A father has defended his decision to ban his children from taking medicine - including antibiotics, painkillers and even Calpol.

Richard Lanigan and his wife Janette have never given daughters Molly and Isabelle, 14, and Eloise, 11, medication and say their immune systems are better for it.

The couple, who live in south-west London, even kept one baby away from hospital when doctors told them she was likely to die from whooping cough - and believe the natural nutrients in Janette's breast milk kept her alive.

The girls never took part in their immunisation programme as babies and have never even had a Lemsip.

The only time the three children had vaccinations is when they were immunised before going holiday this summer.

Richard Lanigan and his wife Janette have never given daughters Molly and Isabelle, 14, and Eloise, 11, (pictured is Richard with his daughters)

Mr Lanigan's daughter Isabelle is pictured with chicken pox as an infant, but was not given medicine or pain killers to treat it. Her father claims it has made her stronger

Richard Lanigan (pictured with his wife and their three children) believes keeping calm when his children are ill can help cure them because 'anxiety gets passed on'

Mr Lanigan says avoiding modern medicine is the best thing to do because it maximises his girls' immune systems.

In fact, he is so against unnatural substances, he has never even allowed the trio to take popular children's remedies like Calpol - a paracetamol-based medicine used by millions of parents.

While Mr Lanigan concedes that his approach to health is controversial, he and Janette are certain it has made their children more capable of recovering from illness.

The twins and their sister have barely suffered any health problems - the only thing they have had are occasional colds, but they are rarely severe.

If Richard and Janette Lanigan's children ever had stomach problems when they were little they were given flat cola to settle them (pictured when they were younger)

Mr Laingan's twin daughters, Molly and Isabelle, pictured as babies when they were due their vaccines at 10 weeks, which they were never given

WHEN IS THE MMR VACCINE GIVEN? The NHS already offers the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine to infants, who get their first dose at 13 months and a top-up before they turn five. It is also offered to anyone who hasn't already been given it. The first dose offers protection to the majority of patients, while the second dose helps to cover the remaining and increase the length it works. The NHS states a completed MMR vaccine works for around 20 years. However, the number of children getting the life-saving jab has declined in recent years, according to NHS immunisation figures. This means, in theory, potentially thousands of adults have not been given the MMR jab because of the reluctance of their parents. Currently, the MMR vaccination is advised for travel to the majority of Asia, Africa, India and South America. The Department of Health also recommends that students should have certain vaccinations prior to attending university, including MMR. Advertisement

And he says more parents should follow his lead.

The 61-year-old former chiropractor, who also has a son from a previous relationship, said: 'The evidence clearly demonstrates that you can strengthen children's immune systems by allowing them to play in the dirt when they are young and get infections.

'I strengthen my girls' immune systems by allowing them to get diseases.

'They have less time off than other kids at their school, but that's not because of one particular thing – it's a way of life.'

He claims exposure to infection was what nature intended, and at 5'8' his 14-year-old twins have grown into strong, tall, healthy teenagers because of it.

Mr Lanigan added: 'I look at my children and they deal with illness quite well.

'If you look at how we've evolved, humans became stronger by getting illnesses.

'The process of natural selection meant the strongest survived.

'If you rely on vaccinations and medication for optimal health, you're creating a weaker species.

'Eventually something like the Spanish flu will come along and wipe out millions.

'I could live with natural selection, even though it seems pretty harsh.'

When it comes to treating pain, the Lanigans reach for natural remedies and never take painkillers.

Substances like Anadin, Lemsip and other over-the-counter medicines are simply not kept in their kitchen cupboards.

Richard Lanigan pictured with Eloise, Isabelle and Molly (left to right) at his Spinal Clinic in South-West London. He shuns medicine, with the exception of some vaccines

Richard Lanigan, left, pictured with a friend in 1959 - four weeks after he contracted measles, which he says is now considered a dangerous disease

And he says more parents should consider his way of life to end up with healthier, more resilient children.

He said: 'Ice is the most effective anti-inflammatory and pain relief for my kids. You don't see them popping pills.

'But there's no money for the pharmaceutical industry in frozen water, so they encourage people to take drugs.'

The first time one of his daughters was given painkillers was after youngest daughter Eloise hit her head aged seven and was taken to A&E.

The Lanigans reach for natural remedies and never take painkillers when they become sick (pictured: the family on holiday in South Africa)

Mr Lanigan believes other parents should rethink their approach to medication (pictured at his workplace in London)

Two nurses had to pin her down to give her Calpol because she didn't know what it was and spat it out.

