Don't Wait Vaccinate
Don’t Wait Vaccinate
Brandy DuFrane
Baker College
Essay 1
Children begin being vaccinated against harmful diseases at birth. Vaccinations are administered throughout the United States in hospitals, doctor’s offices, and health departments. Vaccinations provide protection to children and adults from many devastating viruses and bacteria. A majority of parents vaccinate their children as recommended but some parents are choosing not to vaccinate their children because they believe them to be harmful. These parents believe that they should be able to choose to have their children vaccinated or not. While vaccines may have some risk, and while vaccines should not be forced upon parents by law, it is still a better idea to vaccinate your child than to choose not to. When children receive vaccines they develop stronger immune systems against disease. The Chinese have been administering forms of vaccinations for smallpox since the time period between 960 and 1269. They were not always made or administered in the traditional way. The Chinese people used the scabs of an infected small pox individual to immunize themselves against small pox. They would crush the scabs into a dust and then inhale it. This would give the individual small doses of the virus causing the persons immune system to develop protection against the invading disease and thus making themselves immune to small pox in the future. This practice is called variolation, and it originated from the observation that people who survived a previous smallpox infection somehow become resistant to getting the infection again. (Young, 2012). Vaccines today work the same way. They are developed to be less harmful to a person then the actual disease. Often a dead virus or part of the virus is used to make the vaccination that is injected into an individual. This vaccination shot causes a child’s immune system to develop a future defense against the disease. They are now immunized against certain viruses or
Brandy DuFrane
Baker College
Essay 1
Children begin being vaccinated against harmful diseases at birth. Vaccinations are administered throughout the United States in hospitals, doctor’s offices, and health departments. Vaccinations provide protection to children and adults from many devastating viruses and bacteria. A majority of parents vaccinate their children as recommended but some parents are choosing not to vaccinate their children because they believe them to be harmful. These parents believe that they should be able to choose to have their children vaccinated or not. While vaccines may have some risk, and while vaccines should not be forced upon parents by law, it is still a better idea to vaccinate your child than to choose not to. When children receive vaccines they develop stronger immune systems against disease. The Chinese have been administering forms of vaccinations for smallpox since the time period between 960 and 1269. They were not always made or administered in the traditional way. The Chinese people used the scabs of an infected small pox individual to immunize themselves against small pox. They would crush the scabs into a dust and then inhale it. This would give the individual small doses of the virus causing the persons immune system to develop protection against the invading disease and thus making themselves immune to small pox in the future. This practice is called variolation, and it originated from the observation that people who survived a previous smallpox infection somehow become resistant to getting the infection again. (Young, 2012). Vaccines today work the same way. They are developed to be less harmful to a person then the actual disease. Often a dead virus or part of the virus is used to make the vaccination that is injected into an individual. This vaccination shot causes a child’s immune system to develop a future defense against the disease. They are now immunized against certain viruses or
References: Austvoll-Dahlgren, A., & Helseth, S. (2010). What informs parents ' decision-making about childhood vaccinations? Journal Of Advanced Nursing, 66(11), 2421-2430. doi:http://dx.doi.org.bakerezproxy.palnet.info/10.1111/j.1365-2648.2010.05403.x Ross, Oakland. (2011, Jan 7). "Andrew Wakefield 's fraudulent vaccine research". The Star (Toronto). Retrieved February 25, 2013 "Thimerosal in vaccines: frequently asked questions (FAQs)". Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (2007) Retrieved on February 24, 2013 from http:fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/QuestionsaboutVaccines/ UCM070430 What Would Happen if We Stopped Vaccinations?” (2012) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved February 25, 2013 from http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vac-gen/whatifstop.htm Young M.D., Leslie. (2012) “The Beginning” Retrieved February 25, 2013 from http://www.netplaces.com/vaccines/a-historical-perspective/the-beginning.htm