Contents
- Myth 1. Immunity after illness is better than after vaccination
- Myth 2. Vaccines are poisonous because they contain mercury
- Myth 3. Vaccinations are the cause of autism
- Myth 4: Vaccinations cause long-term side effects that can be fatal
- Myth 5. Many diseases practically do not exist, which means there is no need to be vaccinated against them
- Myth 6. If you get multiple shots at once, the side effects will be too severe.
- Myth 7. You don’t need a flu shot.
What is not said about the vaccination of children! And not at all thinking that without vaccinations we will literally return to the Middle Ages, when people were dying in thousands from now forgotten diseases.
The anti-vaccination movement is growing and expanding. The first fruits are already visible: every now and then there are outbreaks of measles. Is it worth believing those who oppose vaccinations, claiming that they are dangerous to health and do more harm than good? We talked about this with a general practitioner.
Physician-therapist of the highest category, excellence in health care
“The most important thing in medicine is disease prevention. This task always remains the main one. Vaccinations are the real salvation of humanity. This is not a slogan, but a consequence of the experience of our medicine. Now it is becoming ridiculous and bad form not to believe those who, with their lives, have proved the miraculous effect of this trend! How many lives have been saved! Just remember the fight against poliomyelitis … Disability has stopped, otherwise how would we look into the eyes of those who are faced with this disaster? Now Western scientists, using the example of the absence of BCG vaccinations, have convinced themselves of the effectiveness of this vaccination. Yes, we get sick, but only a few die. “
First, let’s figure out what vaccination is. This is a method of preventing various diseases. After the vaccine enters the body, the immune system begins to work more actively, while the body recognizes pathogens and enters into an aggressive fight with them. As a result of this confrontation, antibodies are released that can neutralize “strangers”. This is how immune memory appears.
Vaccines are different:
– live (contain weakened material of the pathogen. Symptoms resembling a disease appear. Long-term immunity is formed).
– inactivated (contains killed pathogens).
– toxoid (contains waste products of pathogens).
– recombinant (the preparation does not contain the material of the pathogen, it is very expensive).
Myth 1. Immunity after illness is better than after vaccination
Probably, the example of chickenpox works – once you have been ill and this infection will not stick anymore. Not really.
When a vaccine is administered, the body reacts in the same way as to infection with pathogenic microbes. But foreign substances are so small that they are only enough for the formation of immunity, they cannot cause illness.
If an unvaccinated child is indeed infected with a disease, the consequences can be very dire – developmental anomalies, mental retardation, liver cancer, and even death.
Myth 2. Vaccines are poisonous because they contain mercury
A very small amount of mercury is found in thiomersal, a preservative used in vaccines. This organic substance is found in multi-dose packages. After the introduction of the vaccine, the level of mercury in the blood remains practically unchanged, as there is so little of it in the preservative.
Myth 3. Vaccinations are the cause of autism
There were such rumors in the distant 90s that autism could develop from certain vaccinations. Combined measles, mumps and rubella (CMR) vaccines were the most suspected. However, the rumors were not confirmed. There is absolutely no evidence that XC vaccination causes autism. Moreover, scientists are still not sure what exactly triggers the development of autism. Even too small a break between pregnancies is called among the reasons.
Myth 4: Vaccinations cause long-term side effects that can be fatal
The vaccine is carefully tested before being administered to real patients. The slightest risk of danger – and the composition is sent for revision.
Of course, the body reacts to the ingress of foreign substances into it, as if it were sick, but in a mild form. And this effect is many times weaker than if the causative agent of the disease enters the body.
Many dangerous diseases for which it is recommended to be vaccinated lead to very serious complications and even death. For example, polio can cause paralysis, blindness, and encephalitis.
However, for the vaccine to work as it should, it must be given to a completely healthy child. The baby must be examined by a pediatrician and a neurologist, it is necessary to pass blood and urine tests.
Myth 5. Many diseases practically do not exist, which means there is no need to be vaccinated against them
In fact, there is an inverse relationship – there are fewer diseases precisely because everyone around is vaccinated. The immunity of vaccinated people prevents infection from developing. And the causative agents of the disease themselves have not disappeared anywhere.
But if you stop vaccinating the population, the response of the diseases will not take long. Therefore, there are periodic outbreaks of certain diseases in certain regions.
Myth 6. If you get multiple shots at once, the side effects will be too severe.
Just the opposite. Multicomponent vaccines allow less frequent visits to polyclinics and not enough infections there. Children are daily faced with various substances that attack the immune system. Therefore, the simultaneous administration of several drugs does not exert undue stress on the child’s body.
Myth 7. You don’t need a flu shot.
Yes, the flu shot is not required. Parents have the right to decide whether to do it for the child or not. But the annual death rate from influenza reaches 300 thousand people, so it is a dangerous disease. The influenza vaccine is able to form immunity against strains such as swine, Hong Kong and influenza B proteins. The vaccine provides protection for 6-9 months.
You need to vaccinate children over the age of six months. In this case, the child must be healthy (without signs of ARVI). Do not vaccinate children with an allergy to chicken protein, with an exacerbation of the allergy.
In defense of a vaccine against the influenza virus, one can also say that, firstly, even if an infection occurs, the disease will pass in a much milder form. Secondly, the flu vaccine also protects against other acute respiratory infections. In addition, it is much cheaper to get vaccinated than to then treat the disease that has arisen and fight its consequences, since after vaccination the likelihood of complications decreases by 30%, and deaths by 50%.
Read about which new vaccinations will soon appear on the National Calendar at