When asked whether she was allergic to any antibiotics, Mr Lanigan had to admit that he didn't know - because she'd never taken any.

He added: 'Nurses were looking at me like a new age freak – they couldn't believe that she had never had antibiotics by that age.'

Mr Lanigan says that with antibiotic resistance becoming an increasing issue, more people should rethink their approach to medication.

'We should be trying to optimise the immune system,' he added.

The first time one of Mr Lanigan's daughters was given painkillers was after youngest daughter Eloise (right, with her twin sisters and father) was taken to A&E after she hit her head

Richard Lanigan believes humans are a 'weaker species' for relying on vaccinations and medication. The family are pictured on holiday in South Africa

'I would never tell somebody to do what I do, but what doctors are doing by giving out antibiotics willy-nilly is interrupting an evolving species that has spent millions of years getting healthier.

'People go to the GP when their kids have the sniffles because it's free and it's advice – but our healthcare system has been taken over by the pharmaceutical industry.

'Antibiotics have been used to cure every type of disease, and now we have bacteria that are resistant to them.

'When it comes to illness it should be down to how that person's immune system handles it.

'If they're the weakest in the species, tough, that may have sad outcomes but should we compromise the wellbeing of many children for the few who can't have vaccines.'

Richard Lanigan says he would only take his children to A&E if they had serious injuries, like being hit by a bus (pictured in his office)

Instead of rushing to his GP when his daughters get sick, Mr Lanigan uses his own alternatives to treat them at home in Thames Ditton, Surrey.

If they had poorly tummies as kids, he would give them flat Coca Cola to settle it.

He says Coke is not a healthy option, but the acid kills bad tummy bacteria - and a night of sleep in his and Janette's bed usually sorted them out.

He said: 'I try and take the common sense approach to healthcare and think about how our bodies work.

'If my girls got hit by a bus, they'd be going to A&E – that's what emergency medicine is good at.

WHY ARE SOME PEOPLE NOT VACCINATED? The World Health Organisation recommends 95 per cent of people are vaccinated against measles to stop the infection spreading out of control. Recent data shows around 92 per cent of children are receiving the vaccine, but there have been periods – particularly in the 90s and early 2000s – during which levels of immunisation dropped. This means, in theory, potentially thousands of adults have not had the MMR jab because of the reluctance of their parents. One reason for vaccination levels dropping may be a scientific paper published by Andrew Wakefield in 1995, claiming the MMR jab causes autism and bowel disease. Mr Wakefield, a gastroenterologist, speculated that being injected with a 'dead' form of the measles virus via vaccination causes disruption to intestinal tissue, leading to both of the disorders. He published a further paper appearing to confirm his theory in 1998, and vaccinations plummeted in the UK, where rates went from being more than 90 per cent to below 70 per cent. The US was also affected. In 2004, Wakefield's theory was found to have been based on false evidence – it was retracted by the journal The Lancet in 2010, and he was banned from practising medicine in the UK three months later. The most recent NHS data shows 91.6 per cent of two-year-olds were given the jab between 2016 and 2017 – much higher than the 80 per cent in 2003 – but this is still lower than the recommended 95 per cent. Advertisement

'But they're not so good at healthcare. If they were, we wouldn't have the rise in autoimmune disorders and chronic illnesses like Type 2 Diabetes we're seeing.'

When Eloise was born in 2003, all three girls contracted whooping cough – but Mr Lanigan argues their response to the disease proves how strong their immune systems are.

He says he was told 75 per cent of those who contract the disease die, but even though he and his wife knew how infectious it was, they took the baby home.

And it was Janette's breast milk that gave her a fighting chance.

He admits: 'I'm fully aware that whooping cough can have horrible consequences in some predisposed children.

When Eloise was born in 2003, all three girls (pictured with their father and older brother) contracted whooping cough but their parents took them home, believing breast milk would cure it

'They could have put her in hospital but we kept her at home because the treatment they would have given her would make her vulnerable to infections like pneumonia.

'We were told that the chances were she was going to die, but if we didn't know that she had Whooping Cough, we wouldn't even have thought she had a cold.

'I suspect because she was so young and being breast-fed and healthy she responded better.'

Richard adds that keeping his older daughters calm throughout their illness helped their recovery.

'If you don't get anxious they actually get through it easier, because your anxiety gets passed on to the children,' he said.

