Why You Should Keep Your Vaccinations Up to Date
One of the best ways to guard yourself and your family against infectious diseases is to stay up to date with your vaccines.
Before the discovery of safe vaccines over the past century, thousands of children were paralysed every year by polio, diphtheria was very common, whooping cough and measles affected millions. Older people will still remember being very ill with the once unavoidable childhood diseases, and maybe watching their sick siblings suffer and sometimes die.
These days few young people, who are now becoming the next generation of parents, have either any experience of these diseases or any memory of the various scourges that were just a fact of life in all human history up until recently. In fact, in many developing nations these diseases are still killing babies and children especially, in shocking numbers. We are so blessed in our modern efficient society with access to the latest medical knowledge, but sometimes take our blessings for granted.
People who don’t realise the danger of these lurking infections find it easy to dismiss or postpone the requirements to vaccinate their children or themselves. This is the worst thing that they can do, however, because the diseases have not been eradicated and will eventually take advantage of the increasing population vulnerability.
Other parents worry about the potential dangers of vaccines and possible links with illnesses or injuries. Some caution may be justifiable with newly introduced vaccines (such as HPV for protection against cervical cancer), but the time proven ones such as polio, Hep B, whooping cough, etc are proven to be extremely safe over many decades and millions of recipients.
When people are responsible about keeping their vaccinations up to date they are also performing a valuable service to their fellow citizens. The more people who are vaccinated in any given population the harder the pathogens find it to spread. This is called “herd immunity”, even when applied to human beings.
Vaccines prime the body to defend itself against the specific pathogens, by provoking the production of antibodies to fight what the body sees as an invader. If the body then encounters “the real thing” later on, it will remember and quickly get rid of it.
Childhood survivors of the deadly Spanish Flu, which killed millions worldwide in 1918, have been found to still carry the antibodies against it in their bloodstreams. This is of great interest for scientists who are trying to develop an arsenal of vaccines in preparation for the next flu pandemic, which is considered inevitable. Although viruses constantly change their genetic material, and vaccines change seasonally for that reason, the survivors’ antibodies have held vital clues for flu vaccine researchers.
Your paediatrician can tell you what jabs your children need, especially before heading off to school or to camp when they will be mixing with many other children. Students living in dormitories should get the meningococcal vaccine. If you are planning to travel abroad you should visit your GP a few months ahead of time in order to get all vaccines you will need. Adults also need boosters of their tetanus for when they step on a nail, and should have an annual Flu Shot. If in doubt, discuss it with your GP and err on the side of caution by having the injection. Any reactions are usually very mild and brief.
Our history has already proven that immunisation is very successful, safe and cost effective for the public health. Make sure you and your family keep yours up to date!