The Discovery of Vaccines Prevented The Spread of Infectious Diseases

These articles have spurred a controversy about vaccinations and have discouraged parents from them. Reluctance to vaccinate has increased over the past years and has caused parents to neglect the fact that they need to vaccinate their kids. Under-immunization has caused the resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases like polio and measles to breakout in schools. Concern for recent outbreaks has lead me to pose the question: Should it be mandatory to vaccinate your kids?

Herd immunity exists when the maximum amount of people are vaccinated, reducing the risk of infection for people at serious risk (i.e. immunocompromised adults, chemotherapy patients, or newborns). When fewer people are unvaccinated, a disease has fewer hosts to spread to. At this point, most states allow vaccination exemption for religious or “moral” conflicts in addition to medical reasons. People who exempt vaccines

Know the Risks and Failures.) But there are symptoms that a parent should watch for and identify to help the child. Also, the chance of a young person actually “having a severe reaction is one in a million.” (Why Vaccinate.) “93.4% of parents will or already have fully vaccinated their children.” (Why Vaccinate.)

According to the CDC (2014) vaccinations are one of the best ways to put an end to the serious effects of certain diseases, some that can be deadly. Parents who choose not to vaccinate their children are not just gambling with their child’s life, they are also gambling with the lives of others. It is always better to prevent a disease than to have to treat it after it occurs. People with weakened immune systems are not as strong such as pregnant women, newborns, cancer patients, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positive people, transplant recipients, and the elderly are also affected by the choice not to vaccinate.

Consequently, it becomes vital for all children who attend school to receive proper vaccinations. Due to the simple fact that not only do vaccinations protect the children who receives the administered shots, it also protects other children in the school. Subsequently, if children do not receive proper vaccinations it will endanger “both the health of the children themselves as well as others who would not be exposed to preventable illnesses” (Daley, Glanz). Once one child obtains a disease, it

The means of dealing with infectious diseases that endanger individual and public health have evolved over the years. In 1789, however, the most protective technology used to prevent epidemics was introduced by physician Edward Jenner; vaccination. Vaccine efficiency continues to develop and become more advanced, producing immunity to infectious diseases from 90 to 100 percent of the time today. Because of inoculation, millions of people worldwide are immunized from fatal epidemics. However, because of unsubstantiated fears, many parents have been withholding vaccines from their children. Despite this, parents should not have the right to withhold vaccines from their children for philosophical reasons. Vaccines are the best way to prevent disease, vaccine exemptions endanger individual and public health, and without widespread inoculation, controlled diseases will rebound.

In the past few years there has renewed interest in the whether all states should mandate mandatory childhood vaccinations for all children, except for those who qualify for a medical exemption. It brings forth the major issue of autonomy; of the parents right to choose versus the government right to protect its citizens. In recent years there have been reports about the rise in the number of new cases of vaccine preventable diseases e.g. Measles, Mumps, Pertussis, Pneumococcus. The major factor regarding parents refusing to have their children vaccinated is the belief or notation that vaccines cause autism and are harmful to children (Daum, 2014) (GBD 2013 Mortality and Causes of Death Collaborators, 2014)

Vaccinations have recently become a source of conflict as a result of misinformation. Studies that attempt to link vaccines to autism diagnoses, reports of children getting sick and rumors spread by conspiracy theorists contribute to the mess of confusion that should have a simple answer. The spread of misinformation can easily sway an uncertain parent away from the right choice. Ultimately these lies harm the child who is needlessly susceptible to potentially fatal diseases that could have been prevented by a visit to a doctor. Parents should be required to vaccinate their children because vaccinations protect ourselves and future generations from the unnecessary risk of preventable disease.

Being a parent is a never ending full time job. Constantly on the run, doing laundry, making food, and wiping snotty noses, you are faced with decisions to make for your child every day. One of those important decisions is whether or not to vaccinate your child. In today’s society this has become a tough choice to make as negative light has been casted upon vaccinations and their safety. False allegations of vaccines causing Autism have led parents from vaccinating their children, but research has proven that vaccinations are not the cause of Autism and parents should continue to vaccinate for the safety of their child as well as society.

