All Posts tagged Risks of immunizations

In recent years there has been an increasing amount of dialogue and debate about the benefits of immunizations for newborns. While every parent needs to decide how best to safeguard the health of her child, it is essential to understand the benefits of immunizations, and the risks involved in choosing not to immunize. Before you choose to say “no” to vaccinating your baby, consider the following proven health benefits.

Immunizations are Life Savers
Immunizations can save your child’s life. Today’s vaccines have proven to protect children from complex and deadly diseases that, in the past, took the lives of thousands of children each year. Vaccinations have helped to all but eliminate such diseases as smallpox, diphtheria, tetanus, yellow fever, whooping cough, polio, and measles. To continue to keep children safe from these diseases, each generation must maintain immunity through the use of proven childhood vaccinations.

Immunizations Help Prevent Lifelong Disabilities
Some vaccine-preventable diseases, even if not deadly, can result in prolonged health complications and disabilities. For example, pertussis, or whooping cough, can cause such complications as pneumonia, seizures, or brain damage, while polio can result in life-long paralysis. Since there is no cure for diseases such as polio, vaccination is the only way to protect children from possible lifelong disabilities associated with these diseases.

Immunizations are Safe
For parents fearing the potential risk factors of vaccinations, take comfort in knowing that vaccinations are both safe and effective. All vaccines are heavily tested and their results are monitored before being mass produced and distributed. While such mild side effects as discomfort, redness and tenderness at the injection site are known to occur, such factors should be of minimal concern compared to the risks of the diseases that vaccines prevent.

Immunizations are Required by Many Institutions
Many schools and health care facilities require children to be vaccinated before admittance. By choosing not to vaccinate your child, you may be limiting your child’s future opportunities for care and education.

Immunizations Protect the Future
Thanks to vaccinations, small pox is one disease that has been completely eradicated. Today, immunizations save an estimated 9 million lives around the world each year. Despite these advances, scientists believe that an additional 16 million deaths could be avoided annually if effective vaccines were deployed against all vaccine-preventable diseases. With more parents willing to vaccinate their children today, we have a better chance of protecting children tomorrow from the continued threat of preventable diseases and their long-term effects.

If you are considering whether or not to vaccinate your child, talk to your child’s doctor about the benefits and potential side effects of immunizing your newborn. Every parent wants to protect his child from health threats and give him the best chances to live a long and healthy life. Regular immunizations should be a part of every parent’s disease prevention plan for their child. With generations of proven effectiveness, parents can rest assured that the benefits of vaccinating their child will far outweigh any temporary discomfort.