Mr Lanigan says he is completely opposed to vaccinations (pictured with the twins and his youngest daughter when they were little)

Richard Lanigan follows the Child Health Guide: Holistic Pediatrics for Parents, which gives information about medications and vaccines (pictured holding the book)

WHAT ARE THE POSSIBLE COMPLICATIONS OF MEASLES? Most people will recover from measles within one or two weeks, but sometimes complications can develop. People most at risk include teenagers and adults, babies younger than age one and children with weakened immune systems. Common complications include diarrhea and vomiting, middle-ear or eye infections, laryngitis, fits caused by a fever, and lung infections such as pneumonia, bronchitis and croup. About one in every 15 infected children will develop one of these. Less common complications include hepatitis, meningitis and a brain infection called encephalitis. Rare complications include serious eye disorders which can lead to vision loss, heart and nervous system problems, and a fatal brain infection called subacute sclerosing panencephalitis – this is very rare and only happens in one in every 25,000 cases. Having measles during pregnancy increases the risk of the baby having a low birth weight, premature birth, or stillbirth or miscarriage. Source: NHS Choices Advertisement

'I used to take pictures of them when they had a spate of coughing and they'd get distracted by the camera and forget about the difficult they were having breathing and start breathing normally.'

And even more controversially, Mr Lanigan says he is completely opposed to vaccinations.

He even owns a website where he aims to encourage other parents to research the jabs thoroughly before committing to them, especially as there can be side effects.

He says most are not given the full picture in immunisation schedules and by health visitors.

In fact, none of his children have been given routine shots for things like measles, mumps and rubella or rotavirus.

By their age, the twins should have had around 10 vaccinations, including the six-in-one vaccine, which protects against diptheria, tetanus, whooping cough, polio, haemophilus influenzae and hepatitis b, as well as jabs for rotavirus, meningitis b, and the MMR for measles, mumps and rubella.

He questioned Britain's reliance on vaccinations after doing a masters in health promotion in 2004 - something that opened his eyes to the fact that parents are given very little information on the process.

He says the healthcare system should take its focus off immunisation and shift it more heavily to nutrition and exercise, especially as his daughters haven't had any shots and rarely get sick.

He said: 'I just don't believe children are healthier with vaccines.

'Lots of children like Eloise get exposed to whooping cough bacteria and never develop it.

On his website he encourages other parents to research the jabs thoroughly before committing to the (the girls are pictured with their older brother on holiday in Portgual)

He questioned Britain's reliance on vaccinations after doing a masters in health promotion in 2004 (pictured with his daughters in London)

'The medical profession needs to be thinking about why children develop severe adverse reactions to what were once normal childhood illnesses.'

He adds that there is a lot of pressure from the government and other parents to conform.

'Why do people want me to follow what they're doing?' he says.

'Because they're insecure about their own decisions.'

Despite steering clear of medicine as much as possible, Mr Lanigan says he is 'not anti-drugs. You definitely need them in some cases,' he says.

Richard says the healthcare system should take its focus off immunisation and shift it more heavily to nutrition and exercise (pictured in his clinic with his daughters)

Richard Lanigan believes some drugs are needed but not 'in excess' (pictured in his clinic with his daughters)

'But anything in excess damages health. I must be doing something right because it's unusual to have children who have never needed antibiotics.'

Mr Lanigan's own childhood experience of infections before all these vaccines is what influenced his decision not to vaccinate his daughters.

He was diagnosed with rectal cancer in 2011 and says he used cannabis oil to cure it after being months to live.

'In 1959 there was a measles epidemic,with 60,000 cases in the first two months' he says.

'The advice from the British Medical Journal at the time was 'don't panic', because complications are extremely rare. Now it's described as a killer disease. That is not true unless your immune system is compromised or you live in the Third World.'

Richard Lanigan's father claims his three girls (pictured together in London) have rarely been ill thanks to his controversial parenting methods

Ultimately for Mr Lanigan, the right approach is to let his children lead natural lifestyles to achieve optimal health and wellbeing.

The twins recently had their first vaccinations - but only so they can volunteer in Africa and South America this summer and both made their own minds up now they are older.

'We all know that children who play in the dirt and go to playgroups have stronger immune systems and are less likely to develop autoimmune disorders,' he added.

'If my kids' bread dropped on the floor I'd pick it up and put it back in their mouths.

'The twins recently had vaccinations to go on a school trip – I let them make that decision.

'But if I had known that they would have to have the vaccinations to go on the trip I probably would've said no.'