Last month, our occasionally misguided Director of Health and Human Services stated something factually incorrect, namely that immunity from MMR (measles-mumps-rubella) vaccine wanes at 4.5% a year (it does not) and that “older people are essentially unvaccinated.” They are not. “Older people” (whatever that means) are usually very well protected from measles.
If a person was born after 1957 and received the TWO required MMR stabs, they are protected against measles, despite the new epidemic brought on by exposure to infected (and unvaccinated) people, usually in crowds, like airports or Disneyworld. NOTE: So far, Illinois has no reported cases of measles in 2025.
First: You were born after 1957 (when live vaccine became available), and you know you had two injections, there is no value to getting another.
Second: You were born before 1957, your protection came from the fact that measles was “everywhere,” contagious as Hell, and you’d get lifetime protection just being in school. It swept through my 5th grade class at Oglesby School on Chicago’s South Side like a prairie fire. I had my own case in 1955 or so and I don’t remember much about it. You can see these pictures and so I probably felt pretty awful. High fever, sore throat, rash, no TV or internet but lots of comic books. In retrospect, I used to think my hearing loss was from excessive rock and roll but it was probably the measles, a very common complication.
If you lost your immunization records, or think you only had a single MMR shot, a simple blood test, Measles Antibody Screening Test, will check your immune status. This measures IgG (Immunoglobulin G-Measles) the lifetime protein circulating in your blood that protects if and when you get re-exposed to the measles virus. If your IgG-Measles is “negative,” simply head over to a nearby pharmacy for a pair of MMR shots.
Also, if you were vaccinated between 1963 and 1967, you should be tested to see if you have adequate protection against measles. The vaccine used during those years was “inactivated” and later determined not as effective as those after 1967. Many Infectious Disease specialists simply say that if your immunization records show you received MMR shots during the 1960’s, don’t bother with the Measles Antibody Screening Test, just get the MMR shots x 2 and know for certain you’re protected.
Measles is quite dangerous in adults. Complications include pneumonia, encephalitis and death. Better safe than etc.
But as I said, so far this year there are NO reported cases of measles in Illinois. Really, just consider this Health Tip an advisory depending on who you’ll be with and where you’ll be travelling to.
Now for shingles vaccination information and some interesting developments.
Despite the drug salesman’s pitches and the pile of pre printed prescriptions I was to give to every patient when they reached age 50, I admit I wasn’t wildly enthusiastic for yet another vaccine back in 2006 when Zostavax hit the market. Shingles, a rash that appears along a nerve pathway caused by varicella-zoster virus, the same virus that causes chicken pox in kids. Shingles is easy to treat, especially when diagnosed early, using the antiviral Valtrex. The main complication, pain along the affected nerve, called ‘post herpetic neuralgia,’ is fortunately not common.
The original shingles vaccine Zostavax was released in 2006, and reduced chances of getting shingles by 50%. Good, not great. Enough patients reported side effects after their injection (headache, muscle aches, fever) that it was discontinued in 2020 and replaced by Shingrix which is actually 90% effective in preventing shingles.
90% is obviously much better but the most amazing news about shingles vaccines, both of them, is how they actually reduce the chances that immunized patients will develop Alzheimer’s Disease.
Researchers tracked more than 280,000 adults in Wales and found that the shingles vaccine cut the risk of developing dementia by 20 percent over a seven-year period. The new findings, published in Nature, could have implications for managing the large and growing burden of dementia. The number of Americans developing dementia each year will increase from 514,000 in 2020 to about 1 million by 2060. After age 55, the lifetime risk of developing dementia is estimated at 42 percent.
The shingles vaccines reduce the risk of reactivation of the varicella-zoster virus, the cause of chickenpox in childhood and then remains dormant but apparently smoldering in nerve cells afterward. For some, the virus can get reactivated in adulthood and manifest as shingles.
Reactivations of the varicella-zoster virus are associated with increased dementia risk. A single episode of shingles statistically increases dementia risk by 20%. Although the virus appears superficially in a nerve, it has actually spread throughout brain tissue itself causing widespread low grade inflammation which is increasingly being recognized as important for the development of dementia.
The vaccine tamps down the virus, reduces your brain inflammation and reduces your Alzheimer risk. Shingrix is available by prescription, two injections, 2 to 6 months apart, usually covered by insurance.
Be well,
David Edelberg, MD
Some people operate with facts and not fake news.
Examples of outbreaks among vaccinated populations:
1985, Texas, USA: A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 1987 analyzed a measles outbreak in Corpus Christi, Texas, where 99% of students were vaccinated and more than 95% were immune. The researchers concluded: “Outbreaks of measles can occur in secondary schools, even when more than 99 percent of the students have been vaccinated and more than 95 percent are immune.”
