Causes Of Influenza Vaccines

Between 1924 and 2013, vaccinations prevented 103 million cases of polio, measles, rubella, mumps, hepatitis A, diphtheria, and pertussis (Bailey). Vaccinating is “the process by which pathogenic cells are injected into a healthy person in an attempt to cause the body to develop antibodies to a particular virus or bacterium—successful creation of antibodies is referred to as immunity to the disease caused by the particular pathogen” (Introduction to Should Vaccinations be Mandatory). Popular conflicts regarding vaccination include the worry that this form of immunization isn’t natural, the idea that vaccination schedule for children in the U.S. takes away parents’ rights to make decisions for their children, and the concern that vaccinations aren’t safe for all children. Most doctors and scientists advocate for vaccinations in the name of herd immunity, protection against foreign diseases and prevention against pockets of disease outbreaks. Vaccinations should be mandatory for all children in the United States for who they are deemed safe and effective.

Many infectious diseases that once quickly spread and easily killed have been controlled or eradicated due to vaccinations. The efficacy of vaccines in reducing morbidity and mortality, particularly in children, is undeniable. Per the World Health Organization, childhood vaccinations prevent approximately 2-3 million deaths per year worldwide (WHO, 2016). In the United States, the value of immunizations is clearly displayed by comparing pre-vaccine era morbidity/mortality rates to post-vaccine era in regards to vaccine-preventable diseases. For example, prior to the diphtheria vaccine in the 1920’s, 206,000 people annually contracted the disease resulting in 15,520 deaths (History of Vaccines, 2009). However, between 2004 and 2014, only

Polio, mumps, and diphtheria are a few of the diseases that have killed numerous amounts of people in the past. Yet, in today’s time, they are diseases people rarely hear about others dying from unless they are discussing the past. The reason for this is modern day vaccinations. Vaccinations are shots that help prevent against certain diseases. Vaccinations not only prevent diseases, but can also cause them to become nearly extinct in treated areas. One example of this would be the small pox vaccine, people were dying from this disease every day, and now you rarely, if ever, hear people talk about it. Although these vaccines are lifesaving, parents are becoming reluctant to provide these treatments for their children. For this reason, all children should be required to get particular vaccinations, unless they have certain medical conditions.

Despite significant progress in the fight against preventable disease, millions still die needlessly each year. According to UNICEF, originally known as the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund, a vaccine preventable disease is responsible for 2 million fatal infections worldwide each year. About 75% of these deaths occur in children under five years of age. (N) In more vivid terms, UNICEF notes that vaccine-preventable diseases kill a child every 20 seconds. (D) Due to high rates of childhood vaccination, the United States has experienced a dramatic reduction in such deaths. A comparison of the years 1950 and 2010 clearly illustrates the benefits of vaccinations. During this 60-year period, deaths from diphtheria reduced from 410 to 0, tetanus from 336 to 3, pertussis from 1,118 to 26, and polio from 1,904 to 0. Measles deaths dropped from 468 in 1950 to 0 in 2008, the last year a United States death rate was recorded. It’s not surprising that vaccinations have been touted as one of the top ten health achievements of the 20th century by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Parents are bombarded with information when it comes to their children and their children’s health and it happens the moment they are born. One main question they face off the bat is whether to immunize or not. For children ages 0-18, the CDC recommends vaccinations against 16 diseases, many of which could result in devastating illnesses and even death. Several injections coupled with several possibilities of severe reactions, pain, irritation, itching, ect. But through extensive, heavily monitored research and effectiveness, and evidence-based science illustrating the improvements and protection of the community it is clear that their benefits outweigh their risks. This paper will outline why the decision to immunize is one less

Last year, only twenty-six percent of eighteen to forty-nine year olds got the flu shot (Singh, 2014). With an average of 200,000 people hospitalized annually due to flu-related symptoms, these low vaccination rates are generating serious health risks among young adults all over the country (National Consumers League, 2013). This winter, at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C., the average age of people hospitalized with influenza was 28.5 years old, and of those that ended up in the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital, only two of the twenty-two had received the flu vaccination (Singh, 2014). The primary reason that young adults do not get the influenza vaccination is that they believe that they are invincible and influenza is not a serious illness (Singh, 2014). One in five Americans who do not receive the influenza vaccination claims that influenza is not a serious illness (National Consumers League, 2013). Of the Americans who do not get vaccinated, forty-five percent cited their good health as a rationale for bypassing vaccination (National Consumers League, 2013). This may be partly due to the targeted measures by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) to increase vaccination rates among children and the elderly. In comparison to the twenty-six percent of young adults that were vaccinated, 56.6% of children (ages six months to seventeen years old) and 66.2% of seniors (ages 65 and older) were vaccinated. When targeted measures are used, they work. The problem

Influenza is responsible for hospitalizations and deaths in the United States. Prevention through vaccination is one way to circumvent illnesses, hospitalizations and deaths. Those persons who were more susceptible fall into the categories of 6 months to 4 years of age and 65 years and older. According to CDC (2013), the 2012-13 influenza season was characterized as a moderately severe season based on the surveillance data. Regardless of suggestions and encouragements of schools and places of employment for individuals to be vaccinated against the flu, fewer than half the persons in the United States each year are inoculated against this disease. Influenza vaccines are now widely used to reduce the burden of annual epidemics of influenza virus infections (Cowling, et al., 2016).

