Currently, 14 routine vaccinations are required in all 50 states for children attending public schools , 8 of which were developed by the same person (Huston). “A vaccine is a substance used to stimulate the production of antibodies and provide immunity against one or several diseases, prepared from the causative agent of a disease, its products, or a synthetic substitution, treated to act as an antigen without inducing the disease” (Vaccine+definition – Google Search).
In the United States, vaccines date back as far as 1712; however, China, Africa, and Turkey have documented the use of vaccines since 1000 A. D. (Huston). Since the beginning of vaccine use in the United States over 300 years ago, more than 100 vaccines have been created to save lives and prevent harmful diseases. Vaccines are able to save children lives, prevent diseases, and are safe and easily accessible. The major use of vaccines are to reduce the morbidity and mortality of diseases.
Morbidity is a statistic of how often a disease occurs while mortality is death. (Institutional links). 14 vaccines are currently required for children in the public school system, including: measles, mumps, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, chickenpox, meningococcal disease, pneumococcal disease, and Haemophilus influenza type b (Huston). In fact, 8 of these were discovered by Maurice Hillman, doctor of microbiology, from 1944 till his death in 2005.
Hillman was an extremely successful microbiologist, creating a total of 34 vaccines during his long career (Huston). According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, “most childhood vaccines are 90% – 99% effective in preventing disease (ProCon. Org) Vaccines are very effective and are crucial in present day medicine. Influenza vaccines are one of the most commonly used shots for children and adults protecting against the most common strains of influenza.
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) published a study in 2014 stating that, “Getting a flu vaccine reduces a child’s risk of flu-related intensive care hospitalizations by 74 percent” (New Study Shows Flu Vaccine Reduced Children’s Risk of Intensive Care Unit Flu Admission by Three-Fourths). Between 1994 and 2014, an estimated 732,000 children were saved from death and another 322 million cases were prevented from illness due to the vaccine. (ProCon. Org) Similar to influenza, whooping cough, or pertussis, is another common disease in children and infants in the United States.
It is difficult to estimate incidences of pertussis, because numerous cases go undiagnosed. Doctor Anna Acosta, epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control’s division of bacterial disease stated that “Immunizations overall have reduced the rate of whooping cough cases by about 80 percent since the pre-vaccine era. ” (Mozes). Vaccines did not cure whooping cough, however, it was able to treat and lower outcomes enough. Immunizing children is the best possible way to protect against diseases and put an end to disease.
Vaccines are a huge force in disease prevention and can be helpful in reducing the severity of the disease if it is contracted. In January of 2015 the Center for Disease Control stated, “The vaccine does protect against multiple strand of flu, including types that could still surface late in the season, and can still make symptoms milder even people who become sick” (CDC: Flu Vaccine Only 23 Percent Effective This Season, but Still Better than Nothing). Strands of influenza include influenza A (H1N1), influenza A (H3N2), and influenza B.
In 2014 the Center for Disease Control’s medical officer, Dr. Alicia Fry, performed a medical study on children ages 6 months through 17 years and found that, “flu vaccination reduces a child’s risk of ending up in the pediatric intensive care unit for flu by an estimated 74 percent” (New Study Shows Flu Vaccine Reduced Children’s Risk of Intensive Care Unit Flu Admission by Three-Fourths). (Key Facts About Seasonal Flu Vaccine). Preventing diseases is not the only benefit vaccines protect against; they also reduce the severity of potential side effects caused by the disease.
Doctor Anna Acosta insists that immunizing yourself can prevent, and reduce side effects from a disease (Mozes). While all children are susceptible to infection, some are more prone to infection than others. Fry states that “Children younger than 5 and children of any age with certain chronic illness conditions like asthma, diabetes, or developmental delays are at high risk of serious flu complications” (New Study Shows Flu Vaccine Reduced Children’s Risk of Intensive Care Unit Flu Admission by Three-Fourths).
However, Dr. Fry later refers to vaccines and how having the vaccination can lower infection chances significantly. Diseases are spreading rapidly through the United States and the only way to help contain them is by vaccinating children as frequently as needed. Vaccines contain multiple ingredients that can potentially have different side effects on the body, a majority of which are not harmful.
Basic ingredients include: suspending fluid, for example sterile water, saline, or protein-containing fluid; preservatives and stabilizers, such as, albumin, phenols, and glycine; and adjuvants or enhancers that improve the vaccines effectiveness (Ingredients of Vaccines – Fact Sheet). Another common item found in vaccines is a small amount of the culture material used to grow the bacteria. While this fact may seem harmful, doctors state that “children are exposed to more bacteria, viruses, toxins, and other harmful substances in one day of normal activity than are in vaccines” (ProCon.
Org). Various major medical organizations have stated that vaccines are, in fact safe including; Center for Disease Control, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) , Institute of Medicine (IOM) , American Medical Association (AMA), American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), UNICEF, US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), World Health Organization (WHO), Public Health Agency of Canada, Canadian Pediatric Society, National Foundation for Infectious Disease (NFID), and American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) (ProCon. Org).
The US Department of Health and Human Services even states that, “Vaccines are some of the safest medical products available” (ProCon. Org). In fact, the Food and Drug Administration has a requirement of ten or more years of testing before each vaccine is licensed; In addition. the vaccine is monitored by the Centers for Disease Control and The Food and Drug Administration to ensure that the ingredients are safe (ProCon. Org). Various tests have been completed on all registered vaccines to prevent any lapse in product, ensuring that the vaccines given by doctors are reliable and are meant to protect against illness.