1985, Montana, USA: An article in the American Journal of Epidemiology examined an outbreak of 137 measles cases in Montana, despite a 98.7% vaccination rate. The researchers stated: “This outbreak suggests that measles transmission may persist in some settings despite appropriate implementation of the current measles elimination strategy.”
1988, Colorado, USA: A measles outbreak at a Colorado college infected 84 students, even though over 98% had documented immunity due to strict vaccination policies. Researchers concluded that “measles outbreaks can occur among highly vaccinated college populations.”
1989, Quebec, Canada: Initially blamed on low vaccine coverage, a study published in the Canadian Journal of Public Health concluded: “Incomplete vaccination coverage is not a valid explanation for the Quebec City measles outbreak.”
1991-1992, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: A study published in the Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical found that 76.4% of measles cases in this outbreak had been vaccinated before their first birthday.
1992, Cape Town, South Africa: A study in the South African Medical Journal documented an outbreak where 91% of children were vaccinated, and vaccine efficacy was only 79%. The researchers concluded that primary and secondary vaccine failure contributed to the outbreak.
Adverse Reactions:
Encephalitis (brain inflammation)
Seizures and febrile convulsions
Autoimmune disorders such as Guillain-Barré Syndrome
Chronic arthritis and joint pain
Thrombocytopenia (low platelet count leading to bleeding disorders)
Anaphylactic shock and severe allergic reactions
Increased risk of type 1 diabetes
Why was this yanked?
https://youtu.be/5289k-dbOMY?si=4Cw9j8wt2KWMKwB1
Did you look up the medical info from the two kids in Texas that “died of measles?” Or are you a pharma-bot pushing fake news?
Did you figure out why regressive autism always happens after vaccines are given? Never before? I am curious how you explain that. How did you convince a mother she is wrong when she watched it happen? Did you give her a study to show she is wrong?
Teddy
I was really surprised to learn that many immunization negativism came from Russian trolls and ‘bots. Here’s a CNN link
https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/23/health/russia-trolls-vaccine-debate-study/index.html
David Edelberg, M.D.
Please note: There use to be “measles parties” similar to “chicken pox parties.” That is how bad it was. There was a Brady Bunch episode where a child got measles and they were discussing how it is a nothing burger, but then that episode was magically erased from the history books. Furthermore, look at the mortality rate for measles. It naturally decreased before the vaccine became available. It has remained low ever since. Since the drop in mortality rate happened before the vaccine, it can be considered natural immunity did this and not the vaccines.
The two children that “died from measles” in Texas. Their parents went on the record to get the information out. One child died due to hospital malpractice. The other child recovered from measles and died from other reasons. The person that died in New Mexico was tested for measles after he died, not before. (draw your own conclusions about how much measles played a role in that) Please “do your research” on these so called measle deaths. They are actually not measle deaths.
There is also treatments for measles and the complications that can come from measles. They are available and published.
The US Navy which is fully vaxxed had a measles outbreak. In Montana and a dominantly vaxxed school, there was an outbreak. It is common knowledge that fully vaccinated populations can have measles outbreaks because the vaccine is supposedly very effective?
Measles is not scary and you should not be scared into getting the MMR jab. Do your research beyond mainstream media and look at the actual science. You will see that you are more likely to die or be vaccine injured from the MMR jab than the actual virus. The science and data is out there, they just make it difficult for you to find.
Teddy
I’m very sad to see you promoting any vaccines after seeing what the COVID vaccine has done to people. Vaccines are literally the cause of all disease!!!! I’ve been following the COVID vaccine injuries for 4 years and people are still dying all over the world from this poison. The medical industry is either disturbingly blind or evil, I think I know which one. God does not create a human to need vaccines!!! The body can heal itself! My son suffered from 8 febrile seizures after has “childhood” vaccines in 1989 and his brain has never been right!! Someday you will answer to God for what you’ve done to people with your poison!! Functional medicine is supposed to be better than western medicine but as we can see, that is just an illusion. Shame on you!!! Pharma= The Greek word for “pharmaceutical” or “drug” is φάρμακον (phármakon). This term can also mean “remedy,” “poison,” or “spell,” reflecting its versatile usage in ancient Greek texts.
The word φαρμακεία (pharmakeía) specifically refers to the use of drugs, whether for medicinal or more sinister purposes, such as poisoning or sorcery.
In the context of the New Testament, φαρμακεία is often translated as “sorcery” or “witchcraft,” emphasizing its association with occult practices.
Linn