Rospotrebnadzor specialists announced the statistics: measles is diagnosed this year twice more often than last year. In 2016, a serious outbreak was recorded in Yekaterinburg, this year Moscow and St. Petersburg were hit. Perhaps the disease was brought from Europe, where now, too, not all is well due to the situation with migrants. Given that this virus is extremely contagious, measles can spread further. Why did the disease, outlived in the last century, return?
“I don’t understand … Sinusitis, or something …” – mutters the therapist, examining my five-year-old niece. Leah coughs, runny nose, red eyes – it looks like a banal ARVI. But conventional treatment does not help. Leah is sent for x-rays and tests. No, not sinusitis.
“Yes, she has measles!” – An elderly nurse runs by. On the face of the doctor – sincere amazement. No one has come across measles live for a long time. Not everyone can recognize her by sight. Indeed, with the beginning of universal vaccination, this disease has turned into a scary legend. And here she is – with her own eyes.
Here it is necessary to clarify: my brother’s family refused vaccinations. They are anti-vaccine, vegan and raw foodists. “Since everyone is vaccinated, where does the disease come from? We won’t get vaccinated. From them, terrible diseases then develop. ” They tried to cure Leah’s pseudo-hemorrhage by fasting, by the way. Did not help.
There are a lot of supporters of this point of view at any “mom” forum. “I have not vaccinated my children for 14 years and have never regretted it!” – writes one of these “otkaznits”. “For health, kill your children as much as you like,” the supporters of vaccination answer.
– The crusade against vaccinations is a complete misunderstanding of the idea of herd immunity, immunological memory, the speed of the immune response in vaccinated and unvaccinated. The lack of understanding that you are still alive because there are still enough protected people around – that is why they are promoting the cult of anti-vaccinations. Although, if they understood what the point was, they would have to agitate everyone “for”: the more there are around the vaccinated, the more chances they have not to get sick.
What is herd immunity? This is a phenomenon when an infection cannot spread in a society if the majority are immune to it. Vaccinated people are like a wall that protects those who cannot be vaccinated: pregnant women, young children, people with weakened immunity due to serious diseases or who have other serious contraindications. Everyone who refuses to be vaccinated pulls a brick out of this wall and hides behind the backs of those who remain.
Herd immunity works perfectly if about 95% of the population is vaccinated. If there are at least 5% less vaccinated people, an epidemic will loom in front of us.
Parents are faced with a dilemma: getting sick from infection or vaccination. And if the disease is something ephemeral, like the Tunguska meteorite, which was in the taiga for a long time, then the vaccination – here it is, in the nurse’s syringe, is quite real. And some choose the disease, because it is like a dinosaur for a blonde: either a meeting or not.
Many argue that vaccinations are useless: they say, vaccinated people also get sick. And this is true – yes, they are ill. But there is one “but”. Even so – “BUT”.
It’s all about the speed of the immune response and immunological memory. For example, the flu. Thanks to antigenic drift (mutations in the genotype) and antigenic shift, it is impossible to guess one hundred percent with a vaccine. However, the statistics of 2009-2016 for the Russian Federation indicate that only unvaccinated patients died. For example, in the 2015/16 season – more than 530 people and only the unvaccinated. That is, the vaccinated (not all) can also get sick, but their immune response will not allow the disease to develop into a fatal complication.
And there are other statistics. Our expert cited the data: in 1993, on the territory of our country, the sanitary and epidemiological surveillance services conducted a study: they took more than 30 thousand water samples in different regions. And we received 175 strains of the polio virus from people and objects of the external environment. It turns out that the virus has not gone anywhere, it was and is everywhere! But in the same 1993, only two cases of poliomyelitis were recorded per million people.
It’s amazing that there are parents who are ready to release their child into the world without protection. After all, if he gets sick, it is not the case that is to blame, the one who voluntarily refused this protection is to blame. That is, in fact, this is such a failure to provide assistance. Leaving the child in danger.
For your information:
Measles is a highly contagious infectious disease. The first symptoms: general deterioration of health, loss of appetite, runny nose, cough, watery eyes. The temperature jumps up to 40,5 degrees. After a few days, white spots appear in the mouth, and a rash on the face and body. It is dangerous not only in itself, but also with its complications: it greatly undermines the immune system, measles pneumonia, otitis media, encephalitis can develop. For pregnant women, it is fraught with miscarriage.
Many young children still die from measles. In 2011, the world counted 158 thousand deaths from measles. Most of them are children under five years old.
Interview
Will you vaccinate your children?
I will, so I can protect my child from serious illnesses.
Only at gunpoint! It is unwise to introduce microbes into a healthy body.
Selectively. I’m afraid of polio and diphtheria.