Nathan Boonstra MD
Husband, father of boys, Lutheran, pediatrician, gifted/2e child advocate... maybe a bit of a sci-fi geek. I debunk vaccine myths like Spock and McCoy combined.
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Editorial: Anti-vaxxers can't traffic in violent language then claim ignorance when someone gets hurt
Anti-vaccination groups have publicly disavowed the man who shoved Sen. Richard Pan. But these groups have been casually deploying violent imagery for years. What did they think would happen?
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Nathan Boonstra MD
Antivaccine leaders, groups, and pages are rife with racist and violent language and imagery. It’s a feature of the movement, not a bug.
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States with stricter gun control regulations have fewer mass shootings: study
States with stricter gun laws and lower rates of gun ownership in general saw a lower rate of mass shootings between 1998 and 2015 than did other jurisdictions where gun laws were more relaxed, according to a new study.
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Nathan Boonstra MD
I know you are still reeling over that study that showed vaccines don't cause autism but I have another shocker for you
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Notes from the Field: Tetanus in an Unvaccinated Child — Oregon, ...
In 2017, a boy aged 6 years who had received no immunizations sustained a forehead laceration while playing outdoors on a farm; the wound was cleaned and sutured at home. Six days later, he had ...
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Nathan Boonstra MD
This poor boy was unimmunized, got tetanus, spent 47 days in the ICU, and "Despite extensive review of the risks and benefits of tetanus vaccination by physicians, the family declined the second dose of DTaP and any other recommended immunizations." 😠😠😠
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Iowa Senate panel rejects anti-vaccine proposals
A Human Resources subcommittee on Tuesday voted against advancing the bill that would have created the Vaccination Safety and Right of Refusal Act.
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Nathan Boonstra MD
I'm so glad to see our legislators taking a stand for public health. Two antivaccine bills, including SF239, were rejected in subcommittee today. #vaccineswork
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The world’s platform for change
Change.org is the world’s largest petition platform, using technology to empower more than 100 million users to create the change they want to see.
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Nathan Boonstra MD
Over 9,000 ppl have signed the change.org petition to oppose SF239, which would allow personal belief vaccine exemptions in Iowa. Who knows how meaningful such a petition is, but the comments (all Iowan, as far as I've found) are encouraging.
change.org/p/iowa-legisla…
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1.45 Million Children's Lives Saved By HiB and Pneumococcal Vaccines Since 2004
Childhood deaths from two leading bacterial causes of pneumonia and meningitis, pneumococcus and Hib, declined sharply during the period 2000 to 2015, especially as vaccines against these pathogens we
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Nathan Boonstra MD
Pardon me, but it is #VaxFactsFebruary day 12.
I just wanted to tell you that pneumococcal and Hib vaccines have saved about 1.5 million children's lives worldwide.
Carry on.
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124 cases of measles now confirmed in Rockland County
The update from Rockland County comes as health officials continue to scramble to contain a measles outbreak in the U.S. Northwest that has sickened 35 people in Oregon and Washington since January 1, with 11 more cases suspected.
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Nathan Boonstra MD
@EHAT406 @MkTeritoryPD @GretchenLasalle @somedocs @PeterHotez @doritmi A whole bunch of antivaxers think this article is saying 31 out of the 124 NY cases are unvaccinated when in fact it is saying 31 out of the 35 WA/OR cases are unvaccinated.
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Sanofi's pediatric hexavalent vaccine approved by U.S. FDA
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Sanofi's new pediatric vacci...
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Nathan Boonstra MD
We could be looking at fewer needles for babies soon. A hexavalent vaccine is now FDA-approved, containing DTaP, polio, hep B *and* HiB, & may be available by 2020. Hopefully, this will mean only 2 shots at 2, 4, and 6 month visits, not 3. #vaccineswork
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Gal Gadot joins Israeli vaccine campaign amid measles outbreak
‘Listen to doctors,’ urges Wonder Woman star
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Nathan Boonstra MD
Might as well pack it up, measles. Wonder Woman is on our team. #VaccineLeague
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The NRA Tells Doctors: “Stay In Your Lane”
On the audacity of medical professionals commenting on matters of public health
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Nathan Boonstra MD
Just wanted to highlight the best line from @WFKARS debut piece on Arc Digital:
"Picking out appalling statements by the NRA is rather like shooting fish in a barrel, when the barrel itself is also made out of fish."
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Father of E. coli victim: Nutritionist recommended raw milk
After an outbreak of E.Coli in East Tennessee a 2-year-old boy remains in the hospital.
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Nathan Boonstra MD
Two important points in this article.
1. Raw milk can be extremely dangerous and should never be given to children.
2. "Nutritionist" does not mean "registered dietician." The latter is a regulated term and a far better source of nutrition information.
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Leading vaccine skeptic Dr. Bob Sears put on probation by California medical board
Under the decision, Sears can keep practicing medicine but will be required to take medical education courses for 40 hours a year, as well as an ethics class, and also be monitored by a fellow doctor. He also must notify all hospital and medical...
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Nathan Boonstra MD
"In addition to the complaint that launched the Sears investigation, more than 50 others have been filed against physicians who are accused of improperly writing exemptions in the past 3 years, according to the state medical board."
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Most Parents' Guns Are Stored Loaded Or Unlocked--Even If Kids Might Hurt Themselves
In more than half of U.S. households where children live and parents own guns, the firearms are not stored unloaded and locked up -- even if the children have higher risk of suicide.
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Nathan Boonstra MD
Can't stress enough the importance keeping firearms, if you choose to own them, stored locked and unloaded. Safe storage reduces gun accidents & suicides, & too many store firearms unsafely - even in houses w children at high risk for self harm.
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16 flu deaths in Salt Lake County this season | KSL.com
Sixteen people have died from the flu this season in Utah's most populous county, health officials said Friday.
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Nathan Boonstra MD
“Just 3 percent of those who ended up hospitalized with the flu in Salt Lake County had been vaccinated, according to the data.”
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SXSW Festival Slammed For Including HIV/AIDS Denialist In 2018 Wellness Expo
South by Southwest's announcement of its first annual Wellness Expo is drawing ire from Brogan's critics for anti-vaccine, HIV/AIDS denial, and other harmful claims.
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Nathan Boonstra MD
@melindagates @BillGates @gatesfoundation This is not a good fit for @gatesfoundation. #VaccinesWork @melindagates @BillGates
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Seriously, How Deadly Is Measles?
Lots of numbers are thrown around regarding the death rate of measles. Let's do a deep dive into the stats.
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Nathan Boonstra MD
What would the actual death rate of measles be today, as well as before vaccines? It's not easy to answer, but I put together all the stats I could find to try to come up with a ballpark figure. Share and enjoy.
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Podcast
Support Voices for Vaccines and its podcast by donating here. Vax Talk is the podcast for people who want to do something about outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases and who understand that knowledge is power. We will discuss the latest news...
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Nathan Boonstra MD
@ChelseaClinton Thanks for sharing this! @Voices4Vaccines and I had the joy of interviewing @aetiology on episode 9 of our podcast.
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Pertussis Vaccine In Pregnancy Protects 9 Of 10 Newborns From Whooping Cough
The most effective way to prevent whooping cough in a young baby is the mother's vaccine booster during pregnancy.
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Nathan Boonstra MD
Prenatal Tdap **91%** effective preventing severe #whoopingcough in newborns. Absolutely vital vaccine in pregnancy
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