DTaP and Dairy

[MBombardier]

I went to a new PCP on Monday, and really liked her. I had forgotten that I was going to get a tetanus booster, but she reminded me that I needed one. She also mentioned the current whooping cough epidemic here, and that I should get that. I said I didn't need it, but she said it came with the tetanus. I think what she meant was that her office didn't have anything but the tetanus/whooping cough combo, so I agreed, since I am around tiny babies and young children a lot, and I really don't want to get or give whooping cough.

Monday night I starting thinking about the possibility of shedding whooping cough virus when I was thinking about a meal I wanted to fix for the daughter of a friend who had a baby on Monday. I suppose there is some possibility of that, but since the virus is attenuated, it's less likely.

What I found out in my research is that the DTaP has casein. I read about these little babies with milk allergies reacting after the shot, and that Dr. Bob Sears (the new Dr. Spock) says that whooping cough vaccine can be avoided by children with a milk allergy.

So it probably wasn't just the rice flour in the cookies I ate that caused some significant problems for me yesterday and some joint pain today.

[Deb]

My PCP was pushing the combo too, even though my tetanus wasn't due, but I told her I'd wait. We are having an outbreak of whooping cough in our area which is pretty disturbing though. We have gotten quite a lot of third world immigrants moving here in recent years which I suspect is contributing to this. I'm not sure which, if any, immunizations are mandatory.
Casein???.....who'd have thunk?