While immensely effective, vaccines have their share of downfalls. All vaccines have various possible side effects, some of which can be extremely severe, even leading to death in some cases. According to the Center for Disease Control, “Even with high childhood and preteen coverage, the United States experienced about 48,000 cases of whooping cough in 2012- the most since 1955” (Mozez). (Surveillance and Reporting). Not all vaccines are effective in all children. Additionally, after a vaccine is made the virus it protects against can mutate, rendering the vaccine useless and ineffective in preventing infection.
The Center for Disease Control says that, “By the time flu season rolled around in the Northern Hemisphere, more than two thirds of the H3N2 viruses making people sick no longer matched the formulation in the flu vaccine” (CDC: Flu Vaccine Only 23 Percent Effective This Season, but Still Better than Nothing). With this information in mind, it may seem that vaccines are useless; however, vaccines do more than merely preventing disease. Dr. Acosta insists that “in an immunized person does become sick, the disease will be less severe” (Mozes). Furthermore, treatments are provided for those who become infected.
Tom Frieden, director of Center for Disease Control says “CDC officials repeatedly urged people who get sick to seek influenza antiviral medications, which can lessen symptoms, shorten the duration of the infection, and help prevent more serious complications such as pneumonia” (CDC: Flu Vaccine Only 23 Percent Effective This Season, but Still Better than Nothing). Vaccines protect against specific pinpointed diseases however, can be part of a healing much larger. When being vaccinated, you are protecting yourself from the disease as well as any other diseases that could come to follow, saving money and time potentially spent being sick.
Protecting yourself in any way possible is the best way to stere clear of illness during the flu season. Vaccines are given out daily around the world to prevent harmful diseases. While all vaccinations are created to put an end to diseases, some have been found to have harmful ingredients that make people question the use of them. Thimerosal, aluminum, formaldehyde, glutaraldehyde, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTMB), 2-phenoxyethanol, chicken egg protein , yeast protein, and MSG are a few of the harmful ingredients found in vaccines (ProCon. rg).
Thimerosal has been linked to autism, while aluminum has been found to cause neurological damage. Formaldehyde can cause side effects such as cardiac impairment, central nervous system depression, coma, convulsions, and even death in serious cases. Glutaraldehyde is known to cause respiratory issues, along with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide. 2- Phenoxyethanol can cause headaches, shock, convulsions, kidney failure, and death. While these side effects are rare, if affected by a serious side effect, one can have life long repercussions.
After doctor Fry’s study was over, she stated that, “While vaccinations may not always prevent flu illness, it protects against more serious outcomes” (New Study Shows Flu Vaccine Reduced Children’s Risk of Intensive Care Unit Flu Admission by Three-Fourths). Various results are possible from receiving vaccinations, and even a vaccination the was only 10% effective could prevent an estimated 13,000 hospitalizations in older adults over the course of the flu season (CDC: Flu Vaccine Only 23 Percent Effective This Season, but Still Better than Nothing). While vaccines are not perfect, they prevent sickness in thousands of people every year.
Natural immunity is, in fact safer, and more reliable than the unnatural substances found in vaccines. The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia states that “It is true that natural infection almost always causes better immunity than vaccines. Whereas immunity from disease often follows a single natural infection, immunity from vaccines occur only after several doses (ProCon. Org). Chiropractor and wellness expert Kurt Perkins says “A vaccine violates all laws of natural immune defenses by taking a potential pathogen along with all the TOXIC ingredients (aluminum, formaldehyde, adjuvants, ect. directly into the blood system.
This process would never occur in building natural immunity. That last sentence is an oxymoron. Immunity is a natural thing” (ProCon. Org). Immunizing yourself the natural way may be more appealing due to all the harmful ingredients of a vaccine; however, when you vaccinate children, you are giving them a chance to fight the disease and overcome it, rather than allowing their bodies to fight the disease and potentially becoming extremely ill.
Natural immunity tends to take longer than the unnatural vaccine immunity and has a greater possibility of becoming sick in the meantime; in addition, unnatural immunity is more common and more effective in the short run than natural immunity. Dr. Acosta says, “we really need to keep in mind that while vaccines are not perfect, they are still the best way to provide protection among children and adolescence” (Mozes).
While unnatural methods may be more effective in the long run, they do not protect the people in the community, which is a substantial part of receiving the vaccine to begin with. All children attending school should be required to have vaccinations to ensure the parents and guardians are actively trying to keep all children safe and healthy. A majority of children are currently being vaccinated as a requirement to attend public schools; however, some parents seek exemption for religious purposes.
To pardon children from participating in vaccinations, is not only harmful to the child, but also to endangers children at school, in the community, and can have an effect on future generations. Vaccinations can also potentially eliminate diseases in the world. For example, polio and smallpox have been eradicated (ProCon. Org). (Vaccines are Incredibly Effective at Preventing Disease). There are many benefits to vaccines and vaccinating children. Diseases may potentially go distinct all together if we continue to vaccinate and kill diseases, making it easier as we to fight diseases the older we are.
Saving children lives, preventing harmful diseases, and being safe and accessible are just a few of the remarkable characteristics of vaccines. Not every vaccine is 100% reliable; however, a majority of them do the job they were intended for and prevent or decrease the side effects caused by the disease. The United Nations Foundation partner organization, stated that “vaccines save 2. 5 million children from preventable diseases every year” (procon. org). This proves that vaccines are more useful than useless and can indeed, save lives.