KLTV - Chicken Pox parties do more harm than good, says doctor

Even though her 4-year-old son has been vaccinated for Chicken Pox--Dawn Weight would rather have gone au natural.

She isn't against vaccines--she simply thinks getting Chicken Pox is best.

"I think it's better to get it because then your body builds the immunities for it. If you get a vaccine, it's only for that one strand," she said.

And, she would have no problem taking her son to a "Chicken Pox Party."

"If I knew a friend and her kids had chicken pox, my son would be over there," she told us.

Dr. Mike McCrady, a Trinity Mother Frances hospitalist, says that's a bad idea.

"In modern times, we have a very effective and safe vaccine to prevent a disease like chicken pox. The idea that someone would purposefully give a live virus to a person for any reason doesn't make any sense, " said McCrady.

He said Chicken Pox can be fatal. He also told us that some parents have a fear of vaccines because they don't understand how they work. The Chicken Pox vaccine is a weakened form of the virus and won't harm a child like the wild virus can.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• trinity
• mother
• frances
• hospitals
• clinics