Ruby legend Richie McCaw’s wife has explained why she vaccinated their three-month-old daughter in a fiery Instagram post aimed at anti-vaxxer Taylor Winterstein.
Gemma McCaw took to Instagram on Thursday to share an adorable snap of her husband holding their daughter Charlotte.
‘Safe in her daddy’s arms. Safe getting her 12 week vaccinations. Safe in knowing she will protect herself and others she cares about,’ the post read.
‘Safe in knowing she will help protect the community from preventable disease. Safe in the knowledge that she will help protect future generations.’
The wife of New Zealand star Richie McCaw (pictured holding Charlotte) has posted a slamming social media post explaining why she vaccinated her three-month-old daughter
Gemma McCaw (pictured left) took to Instagram on Thursday to share the adorable snap of her husband holding their daughter Charlotte
The column comes after it was revealed Manly Sea Eagles player Frank Winterstein (right) and his wellness-blogger wife Taylor (left) don’t vaccinate their two children Ziggy and Hendrix
It comes after wellness blogger Taylor Winsterstein, wife of NRL player Frank Winterstein, caused outrage by promoting $200-a-head anti-vaccination workshops.
The blogger with nearly 16,000 followers on Instagram claimed parents were ‘bullied and pressured by doctors’ into immunising their kids.
Mrs McCaw’s post quickly garnered attention, receiving almost 300 comments and 15,000 likes in just two days.
Most of the feedback was positive, with many young mothers thanking her for being ‘thoughtful’.
One comment read: ‘Thanks for highlighting that we vaccinate for our community not just our kids!’
‘Thank you for being an advocate for children’s health and community wellbeing Gemma. Perfect timing for those immunisations,’ another user wrote.
On Tuesday wife of AFL legend Tom Harley slammed Winterstein for using her platform to promote anti-vaccination agenda.
Mrs Flynn’s post quickly garnered attention, receiving almost 300 comments and 15,000 likes in just two days
Felicity Harley (pictured), the wife of AFL legend Tom Harley, slammed social media personalities who use their influence to promote anti-vaccination ‘propaganda’
Mother-of-two Felicity Harley, whose son almost died of meningococcal at just five weeks old, blasted ‘irresponsible’ public figures for pushing the ‘anti-vaxxer’ movement.
She described the heartbreaking story of how her son Hugo almost died, calling it the ‘worst day of her life’.
Her son survived Meningococcal B – an infection that kills one in every ten diagnosed with it – against all odds after bacteria made its way into his spinal cord and brain.
Taking to her personal social media account, Mrs Harley wrote that his survival made her a strong believer in vaccinating.
‘This is why I get ANGRY when influencers are on front pages of newspapers & declare they don’t vaccinate their kids,’ she wrote.
Mrs Harley penned a column saying other wives and girlfriends of football players need to be accountable for the messages they send to their followers
Mrs Harley (pictured with Tom) said her son’s survival after contracting meningococcal B made her a strong believer in vaccination
‘The anti-vaxx movement is the biggest threat to our global health.’
Penning a column for Whimn, Mrs Harley said social media influencers like Taylor had a responsibility to their followers not to push ‘social propaganda’.
She said that Taylor’s workshops, called ‘Making Informed Decisions’, ran the risk of misinforming parents to the detriment of their children’s health.
‘Taylor has every right to weigh-up the big risks for her own two kids. Worryingly, her decision increases the risks for our kids, too,’ she wrote.
She said the $200 admission fee for the workshops was ludicrous, and questioned how Taylor planned on dismissing decades of medical research.
Mrs Winterstein’s ‘Making Informed Choices’ workshop will be touring across Australia, New Zealand and Samoa from March until July. Tickets cost $200 each
‘Will she actually present both sides? Where are her facts? What is her formal education in this space? If her kids aren’t vaccinated, then what’s her true intention?
‘The ideological anti-vaxx movement has little evidence to support their claims. Time and time again, studies prove the absolute opposite.’
Speaking to the Daily Telegraph on Monday, Mrs Winterstein described herself as an ‘ex-vaxxer’, saying she was determined to raise awareness of ‘vaccine injury’.
‘The benefits of vaccines are constantly over-exaggerated and the risk of an adverse reaction severely downplayed by politicians, journalists and GPs.’
She claimed extensive testing of vaccinations had not been carried out in Australia.
Mrs Winterstein said many other wives and girlfriends of NRL players had similar views.
Mother-of-two Shanelle Cartwright (left) said she and her footy star husband Bryce Cartwright (right) have not immunised their children and ‘don’t trust hospitals’
‘The amount of NRL players and their partners who consciously choose not to vaccinate would seriously surprise you,’ she posted to Instagram.
‘I know for a fact there are many high-profile, ”influencers” on social media among the sport and wellness industry, who do not vaccinate their children but won’t publicly share their beliefs.’
Gold Coast Titans star Bryce Cartwright’s wife Shanelle has publicly said she does not believe in vaccinating her children or making them wear nappies.
The young mother said she and Cartwright had not vaccinated their son, would not use nappies for their second child and ‘don’t trust hospitals’.
Mrs Cartwright said instead of vaccinating she and her husband focused on the ‘gut health’ of their youngsters by ‘exclusively breastfeeding’ for the first six months.
Health authorities warn anti-vaxxers threaten the public’s ‘herd immunity’ against disease.