Get vaccinated.

So this blog started with me coming across this news story: http://tinyurl.com/a24znvb Go read it before proceeding. I know there are many bloggers that write about this topic endlessly, but today I want to. So here goes. Remember, I am not a doctor, so I will lead you to quite a few links as we proceed!

I do not understand how any educated person can be anti-vaccinations. To be anti-vaccinations, you have to be anti-all-modern-medicine.  If you believe that medicine can cure your ills, then why don’t you believe in letting medicine prevent them? Like with many of my previous posts, I think this blog will be more structured if I approach it by writing direct responses to common claims I have heard on the issue.

“Vaccinations cause autism.”

I thought we were past this, but then I found out that vaccinations were brought up for discussion just a few weeks ago when they had a congressional hearing about the government’s response to rising autism numbers. This idea first became popular after a report published in a medical journal in 1998 by Andrew Wakefield. It has since come out that, beyond being incorrect, the data and information in the article was completely falsified. Unfortunately, by the time this news came out, the myth had spread far and wide thanks to the help of some very vocal celebrities. There is no scientific evidence to show that vaccines cause autism. I firmly believe our rising autism numbers are a result of increased knowledge and diagnosis. This is a good thing. It enables medicical professionals to learn more about treating autism. There has been enough time spent on testing if there is a link in vaccinations. Let’s start spending time and money on other resources for autism. Oh, and in the meantime, get vaccinated.

“The diseases vaccination treats aren’t around anymore.”

You know why? Because we vaccinate people! The diseases are around, but the reason none of your friends have caught the measles is because they were vaccinated. There are also people that claim measles was on the decline before vaccinations. Even if this is the case, those statistics can be explained by natural decline of cases, and increased knowledge about sanitization and the general spread of disease. The steady decline is a good thing, but then we found a way to keep everyone from getting it. It was called a vaccine!  Please read this report from the WHO: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs286/en/ you will see that by increasing immunization efforts in low-income countries, there has been a 74% drop in measles between 2000 and 2010. That is a staggering number to me. Clearly the vaccine works. That we as Americans choose to not vaccinate when so many want for the vaccine is as stupid to me as the way we waste drinkable water to do things like wash our cars. Someone from an under-developed country would not be able to comprehend it. So get vaccinated.

“My parents had [fill in disease here] and they survived.”

Mine too. But how many didn’t? Do you buckle your seat belt when you get in the car? When my parents started driving they didn’t even have seatbelts. And yes, they survived. But I still don’t put my car into drive without buckling mine. Can I still die in a car wreck? Absolutely. Am I going to die from being ejected from my vehicle in an otherwise low risk accident? Most likely not! No, these diseases aren’t always fatal, and there are still many other things I can catch that will kill me. But if I can reduce the ailments on that list, I am going to take every precaution I can. Get vaccinated.

”It doesn’t feel natural to inject something like that into my body.”

Does it feel natural to take a little pill and have your bronchitis disappear? Does it feel natural to have a doctor cut you open and take out or repair whatever is ailing you? Where is the line between what should normally happen and unnatural? How do you draw this line? I like to think that medicine is a gift, it can cure me and it can prevent disease. Yay medicine! Get vaccinated.

“I am against the flu shot, but I support other vaccinations.”

This sentence makes absolutely no sense, yet I could dedicate an entire blog to this one argument. A flu vaccination is like any other vaccination. You do not get it every year because it is less effective. You get it every year because there is a new version to combat the ever changing strains of flu. There is nothing dangerous added to the flu vaccine. Like every other vaccination and medication on the planet, they are constantly working to ensure they are as safe as can be. There is another entire list of arguments about this one vaccine alone. If you check this link, many of the flu shot arguments I have heard are addressed: http://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/features/top-13-flu-myths  Like I have said once or twice before, get vaccinated!

“Why are you bugging me? The choices I make for my kids don’t affect you.”

You are right, most of the choices you make for your kids don’t affect me. This one does though. This is because I have many people in my life that are not protected from these easily preventable diseases. Not because of their own decisions, but because they cannot get vaccinated due to something out of their control (immune system problems, too young, allergies to eggs in the flu vaccine, etc.) I know it is not your problem if my mom fighting cancer gets the flu, or if my friend’s babies catch whooping cough, but it is my problem because I care about these people. I want you to give it consideration too. Your kid might miss a week of school with whooping cough, but a baby they get too close to in the grocery store might end up in the NICU. So for the sake of our babies, get vaccinated!

Ok, that last line was a little heavy handed. It is how I feel though! I hope that at least one of these points has spoken to you, or given you the words you need to speak to someone around you that is against vaccinations. Please encourage your friends to re-examine their views. Remember that this includes people that are against flu vaccines. With the way flu changes we will probably not be able to take a strong, permanent stand against it as we have measles, smallpox and polio, but isn’t it worth doing everything we can for those that are susceptible? I know it is hard to save the world. Let’s start by saving one person at a time. Get vaccinated.