Prevention is better than finding a cure. This statement relates to the controversy surrounding the effectiveness and safety of childhood immunization. Every year many children and babies get sick and die from illnesses that could have been prevented with vaccinations such as; the Flu, Meningitis and Whooping Cough. The biggest argument here is whether or not there should be laws established declaring mandatory vaccinations for all children. Vaccinations should be mandatory because the benefits outweigh the potential risks. In the United States some states have actually enacted laws that require proof of specific vaccinations before allowing a child to go to school. Some states also allow exemptions. These exemptions could be due to

As with most hotly-debated issues, there are reasonable points from both sides of the arguments in favor of and against the vaccination of children. To those who are in favor of vaccinating children, vaccinations are seen as a means of protection against some highly contagious and possibly deadly diseases. To those on the other side of the argument, vaccinations are generally seen as ineffective in protection, as well as a possible source of autism and other disorders. This paper will present and analyze both sides of this argument in an attempt to inform the reader on the opposing viewpoints of the vaccination of children.

From January 1st to April 24th of this year, 166 people from 19 different states and the District of Columbia were reported to have measles in the U.S. (“Measles Cases and Outbreaks, 2015). This recent outbreak has sparked a conversation in the media about whether or not parents should be required by law to immunize their children. Even though no mandatory federal vaccination law currently exists, all 50 states require children to be immunized before starting public school. However, all 50 states issue medical exemptions, 48 issue religious exemptions, and 19 issue philosophical exemptions (“School Vaccination Requirements,” 2011). Proponents of vaccinations argue that vaccines are safe and one of the greatest public health developments of the 20th century. They state vaccines are saving millions of lives and are preventing illnesses like rubella, diphtheria, smallpox, polio and whooping cough. On the other hand, opponents of vaccinations argue that children’s immune systems are capable of fighting most infections naturally and injecting questionable materials into a child, or any person for that matter, may cause deleterious side effects. Although many counterarguments regarding the efficacy of vaccines are valid, others are not supported by evidence. Overall, the benefits of vaccines far outweigh any risks.

When children who have been vaccinated do contract a disease, despite being vaccinated against it, they usually have milder symptoms with less serious complications than an un-vaccinated child that gets the same disease. It is true that some children who receive vaccinations may still become ill when exposed to other disease-ridden children. Research shows that 70-90% of the entire population must be vaccinated to attain “herd immunity”, “the resistance of a group to attack by a disease to which a large proportion of the members are immune.” (Farlex, 2012) When herd immunity is accomplished the spread of the disease can be averted throughout. If all parents were to take proper responsibilities and keep their children’s immunizations up-to-date, herd immunity would be achieved against all 16 of the major life threatening diseases.

In contrast, a positive aspect of many people having vaccinations is herd immunity. Herd immunity is the occurrence where a large proportion of a specific population is vaccinated to provide them immunity, and as a result, it also gives some protection to the people of the population who have and yet developed immunity. This happens as the a large group of vaccinated individuals are protected from a virus and creates difficulty for the it to spread because there is only a small percentage of the population left that could be infected by the disease. It is a very crucial aspect of immunity for the community as the people who cannot receive vaccinations (i.e. people with weak immune systems, very young children and patients who are too ill)

Despite vaccinations being credited for the control and elimination of several childhood diseases, there are still many critics who raise concerns about the necessity of vaccination. In a national study of parents performed in 2000, 19% indicated they had “concerns about vaccines” whereas in a subsequent survey performed in 2009 this number had risen to 50%. There has also been a rise in non-medical vaccine exemptions that has occurred over the last several years. In a 2010 national survey of physicians, 89% of respondents reported at least one vaccine refusal by a parent each month (Dempsey & Gowda, 2013). Opposers argue that making school vaccination mandatory is against their right to make personal medical decisions. They feel that the government has no place to force parents to vaccinate their children if the parents decide it is not in their child’s best interest. Many parents are disagreeable about the multiple vaccinations received at one time, which results in possible pain and discomfort for the child. Another argument against vaccination is the safety and efficacy of vaccines. Critics are concerned about the unknown risks vaccines pose to children. Some parents noted their child acquiring a “high fever” or beginning to “act different” after the administration of a vaccine. There is a belief that there is a connection between the measles vaccination and autism. Another theory is that the influenza