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January 17, 2006 Middle Park Times |
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Immunizations are worth the distress |
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It is the same sad picture I see everyday; a mother on the edge of tears, her small child crying their eyes out, and a nurse with an empty syringe and the look of a shell-shocked solider. It, of course, is immunization time for children. Do we need to immunize our children? Is all of that distress really worth it?
Before the 1900’s, infection was the major cause of death in children responsible for over 50% of all deaths. In 2003, after childhood immunizations have been available for decades, infectious death is very uncommon, less than 3% of all childhood deaths. While the advent of antibiotics has helped reduce the rate of infectious deaths, many of the previous infectious deaths were due to viruses that antibiotics cannot cure. Only immunizations for those viruses have reduced the death rate. Additionally, some bacterial infections are so powerful that children may die before they can receive proper antibiotic treatment. These bacterial infections can be prevented before they start with proper childhood immunizations.
Do immunizations really work, or is it all a government conspiracy or a way for pharmaceutical companies to get rich? Before the advent of the immunizations for children (against diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio, measles, mumps, rubella, HIB, hepatitis B and A) there were 1,382,142 cases per year of these diseases in the United States. In 2003, after many years of childhood immunizations, there were a total of only 27,392 cases per year of these diseases in the U.S., a reduction of 98%. So, why were there any cases in 2003 if the immunizations work so well? It is due to the fact that some children are not immunized as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control. In fact, Colorado has the lowest immunization rate of any state (or US Territory) -- only 84% of children. These children are susceptible to these preventable diseases, and in fact may infect other children that may have not received a complete series of immunizations or who have weak immune systems. No one gets rich off immunizations. The federal government has to beg pharmaceutical companies to keep producing vaccines, because they offer very little profit for the companies. There are periodic shortages of vaccines because there are so few companies that are willing to produce them since vaccines make so little profit. Health Care providers are reimbursed by insurance companies at rates so low that typically they only cover the cost of the immunization and provide little to no profit. So, why do the immunizations cost so much? Because the pharmaceutical companies spend a large amount of money and time purifying the immunizations to make sure they are safe for children. |
Are the immunizations really safe? One out of 1.5 million doses will cause a severe reaction. The chance of a child dying in an automobile accident is 10 times more likely, so should you never go out on the road again with your child? While it would be the safest thing to do, it is not very practical to never place a child in a car. The same is true for immunizations; the safest practice would be to isolate them from all human contact (including parents and siblings), so they would never be exposed to any infections. However, it is not possible for children to live their lives in isolation, so they need immunizations to protect them from infections. Severe reactions, while scary, can normally be treated with appropriate medicines to stop the reaction, in the rare case that it happens. Additionally, a child’s chance of contracting one of the diseases if not immunized is more likely than experiencing a serious side-effect from the immunization. What about autism and immunizations? There was quite a bit of discussion on this topic in the past. Autism is a horrible disease that makes its appearance at about the same time the MMR immunization is given. Naturally, parents and doctors wondered if the two were somehow related. There have been more than five large studies since the late 1980’s that have proved without a doubt that autism is not connected to childhood immunizations, but instead is an unfortunate coincidence in timing.
What is a “normal” reaction to childhood immunizations? Redness, swelling, and even warmth at the injection site are normal. In fact, they are signs that the immunization is working well and the child’s immune system is ready to attack these infections if they come in contact with the child. A low-grade fever is also normal, and again is a sign of a healthy immune system. Can a child get “sick” from an immunization? There are two immunizations, MMR and varicella, which could cause the child to have a mild case of the virus. However, this is extremely rare (I have never seen a case myself), and the infection is always much less severe than if the child is exposed to the wild virus without appropriate immunizations. All other immunizations cannot cause an infection of the virus / bacteria, because they contain only a small piece of the virus / bacteria.
There are many more issues and topics to discuss about childhood immunizations. Please see your health care provider and discuss any and all concerns you have before the immunizations are given to your children. However, please do not avoid getting your child immunized, because your child needs the appropriate protection against these killer infections. |