Pros and Cons of Children Getting Their Immunizations - Essay Example

Pros and Cons of Children Getting Their Immunizations Introduction Strictly speaking vaccination also referred to as inoculation is the administering of vaccines to protect against disease. Successful vaccination boosts immunization which means one acquires immunity against disease. Vaccination is considered to be one of the greatest and most cost effective health developments of the 21st century. Diseases such as rubella, diphtheria, smallpox, polio and whooping cough which used to claim the lives of so many children are now prevented by vaccination and millions of children’s lives are saved. According to the Center for disease Control (CDC) an estimate of 732, 000 American children were saved from death and 322 million cases of childhood illnesses were prevented between 1994 and 2014 due to vaccination. Organizations such as CDC, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Institute of Medicine (IOM), American Medical Association (AMA,), American academy of Pediatrics (AAP), UNICEF, World Health Organization (WHO) assert that vaccination is not only good but also important... WHO states, “Vaccines are safe”.However immunization is feared to cause side effects in children such as seizures, paralysis, autism, ADHD, diabetes and even death. The cost of immunization is also considered to be very high and compensation awards as a result of immunization have also demanded a huge chunk of money from the US government. There are some cases of allergic reactions that make some people fear vaccinating their children. Some religious beliefs are also opposed to vaccination making those ascribing to those beliefs reluctant to have vaccination carried out for their children. I will discuss both the pros and cons of vaccination. Pros of vaccination Vaccines save parents and their children time and money since they cost less in time and money to obtain than treating infectious diseases. The parent does not need to take off from work to take care of a sick child, potential long-term disability care, and medical costs. For example, children under five are contagious for about eight days when infected with flu, while children with rotavirus are contagious for up to 30 days which costs much more compared to a vaccine Vaccines protect future generations against deadly diseases. Mothers who are vaccinated during pregnancy protect their unborn children from viruses that could potentially cause birth defects. Vaccinated communities help protect future generations against some vaccination-possible diseases through eradication. For example between 1963 and 1965 over 11000 babies died while about 20,000 were born with defects in the US during a global outbreak of rubella(German Measles) since its vaccine was not licensed until 1969. Vaccines protecting individuals, but their strength really lie in protecting one’s neighbors and the future generation (Maurice, 122). Vaccination reduces the pain associated with vaccinable diseases. Mothers who are vaccinated decrease the chances of getting children with birth defects such as heart problems, hearing and vision loss, congenital cataracts, liver and spleen damage, and mental disabilities associated with the disease (Mayon-White, 47). Vaccines have eradicated smallpox and have nearly eradicated other diseases such as polio. For instance the last case of small pox in the United States was in 1948; the last case in the world was 1977 in Somalia This is as opposed to the scenario in the 20th century where in the United States alone 16,316 deaths from polio and 29,004 deaths from small pox were experienced annually. According to UNICEF, there were only about 500 cases of polio worldwide in 2014 appearing in only three countries namely Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan down from 350,000 cases in 1988. This success can be attributed to vaccination programs. Diphtheria killed 21, 053 people annually, measles killed 530217, mumps killed 162,344 people, rubella killed 47,745 and Hib killed 20000 people in the twentieth century in the US ; by 2012 each of these diseases were decreased by 99% because of vaccinations. Vaccinations are safe. The American academy of pediatrics assert that most childhood vaccines are 90-99% effective in preventing disease. The ingredients in vaccines are safe in the amounts used as ingredients such as thimerosal, formaldehyde, and aluminum which are harmful in large doses are used in safe quantities By vaccinating one can to an extent eradicate threatening illnesses and diseases from your baby’s life not only in childhood but even long after the vaccination. For example, the measles, mumps, rubella meningitis and polio vaccines offer probable lifelong protection against the diseases, the diphtheria and tetanus vaccines offer a shield for ten years. Vaccination help protect against some diseases which cannot be treated especially viral diseases such as measles. There are a number of diseases which cannot be adequately treated with modern medicines and therapy. Some vaccinations are compulsory in order for one to work in certain settings especially health care and military, This gives those who are vaccinated a comparative advantage to those not vaccinated as far as working I n those settings is concerned Cons of vaccination Although cases of allergic reactions are very few, they do occasionally occur. For example, some people are allergic to eggs which make them allergic to flu vaccine as it contains some egg ingredients. For example in the