“In 2011 alone, 1.5 million children died [worldwide] from diseases preventable by currently recommended vaccines” (“Immunization” 2). The magnitude of this tragedy is in part caused by the fact that some of those children simply weren’t reached by organizations like UNICEF, which aim to vaccinate children (“Immunization” 2). However, there are other reasons for the recent deaths and epidemics—such as the whooping cough epidemic of 2012, with 48,000 cases nationally in the United States—involving vaccine preventable diseases (McClay 1).

Vaccinations are considered to be the greatest health development of the 20th century. Because of advancements in medicine, vaccinations are becoming a widespread medium in the prevention of disease. They have provided the eradication and immunity to many deadly diseases such as smallpox, polio and rubella. Although there is no law that mandates the vaccination of children, they are necessary to prevent the infliction of disease and harm. By making the decision to vaccinate their children, a parent has the potential to save their lives.

Today we seem to take in many conversations on whether mandatory vaccinations are good for our kids. With nearly 90 percentage parents in the U.S. understand the risk vs. benefit factor to be in favor too vaccinate, when handed the choice, about a 10 percent of parents delay or cut some shots with 1 percent that don’t vaccinate at all. (Pemberton, 2015) We see viruses from our past, which were heavily infected among our grandparents or parents ' time, such as poliomyelitis and measles, as children, appear in certain parts of the U.S., but have the feeling that these are isolated or have no significance. Many of these diseases have all but been eliminated, do with vaccinations. But the growing concern is that if we continue to choose not to vaccinate, the viruses we are straining to prevent will resurface, and may produce more potent forms of themselves. The part that grows not to vaccinate, fear or have queries on whether the risk is worth the benefit, and are usually comparing this to the narrations of others or some of the few examples that are perceived linked to side effects from receiving a vaccination. This only will lead to serious consequences, more so for infants, or young children, which could lead to be deadly. Mandatory vaccinations should be applied to all children because the importance it bears on our communities, the effect that vaccinations have, and the misplaced fears linked to vaccinations are vital to ensure that we live a healthier

Throughout history, it has been shown that vaccines make a significant impact on the health of our communities and “administration of these vaccines led to dramatic reduction in the number of cases of, as well as deaths from smallpox, polio, diphtheria, pertussis, measles, mumps and preventable diseases” (Jacobson, 2012, p.36). Generally, those involved in campaigns for and research in these preventable diseases attribute vaccines for children as the main contributing factor to the overall decline in diseases such as measles, mumps, smallpox and pertussis (Jacobson, 2012). In the public health setting, there are many issues that threaten the health and safety of the public, not just in the local community but the nation and world-wide. One such issue, surfacing in public health, is the issue of vaccinations; those who choose to vaccinate, those who choose not to vaccinate and those who do not

Thesis Statement: Recently, the United States has seen a resurgence of many different diseases that we haven 't seen in decades. Much of this problem is caused by failure to get vaccinations, and a key step to solving the issue is education.

Measles. Polio. Smallpox. The flu. Imagine the world when vaccines were yet to be created. There was a time when people lived in fear of dreadful diseases. Thanks to the introduction of vaccines, many of those devastating diseases have been nearly or completely wiped out. Despite these results, for some people, the question remains: should we vaccinate? Today, I will be discussing the development of the first vaccine, global benefits, and the anti-vaccine movement.

The Center for Disease Control describes vaccines as the greatest development in public health since clean drinking water. For several decades, vaccines have saved countless lives and helped eradicate some fatal diseases. The push to do away with vaccines will not only endanger our youth, but our society as a whole. Vaccination is needed to maintain a healthy balance within our country. Vaccines provide the immunity that comes from a natural infection without the consequences of a natural infection. Vaccinations save an ever-growing amount of lives every year. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimated that 732,000 American children were saved from death and 322 million cases of childhood illnesses were prevented between 1994 and 2014 due to vaccination (“Vaccine ProCon”).

During the 20th century, the infectious disease death rate decreased from 800/1000 deaths to less than 100/1000 deaths. This is mainly due to the introduction of immunisation. Vaccination has clearly prevented millions of deaths over the last century; nevertheless, the anti-vaccination movement has grown significantly in recent years. Some of the reasons why people join this movement include the belief that vaccines don’t actually work, the belief that vaccines are unnatural and therefore unhealthy and the belief that vaccines contain toxins that cause bodily damage and neuropsychiatric problems (eg. Autism). This essay will discredit the beliefs associated with the anti vaccination movement through infectious disease statistics,