Kristin Cavallari defended her choice not to vaccinate her son by saying the "scary statistics" on vaccines are motivating her to make the "best decision."
"I'm just a mom. I'm trying to make the best decision for my kid," said Cavallari on Bravo. "There are very scary statistics out there regarding what is in vaccines. We feel like we're making the best decision for our kids."
Cavallari received a backlash similar to the criticism aimed at anti-vaccination poster woman Jenny McCarthy, and felt the need to clarify her position. Despite Cavallari's beliefs, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other health organizations have called the link between autism and vaccines erroneous.
Vaccines are necessary for all eligible people to prevent outbreaks like the one happening in New York City right now. Measles made a reappearance in the city, after being considered effectively eliminated in 2000 because of federally-financed childhood vaccination programs. The anti-vaccination trend is one of the cited reasons for its reemergence.
Cavallari has one son and is pregnant with her second, whom she also will choose not to vaccinate.
[Time] [NYT]