practitioner compliance with the Board’s registration standards. [Media Release August 8 2013]

Meet Mr Warrick Hooper. He runs a manipulation business in Victoria, called The Spinal Centre. Hooper is a member of the Chiropractors’ Association of Australia. With condolences to the  Chiropractic and Osteopathic College of Australia (COCA), he also claims to be one of their members. We know the CAA always welcomes Hooper’s type, however, we’ll see how long he remains a COCA member, after COCA are advised of this post. [edit September 13 2013: See comment below from Dr John Reggars. Hooper is not a member of COCA, and has not been since 2004. This is as expected]

In fact, the manipulation business isn’t Hooper’s only venture. He also runs an online shop, where you can buy online tests, and buy online supplements, and where you can even get diagnosed online. Hooper is the founder and director of Emed, and he isn’t altogether clear, in the Emed title, as the CBA demand, that he is a chiropractor, and not a doctor. His Emed bio is the same as his other business, except for the business names:

But, this series is about anti-vaccine chiropractors. So, here is Hooper’s business’s website, on the subject of vaccines. He even uses the hesitant-baby-is-concerned-at-the-needle-phalanx meme; but, he isn’t anti-vaccine:

Here is more of the text underneath that post:

But what if I said there was a cost benefit relationship to vaccination?

Indeed there is a cost benefit relationship to all medical interventions. For example, we think it is free, but it comes out of our ever increasing medicare levy.

Indeed we bribe mothers to do it – and vilify those that don’t. Either way – the tax payer foots the bill.

Do I have concerns that benefits of vaccinations have been overstated? Well Yes.

Do I have concerns that the public is unaware the epidemiological data shows many of the childhood illnesses that drug companies claim as their victory, were mostly irradicated prior to  any vaccines being administered? Yes.

Do I have concerns about some of the ingredients and preservatives in vaccines? Yes. I talk about these on the site.

Do I have concerns that many vaccines (particularly in recent times the fluvax) are rushed to market without adequate testing? Yes.

Do I think that all children need Hepatitis B vaccines at birth? No. Show me the data.

Do I think the vaccine schedule for kids to have around 60 vaccines by the time they turn 12 is excessive? Well Yes. Show me the safety data on that many vaccines given in quick succession (no trials exist).

Do I believe in the altruistic principles of a multinational drug company to provide the cleanest, purist product to be injected in to my kids – for the lowest government tender? Probably not.

Do I think drug companies cherry pick their data, and only publish the good stuff? Certainly do – and have been doing it for years.

Do I think vaccination is safe? Percentage wise the data is not too bad. As long as your kids are in the majority you should be ok.

We know that children will have reactions, some mild while others have died. And yes the government has paid out for vaccine related injuries in the US.

The problem is we don’t know which kids are going to be affected. We don’t know how they will be affected. And we don’t really have good reporting structures or support for those that are affected.

We know that attenuated viruses in vaccines are taken up by the kids’ DNA – but we are not sure what it does. And we don’t know how that will up regulate or down regulate code within the DNA.

Do I think vaccination confers immunity? Well, for many it appears not – hence the need for so many boosters.

Therefore, am I anti vaccination? No. But I am not really ‘provax’ either.

And don’t think for a minute that this is a one-off. These are the other articles listed under that screed:

And:

Back in May 2013 Hooper linked this blog post from his Facebook page:

Firstly, proving how he can completely misrepresent the Australian immunisation schedule for his own purposes, Hooper states that children receive, “60 vaccines by the time they turn 12”. We know this is bollocks. It’s an anti-vaccine staple. Then, proving how he does not understand epidemiology, nor immunology, he rounds off with this:

Couple of points here.

Do the ‘rich’ know something that others don’t. Are they reading material that others are not?

Or are they just incredibly lazy when it comes to the health and wellbeing of their children – because they are too busy on holidays?

Are they questioning socialist medicine? Or should we all just do what we are told is best for us?

As much as I cop an enormous amount of heat for stating the obvious, most epidemiological studies show that the ‘eradication’ of child hood illness has more to do with public hygiene, clean water and covered sewage than mass vaccination programs.

Whilst I do think there is benefit in some vaccination programs – they do come with a cost benefit relationship.

Unfortunately new ‘outbreaks’ that occur can often be attributed to the very vaccine administered to ‘prevent’ the illness.

Currently, the vaccination schedule for children is to have and every increasing and worrying amount of vaccines. Up to 60 by the time they turn 12.

So if your child has not had 50, 60, 70, or 100 vaccines by a designated date, by the authorities that be, is this grounds to not educate them?

Where does this begin, and where does it end.

Do we force children to be medicated irrespective of our beliefs, concerns, caution or religious backgrounds?

I would be interested to know, how many of the kids with measles actually had the measles vaccine?

Herd Immunity?

The final point worth considering in this is the concept of herd immunity.

This is a fancy term, that sounds plausible, but is completely unscientific.

If you don’t vaccinate your kids, then how are you putting others at risk?

Vaccination either works or it doesn’t. If you truly BELIEVE (and that what I think it comes down to – believers and non believers) then what have you got be worried about?

By vaccinating a number of children, you don’t somehow magically confer immunity to other children. Each individual has there own immune function.

Immunity is truly multi-factorial. Clean water, clean home, personal hygiene, good diet, exercise, optimal vitamin d levels etc. etc. all impact on immune function.

What the hell is going on with the Chiropractors’ Association of Australia, and Hoopers?

I hope the CBA starts investigating this guy, really soon.

Apart from the rabid anti-vaccinationism, this is a bad look.