Diseases have been around since the beginning of time. In response of disease, vaccinations were developed. Since the 1800’s, vaccines have been protecting adults and children from fatal diseases by building up immunity within the human body against such communicable diseases like smallpox, measles, and tuberculosis. Throughout history, vaccines have been widely accepted as mandatory for life events such as travel and school. While most of the world population welcomed vaccines enthusiastically, there are groups of people that believe the vaccines are more harmful than helpful.
Up until the 1790’s, it was unclear how to help anyone who came into contact with any communicable diseases. It was accepted that a person who contracted diseases such as smallpox or tuberculosis would eventually succumb to the disease. In May 1796, British physician, Dr. Edward Jenner discovered vaccination in its modern form by injecting an eight-year-old boy with cowpox matter to test his hypothesis that infection from cowpox could protect a person from smallpox given that smallpox and cowpox belong to the Orthopox family of viruses. After a small reaction and feeling ill for a few days, the boy, James Phipps, made a full recovery. Once recovered, Jenner then infected the boy with the smallpox virus consequently challenging the virus. When the boy remained healthy, Jenner proved that cowpox matter transferred to humans provided protection from smallpox and so began the vaccine era.
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Anti-vaccination movements are hurting children and the people surrounding them. On the contrast, there is a pro-vaccination movement to advocate for those who cannot protect themselves. However, this movement is diminishing due to skewed facts in the media. This only comes back to haunt the parents who do not vaccinate their child, and the people who cannot be protected against it. Using vaccinations can irradiate diseases that have evolved over the years, saving millions of lives, and giving peace to lives lost from the disease (Jacobs, Charlotte DeCroes).
The concept of vaccines, basically exposure to a disease to trick the body into forming immunity, has been controversial from its beginnings. The history of vaccines began in 1796 with Edward Jenner, a doctor from England, who performed the first immunization (Alexandra, Markel, 2005). Edward Jenner showed that a certain level of immunity could be accomplished by dosing patients with cowpox, which is a close relative of smallpox (Alexandra, Markel, 2005). He then tried, without success, to infect that same
Vaccines have become an important innovation to health throughout the years. A vaccine is a product that produces immunity from a disease and can be given by the nose or the mouth.
The choice to vaccinate a child holds much debate in society today. As a person that lives in America, you may feel it is your right to be able to choose what medical needs and necessities you would want for your child or yourself. “The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends getting 29 doses of 9 vaccines (plus a yearly flu shot after six months old) for kids aged 0 to six. No US federal laws mandate vaccination, but all 50 states require certain vaccinations for children entering public schools. Even though vaccines are considered extremely safe there are cases where in some people have a type of allergic reaction. Most states offer medical and religious exemptions; and some states allow philosophical exemptions” (Wadman, 2017). This point calls for a lot of debate, both in the scholarly world and among average citizens. Some people claim that such medical conditions, such as autism are the result of over vaccinating or dosing at early ages of development. Reasons on the topic vary, and concerns can end up in long legal disputes. Such disputes have raised the question of vaccine safety, prevention, and government intervention.
The foundation for Dr. Edward Jenner 's first vaccine was the inoculation process. Because he was familiar with dairy farming, he began observing “cowpox,” or vaccinia, in which red pimples on cows ' udders became blisters, scabbed, then scarred (Riedman 28). Many people believed exposure to cowpox would result in protection from the smallpox disease (Riedman 29). Jenner decided to test the theory that cowpox protected people from contracting smallpox (Riedman 31). He experimented by injecting smallpox material into people who were previously infected with cowpox; they did not contract the smallpox disease (Riedman 34). Jenner 's experiment resulted in the discovery that cowpox could be transferred through vaccination and provided safe, effective protection from smallpox (Riedman 35). Through the efforts of Lady Montague and Edward Jenner, vaccination became a popular procedure. The creation of the first vaccine was a crucial step for the health of many people.
Vaccines that prevent individuals from contracting deathly illnesses are one of the greatest achievements in the history of epidemiology. A vast majority of individuals choose to get their children as well as themselves vaccinated. However, there are some people who choose not to get vaccinated because they believe that vaccines are dangerous and unnecessary. This dilemma emphasises the vastness of the controversy between choosing to get vaccinated or not. The subject of this dispute is difficult to resolve since each individual has their own opinion on the topic and is in control of whether or not they want to get vaccinated.
The topic of vaccines is something that has caused a lot of controversy for the past couple of years. Although there is scientific evidence as to how immunizations work, concerned parents still disagree and eventually pull their children away from getting any shots. However, this will become a major issue when the child gets enrolled to school. Most schools require vaccines like DTaP in order for the child to be accepted.
Edward Jenner was the man responsible for eliminating small pox over 200 years ago, and ultimately created the foundation for vaccinations to follow. (Riedel, 2005) He figured out that people with a less dangerous disease, Cow Pox, were immune to Small Pox. He inoculated an eight year old boy with the cow pox disease, and while the boy got a little sick from the cow pox, he was later proven immune to Small Pox. (Riedel, 2005)
Some of the greatest accomplishments to come out of the twenty-first century are vaccines. They were designed to stop major epidemics from wiping out the populations. As so many have in history. Nevertheless, numerous parents are now opting out of getting their children vaccinated under personal beliefs and religious. This is causing older illnesses to become more prominent in current times. When considering vaccines think about the history of vaccines, the potential risk of not getting vaccinated, and the effectiveness.
The debate about vaccines has been going on since the development of the first vaccine. By understanding how Dr. Jenner developed the first vaccine and how vaccines have impacted society as a whole, one can gain insight into their importance. Vaccine safety concerns are on the rise, but researchers are attempting to ease worries by providing facts and clarity on the subject of vaccines. Knowing the facts about vaccines is important for one to recognize misinformation and poor logic as well as the misinterpretation of existing information about health concerns associated with vaccines. Because of these health and safety concerns, many parents question the benefits of vaccines.
Not only is this website providing the top pros and cons, but it also gives background about the issue.
Vaccines are one of the most important medical achievements in the history of mankind. Their importance cannot be downplayed; previously, entire civilizations fell to diseases that the populace had no immunity to. However, fears among the general public about vaccines can lead to reduced immunization rates. Declining or deferring on these inoculations can lead to resurgences in sicknesses that we think of as well managed or even eradicated.
The story of vaccines did not begin with the first vaccine–Edward Jenner’s use of material from cowpox
Today most children in the United States live a much healthier life and parents live with much less anxiety due to vaccinations. More than 200 years ago, Edward Jenner conducted an experiment that would be one of the most astounding breakthroughs in medical history. Jenner noticed that milkmaids didn’t catch the smallpox, a disease rampant across the English countryside. He reasoned that the blisters on the milkmaid’s hand must contain something that was protective. He tested his theory by taking fluid from a blister on the wrist of a milkmaid and inoculating it into the arm of a local laborer’s son (Offit and
from being miserable. If you get this vaccine you wouldn’t have to watch your child suffer and constantly clean them because of this disease for up to nine days. Also, you could develop symptoms of rotavirus which could seriously affect your health and daily life. Getting this immunization that is completely safe could keep you, and most importantly, your child’s health at a good state and save you from a few miserable weeks of cleaning up diarrhea.