Vaccines : A Contagious Disease

Although the negative claims behind anti-immunization stances are deceptive and discredited, some parents find it difficult to accept that vaccines are necessary and safe. Many of these reasons are due to personal or religious beliefs that have persuaded parents to bypass immunizations for their children. Consequently, health officials are seeing disquieting rises of diseases that are easily preventable. The CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) has reported hundreds of measles cases in the United States in 2011, the largest number in 15 years (Ben-Joseph, Elana). Essentially, almost all of these cases were in individuals who had not received a vaccine shot. Also found in the article was that a great amount of the quarrel over the shots comes from a 1998 study that tried to connect autism to a type of vaccine that defends against measles. However, there has been no scientific evidence that a vaccine or a combination of any of the shots induces autism. Undoubtedly, the doctor that wrote the article, calling vaccines a “deliberate fraud” ,lost his license for not submitting any evidence of his claim and causing people to neglect shots for that year. Sadly, due to that article, 1 in 4 parents still believe that vaccines are

In order to investigate more about Wakefield’s study, Brian Deer, a journalist of British Medical Journal, carefully talked to the parents of all children who were participated in the study. Interestingly enough, he revealed the fraud behind Wakefield’s research. The Lancet, the journal that reported Wakefield’s study, retracted the paper soon afterwards (Deer). However, the real trouble still exists. Though it has been proved by many researchers that the MRR doesn’t cause autism, many people perceive the vaccine as a threat. Dr.Nemeroff once said “it is quite difficult to get the cognitive sewage out of the water even after the real sewage is gone” (Greene).

Andrew Wakefield’s research and the movie “Vaxxed” has provoked skepticism about vaccines’ safety and generated a lack of vaccinated children. Wakefield has tried to spread false

Evident within this statistic that states ‘The DTaP vaccine can cause seizures in 1 in 14,000 people, and acute encephalitis (brain swelling) in 11 in 1 million. But the diseases it prevents (diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis) are fatal in 1 in 20 cases, 1 in 10 cases, and 1 in 1,500 cases, respectively.’ (Heyworth, 2014). This proves the necessity of vaccinations and their importance in reducing child mortality rates. The primary concern of vaccine opponents is the contraction of any of the severe side effects previously mentioned. Opponents campaign the severity of the side effects: often the basis of their decision to contest vaccines. The reoccurring argument Anti-vaccine individuals present is the diagnosis of autism subsequent to vaccinations, an argument sourced from an Andrew Wakefield article (ABC Science, 2015). The credibility and accuracy of the article was ridiculed consequently it was later declared fraudulent: the author was reprimanded whilst his medical licence was disposed of. The inoculation of children creates the positive proliferation of life, providing immunity to fatal diseases whilst protecting individuals unable to be vaccinated. To logically decide to oppose vaccinations, accurate medical evidence should be analysed and the risks

Through this data, the authors make a point that a vaccine's effectiveness depends on the strains they pick—and sometimes they get it wrong. But the bottom line is that vaccines have meant far fewer deaths, hospitalizations, and disabilities than at any other time in history. In turn, the second question is answered by clearly stating that the claims made that autism is linked to MMR vaccine come directly from “one anecdotal study, based on 12 children with autistic spectrum disorders.” And from that alone sparked outward fears and concerns of parents but the main source of this is through broadcasted media on the

Vaccination is both the most efficient and the most reliable modern technology used to prevent epidemic outbreaks. This is partly why it seems inconceivable for parents to refuse to vaccinate their children. According to Dr. Noёl Merino, a Ph.D. certified author, educator, and philosopher, "[i]mproved hygiene and sanitation have helped stop the spread of germs and viruses, but history shows that vaccine-preventable diseases dropped dramatically the years vaccinations were licensed[...] [a]mong children born in one year, scheduled childhood immunizations are estimated to prevent forty-two thousand

One such factor helping to manifest these large-scale epidemics is a study from 1998 by Andrew Wakefield, which claimed that there was a direct link between autism and the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine (Smith 1). As a result, many parents refused to vaccinate their children out of fear, and vaccine-preventable diseases like measles began reappearing more in both America and Britain, the place where Wakefield conducted his study (Cohen 2). Although a later investigation by the British Medical Journal discovered that Wakefield had distorted or altered the medical records of all twelve of the study’s participants and that he had been paid $674,000 USD by lawyers attempting to sue vaccine manufacturers, the atmosphere of apprehension surrounding vaccines is still strong among many individuals, and especially parents (Cohen 1-2). But despite all the controversy and the scientifically unsupported arguments of anti-vaccine sympathizers,

In the 1950s, the polio vaccine was introduced and life in America was forever changed. We vaccinated children against polio and many other diseases and America as a whole became a much healthier place. Soon, parents could quite reasonably expect to have a happy and healthy child. Vaccines were like miracle drugs. Then, in 1998, everything changed. Andrew Wakefield, a physician from the United Kingdom, published a study stating that he had found a link between the MMR vaccine and autism. Thus began the dangerous trend of refusing vaccines for children. Although many people believe vaccines to be dangerous, in fact, they are one of the safest medical procedures done.

