Childhood Vaccination Research

When it comes to the health of children, we all want what we think is best for them. When deciding to vaccinate children, one major concern parents have is that if the vaccine is going to harm the health of the child. Childhood vaccines have been established and perfected for an exponential amount of time. Even though vaccinations have been around for a while, many people are still unsure about them. With this in mind, there are many questions about how vaccines work, what they are, and how they help eradicate diseases. Vaccines work by introducing a weakened version of the virus or bacteria into the body. In fact, Vaccines are introduced into the body via injection. When a child is injected with the virus, it is a live, weakened version of the virus. If the vaccine works correctly, the child will produce natural antibodies needed to fight off the virus. The vaccine teaches the child’s immune system how to fight off the virus, if the child were to ever come into contact with it again (“Mandatory Vaccinations”). Through the process
of immunization, children develop antibodies needed to fight off the virus, without actually having to have the virus and potentially become ill from it. Scientist have perfected vaccinations making them safe for the public.
With that being said, many people still have a very vague idea about what vaccines are.
Lloyd Scott Clements who wrote “Childhood Infectious Diseases, Immunization Impacts” says, “Vaccines may be purified toxins, specific bacterial or viral proteins, genetically engineered pieces of the organism, or even whole killed bacteria. The vaccine mimics the diseasescasusing [sic] microorganism but does not cause the disease. The vaccine fools the immune system to produce the antibodies with little or no discomfort to the person. The immunity acquired may be life-long, or may need repeated vaccine boosters to maintain against measles, mumps, and rubella” (Clements2). Vaccines contain antigens and other substances such as preservatives, stabilizers, adjuvants, etc. each substance has its own purpose in the vaccine to help it function. The construction of vaccines can be a complex endeavor, but the idea behind them providing protection is
simple. In addition, vaccines can ultimately lead to specific illnesses and diseases being eradicated. Vaccines have dramatically reduced the rate, at which people come into contact with these illnesses and diseases. As a matter of fact, smallpox has been eradicated because vaccinations helped keep the rate of the disease so low people no longer come into contact with the disease. Lloyd Scott Clements states “the success of the smallpox campaign proved that effective immunization strategies could eradicate diseases. Elimination of polio from North America in 1991 provided further proof that immunization is a powerful weapon for combating infectious diseases” (Clements1). Compared to many years ago, vaccinations have helped reduce infectious diseases worldwide. Even though not all infectious diseases are eradicated, vaccinations have led to getting closer than ever to being eradicated. In conclusion, when choosing to vaccinate children or not, it is crucial to take into account what vaccines are, how they work, and how they ultimately eradicate diseases. Vaccinations help build up immunity to these infectious diseases, so that our body can fight them off. Vaccines today are the most beneficial implement in helping to prevent infectious diseases.