United States of America, about 30, 000 cases of adverse reactions to vaccines have been reported annually to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System(VAERS) since 1990 with 10-15% classified as serious, meaning they are associated with permanent disability, hospitalization, life-threatening sicknesses or death. Though extremely rare, vaccination can give one the disease it is made to prevent. Some parents are not ready to take such risk small as it is on their children. To such parents the freedom to choose whether their children should be vaccinated or not brings paramount relief. For instance, It is the position of The World Chiropractic Alliance that... No person should be forced by government regulation or societal pressure to receive any medication or treatment, including vaccines, against his or her will (Vashishtha, 79). It is argued that the Immunity that a child gets naturally after getting a natural infection is likely to last longer and to be stronger than the vaccine. Another problem is when the child does not accept the vaccine either due to the vaccine not having been stored correctly or if the child is incompatible to the vaccine. The trauma resulting from either makes some people feel like the risk of vaccinating their children is not worth. To achieve optimal prevention of dangerous infectious diseases the general public must have trust and confidence in the immunization programs which is not always the case. Some diseases mutate and become resistant to drugs and vaccines in what is called antigenic shift, this can give rise to a pandemic since such outbreaks can spread like a windblown forest fire through the world population (Sanford, 34-71). The cost of failed vaccination and the cost of compensating victims are high. For example, between 1989 and July 1 2014 3, 645 compensation awards have been made by the National vaccine injury compensation program (VICP) amounting to over$ 2.7 billion in awards and $113.2 million to cover legal costs, 9786 claims have been dismissed amounting to $62.8 million of legal costs. I will discuss both the advantages and the disadvantages of vaccination Some personal and religious beliefs are genuinely opposed to vaccination. Those with such religious beliefs may fail to allow their children to be immunized. They tend to feel that vaccinating their children is like faulting the creator’s in built ability in humans to fight diseases. They cannot see why we have to inject solutions of chemically-treated, inactivated viruses, bacteria parts, traces of some animal tissue and metals, such as mercury and aluminum,as a reasonable strategy for keeping human beings—babies, children and adults healthy. There are a number of diseases which are infectious that cannot be adequately treated with modern medical therapy. Some vaccine approval processes have been contaminated by flawed or incomplete trials yet government’s authorities seem to ignore such negative effects (Shendurnikar, 109). Summary Without a doubt, vaccination is a success story in the fight against diseases that have swept away human kind at alarming rates over the years in the 20th and early 21st century. It is important to note that though immunization through vaccination has been successful despite its few challenges it is important for it to continue since most of the vaccine-possible diseases have not been eradicated and even those that have been eradicated can reoccur with life threatening effects on the world’s population. Some challenges in vaccination that need to be looked into include the assessment and availability of vaccinations for diseases such as the bird flu without waiting for pandemics. Some supporters of vaccination suggest that personal and religious belief exemptions should be curtailed. They argue that it makes those exempted to depend on those around them to be protected. Arguing that vaccines aren’t the only situation in which we are supposed to care about our neighbor and that following traffic laws, drug tests at work, paying taxes are also some of the things that may go against our beliefs but we ascribe to them because without this shared responsibility a civil society cannot exist. Anti-vaccinators risk not only the lives of their own children but also those of others medically weak to get vaccinated and must instead rely on collective immunity (Altman, 34-56). Those who have genuine religious objections are unlikely to allow their children to be immunized, the government and other stake holders need to device a way of reversing this attitude through more inclusive ways than reversing exemption laws. Work Cited Altman, Arnold J. Supportive Care of Children with Cancer: Current Therapy and Guidelines from the Childrens Oncology Group. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2004. Print. Maurice, J M, and Sheila Davey. State of the Worlds Vaccines and Immunization. Geneva: World Health Organization, 2009. Print. Mayon-White, Richard T, Judith Moreton, and Sue Sefi. Immunizing Children: A Practical Guide. Abingdon, Oxon, UK: Radcliffe Medical Press, 1998. Print. Sanford, Jay P, Violaine S. Mitchell, and Nalini M. Philipose. The Childrens Vaccine Initiative: Achieving the Vision. Washington, D.C: National Academy Press, 1993. Print. Shendurnikar, Niranjan, and Mukesh Agrawal. Immunization for Children. Hyderabad, India: Paras Medical Publisher, 2006. Print. Vashishtha, Vipin M, Ajay Kalra, and Naveen Thacker. Faqs on Vaccines and Immunization Practices. New Delhi: Jaypee Brothers Pvt. Ltd, 2011. Internet resource. Read More