Darla Shine, the wife of White House communications chief Bill Shine, falsely claimed on Wednesday that childhood diseases such as measles "keep you healthy" and "fight cancer."

In a series of tweets promoting anti-vaccination conspiracy theories – views which she has espoused publicly for years – Shine bemoaned the fact her children had received the MMR vaccine, which shields recipients against measles, mumps and rubella. She falsely claimed that her generation, the Baby Boomers, were healthier now, because they had measles as children.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN's chief medical correspondent, noted that while people who contract measles do have lifelong immunity, so do nearly all of the people who receive the MMR vaccine.

"If you get the vaccine, the CDC says you're protected for life as, well," the doctor said. "Which would you rather have: The risk of death? The risk of encephalitis? The risk of hospitalization? Millions of cases? Or the two shots?"

Gupta suggested that because measles is highly contagious, getting the MMR vaccine is a decision that concerns others. Babies, he said as an example, are not able to get vaccinated until they are 12 months old, so they are not protected.

https://www.salon.com/2019/02/14/a-doctor-debunks-darla-shines-anti-vaccination-claims-that-diseases-like-measles-keep-you-healthy/

Categories: Disease Functionalism, Anti-Vax Movement, Individuals, Right Wing Medicine, Conspiracy Theorists