Anti-vaccination talk sways parents

Parents may be susceptible to the anti-vaccination rhetoric of politicians, says the author of a new report.

The pro-vaccine lobby faces hurdles.

Parents may be susceptible to the anti-vaccination rhetoric of politicians, says Elissa Zhang from UNSW Medicine, lead author of a paper published in the journal BMJ Medicine last week. It followed a study on the views people had after watching vaccine messages from medical and political leaders.

“For this study, we showed over 400 Australian parents of children under five years negative vaccine-related messages from the United States President, Donald Trump, and Australian senator Pauline Hanson,” Zhang says.

“A positive vaccine message was shown from former Australian Medical Association president Dr Michael Gannon.”

Before viewing the messages, 2 per cent of the parents had fixed anti-vaccination views and more than 20 per cent had fixed pro-vaccination views, and they did not change during the study.

Of the remaining parents, those who expressed a general acceptance of vaccination were more hesitant after viewing the negative messages from the politicians but unmoved by the message from the doctor.

Health authorities say recent measles outbreaks in Australia emphasise the need for children — and adults — to be up-to-date with their shots.

All infants should start consuming eggs and peanuts in their first year of life to help prevent food allergies — even those who are at high risk.

That is a recommendation in guidelines published by the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy, and published in the Medical Journal of Australia. The guidelines say eggs and peanuts should not be introduced before four months and solid foods generally at about six months of age.

The recommendation for eggs and peanuts followed a study of 640 kids with severe eczema, egg allergy or both. Led by Preeti Joshi, chairwoman of the ASCIA pediatric committee, the study found those who consumed peanuts had a 1.9 per cent incidence of peanut allergy at age five compared with 13.7 per cent of those who avoided peanuts.

The authors reiterate that parents of children with one of those pre-existing conditions should still involve their doctor in diet selection. However, it is hoped the changes will halt the increase in food allergies.

“Food allergy has been increasing in incidence worldwide, with rates in Australia among the highest in the world,” the authors write.

The guidelines were first published in 2016, and updated in 2017 and last year, with research set to continue.

Half of all Australian households are likely to have insecurely stored medicines, creating a risk for young children.

A survey conducted by NPS MedicineWise found easily accessible medicine by the bedside (18 per cent), on a shelf in the kitchen or living room (18 per cent) or in the fridge (14 per cent).

Households with children were no more likely to keep the medicine out of sight and reach than households without children.

“Children are naturally curious and can easily swallow medicine left within their reach,” says Jill Thistlethwaite, from NPS MedicineWise.

“Medicine not meant for them, possibly taken in multiple doses, can have frightening effects on their little bodies.”

Alarmingly, researchers have reported an increase in intentional overdoses among older children, aged five to 19, between 2006 and last year. The most common medicines involved were those sold over the counter, along with those often prescribed to children.

For the older children, the biggest concern was their intent, and the risk that self-harm would lead to suicide. “The number of self-poisonings in young people has nearly doubled in the last decade, which is alarming,” says Rose Cairns, from the University of Sydney.

“We found self-poisoning is happening at a younger age and the cohort most affected are those born after 1997.”

One day, young children may be able to avoid intrusive tests for gut damage and coeliac disease by simply blowing into a glass tube.

Flinders University researchers will trial whether a breath test can measure a digestive enzyme found in the small intestine and associated with gastrointestinal damage and coeliac disease.

Lead researcher Roger Yazbek says, if successful, the new test could do away with the need for traumatic, costly and sometimes unnecessary endoscopic procedures.

“Not only will these tests improve patient quality of life but potentially save the healthcare system time and money, particularly if adapted for point-of-care testing in rural and remote areas,” Yazbek says.