Jay Gordon (physician)

Jay N. Gordon (born 1948) is an American pediatrician, lecturer, and author. He is well-known within the anti-vaccine movement for his promotion of vaccine hesitancy.[1][2] He is also a long-time advocate of breastfeeding; he became a member of the International Health Advisory Council of the La Leche League in 2005.[3][4]

Jay Gordon
Born
Jay N. Gordon

1948 (age 72–73)
NationalityAmerican
Known forVaccine hesitancy
Medical career
ProfessionDoctor
FieldPediatrics
Websitedrjaygordon.com

Gordon's patients have included Eliza Jane Scovill[5] and the son of the actress and anti-vaccine activist Jenny McCarthy.[6]

Views on vaccination

Gordon claims that, to an individual child, the risks of vaccination often outweigh its benefits. Therefore, he stopped following the recommended vaccine schedule for his patients in 1980, although he still administers vaccinations to some children on a case-by-case basis.[1] Gordon has cited the debunked connection between vaccines and autism among the alleged risks to children that prevent him from routinely administering vaccinations.[1] He has signed hundreds of personal-belief exemptions to school vaccine requirements.[7]

In a 2015 interview with Ben Tracy of CBS News, Gordon was asked about the risk of contagion should someone with measles walk into his office, given that most of his patients delay or avoid the measles vaccine. Gordon responded: "You just said it, they'd get measles. Not meningitis, not the plague, not Ebola, they'd get measles. Measles is almost an [sic] always a benign childhood illness."[7] However, Dr. Deborah Lehman at Cedars Sinai Medical Center says: "People don't remember children staying in dark rooms because they have measles and the light hurts their eyes and developing brain swelling and serious developmental problems, we've given people a false sense of security and it's situations like this, outbreaks like this [Disneyland measles outbreak] that really remind us of the importance of these diseases and really the benefit of vaccine [sic]."[7]

Selected works

Gordon is the author and co-author of several books and a DVD, including:[8]

  • Brighter Baby (1999)[9]
  • Listening to Your Baby: A New Approach to Parenting Your Newborn (2002)
  • Good Nights: The Happy Parents' Guide to the Family Bed, and a Peaceful Night's Sleep! (2002)
  • The ADD and ADHD Cure: The Natural Way to Treat Hyperactivity and Refocus Your Child (2008)
  • Vaccinations? Assessing the Risks and Benefits (DVD) (2008)[8]
  • Preventing Autism: What You Can Do to Protect Your Children Before and After Birth (2013)

References
  1. "Dr. Jay Gordon – "Anti-Vaccination"". sciencebasedmedicine.org. December 3, 2008.
  2. Stern, Marlow (2019-11-02). "Bill Maher's Show Has Gone Completely Off the Rails". Retrieved 2019-11-02.
  3. "LLLI Health Advisory Council". Web.archive.org. Archived from the original on December 22, 2005. Retrieved 2013-08-18.
  4. "Health Advisory Council". LLLI. 2011-05-20. Archived from the original on 2005-12-22. Retrieved 2013-08-18.
  5. "A Mother's Denial, a Daughter's Death". Los Angeles Times. September 24, 2005.
  6. "Jenny McCarthy's Autism Fight". CNN. 2 April 2008. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
  7. Tracy, Ben (January 27, 2015). "Doctor explains why he lets kids avoid the measles vaccine". www.cbsnews.com. CBS News. Retrieved December 28, 2018.
  8. Unknown author. "Search results for Jay Gordon". World Cat. Retrieved August 31, 2013.
  9. "Brighter Baby". Regnery.com. Retrieved 2013-08-18.
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