The current issue I have selected to discuss is vaccinations. In particular, I will be addressing the anti-vaccination movement that has gained popularity in recent years and the contributing biases that influenced its emergence. One event stands out at as a major contributing factor to the growth of the anti-vaccination movement, the 1998 study by Andrew Wakefield that was published by the English medical journal, Lancet. This study claimed to show a connection between the MMR vaccine and autism. Even though it was just one small study, the media picked it up and it became hugely publicized.

Vaccination has been brought up again in recent years even when vaccines have been around for about one thousand years. However, with recent outbreaks of measles, some see as preventable disease through vaccines, the main controversy of vaccination has once again been brought up due to parents concerns of safety of their children. Parents now are wondering if vaccinations are the best thing for their children due to reports that vaccines cause autism and other brain disabilities. Although, the link between vaccines and autism has been discredited, the issue is still a hot topic throughout the safety of kids and refusal of vaccines. The link between autism and vaccines has caused a scare which lead to more parents refusing to vaccinate

This controversy started when “The Lancet” published a research made by Dr. Andrew Wakefield, who suggested the vaccine can cause autism. After investigation the British medical journal published an article criticizing Dr.Wakefield and accusing him of fraud. As a result “The Lancet” retracted the research. The dishonest research and violation of ethic caused Dr. Wakefield to lose his medical license. However, Dr. Wakefield’s research made a big impact in the way some American parents view vaccines. These parents now refuse to have their children vaccinate and blame the vaccine for their developmental

For the longest time, vaccines have been thought of has as medical breakthroughs of epic proportions. They have, in part, led to a dramatic increase in human life expectancy and have successfully rid the human race of horrible diseases such as smallpox and polio. However, recently there has been controversy regarding alleged side effects of receiving vaccinations, with autism being at the forefront of discussion. A study published by Wakefield in 1998 is what sparked the debate; in the study, Wakefield claimed that the onset of autism was directly correlated with a child’s measles, mumps, and rubella vaccination (MMR). Since the study was published, a rather large group of anti-vaccine activists have remained vocal and encouraged others to cease vaccinated their children. Celebrities and media personalities such as Jenny McCarthy have been very outspoken against vaccinations, causing panic among parents regarding the vaccination of their children. By carefully examining the evidence brought forth supporting both the pro- and anti-vaccine arguments, one can reasonably conclude that the benefits of vaccinations outweigh the potential negative effects.

After the study by Andrew Wakefield, epidemiological studies were conducted and published, stating the opposite of what Doctor Wakefield and his colleagues stated. During the time this paper was written, “about 90 percent of children in England received MMR vaccine” (Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, 2014). Children are given the MMR vaccine around the same time that they are diagnosed with Autism, and Doctor Wakefield used that to his advantage. It was also stated, “it would be expected that most children with autism would have received an MMR vaccine” (Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, 2014). Doctor Wakefield and his twelve colleagues picked what information they chose to use. They also chose information that would also falsify facts to their benefit as well (NCBI, 2011). Their study was one sided, which made their paper seem correct and influenced parents to withhold their children from getting vaccinated. The study that Doctor Wakefield and his

In February 1998, a group led by Andrew Wakefield published what is deemed now to be a fraudulent paper in one of the most respected British medical journal’s in the world, The Lancet, his paper reported on twelve children with developmental disorders referred to the Royal Free Hospital. The basis of the Wakefield’s findings was found after only testing twelve children that when they took the M.M.R. vaccine (which was combination of measles, mumps, and rubella) evidence showed that the vaccine could alter immune systems, causing intestinal damage that then reach and damage the brain causing autism. No merit was found on his work after dozens of epidemiological studies completed subsequent studies to disprove his theory.

If I was to quarantine an individual in a Utilitarian system, I would have them placed into a room by themselves in a hospital. They would be provided with any sort of necessities. Family members would be allowed to come into their room to visit, as long as they were fully protected. The main concern would be to keep them away from other people so they do not spread the deadly disease, but still keep them content. This keeps the disease contained to the one person rather than spreading even further, benefiting the greater number. They may not leave the room until they have been treated or cleared by a doctor. If for some reason they did escape, threatening many others to become ill, they would have to pay a very large fine.