Chloe S

1
Master Emma and Liz

8A Science

3 May 2019

Throughout human and medical technological history, we have created many helpful and

lifesaving

machines, braces,

technics, and

vaccines. Vaccines

have always been

controversial due

to scary side

effects or false

rumors spread throughout social media and communities. Though Vaccines do have risks, not

using them can seriously affect society, because non vaccinating your child can make them way

more vulnerable to

https://www.infectioncontroltoday.com/infectious-diseases-conditions/measles-cases-spike-globally

-due-gaps-vaccination-coverage

diseases and sickness, If you choose not to vaccinate your child, that may leave infants and those

who cannot get vaccines at risk of illness or even death, and it costs millions more of dollars to

treat those who are sick. It is truly very risky to be an anti vaxxer, putting yourself, your

child(ren), your bank, and other children at risk

Many moms fear that vaccinating their child can be very risky and dangerous, but the
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Master Emma and Liz

8A Science

3 May 2019

benefits outway the risks. One of the most common vaccine myth is the myth that vaccines cause

autism. This theory was first

brought up in 1997 by a

medical physicist that got

very popular

(Publichealth.org). Though

this doctor’s reasonings

sounded legit he was very

wrong in his studies and since then doctors have tested children who received the MMR vaccine

for autism. Many of these children were found positive, but this is because the doctors

vaccinated children with some signs of autism before they were vaccinated. The Author states

“​The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimated that 732,000 American children were saved

from death and 322 million cases of childhood illnesses were prevented between 1994 and 2014

due to vaccination.” (ProCon.org). Vaccines can be scary but most parents dont look into the

truth, children who get vaccinated

are not bound to develope autistic

traits, sure they might have a sore

arm from the needle but scientist

have not found a proven cause of

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Master Emma and Liz

8A Science

3 May 2019

autism.

One of the main risks of not getting vacinated is harming other. Babies’ immunization

form their birth mother wears off by 6 months after birth, and some vaccines can only be given

to a child at 1 year of living that means that a child has 6 months of being vulnerable, hopefully

this child won’t contract that virus from anyone who isn’t vaccinated around them. (Sarah

Schultz) Having a child who is unvaccinated can be seriously dangerous and potentially deadly.

In 2000 the measles disease was officially eliminated until 6 measles outbreaks occurred in 2019

alone (The Week.com). Measles is a highly contagious disease, so anyone who isn't vaccinated

can easily catch measles and spread it. This can be highly alarming for people with vaccine

allergies or people with compromised immune systems. Herd Immunity is when enough people

are vaccinated, the disease cannot spread as easily. Most places that had a measles outbreak

were low vaccinated places. The Author says “ ​Herd immunity is especially important for

measles, which is spread through the air by droplets from an infected person's nose or mouth.

One person can infect 12 to 18 other people in an unvaccinated population, making it one of the

most contagious diseases known to science.” (The Week.com.) It is clear that it can be reckless

and dangerous to other people who may not be able to get certain vaccines.

Many parents who are hesitant to vaccinate their child(ren) look to google for the

answers, where internet memes, stores in the media and hoaxes flourish. What hesitant parents

want is information, they find false information or opinions that could persuade them a certain
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Master Emma and Liz

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3 May 2019

way. What we could potentially do as a community is spread information. If hesitant parents see

the facts instead of the stories or rumours they might think twice. By informing people and their

children about the risks and benefits of vaccines this can help those

https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Face-to-face-

who can’t get vaccinated and wipe out measles again. Many times parents also choose to not

vaccinate because of religious

beliefs. A harsh way to solve this problem could be enforcing it by law. In California

there is a no tolerance policy to vaccinating your children after many fell ill in Disney’s park.

(The Weekly.com) This strategy has

been effective, vaccination rates went

from 93% to 95% in California (The

Weekly.com). All people need is

information and credible sources.

Many parents fear vaccines can cause

dangerous side effects like autism and illness, but this has proven wrong many times. Instead of

saving their child(ren) they are just risking their health and Instead of saving their child(ren)

they are just risking their health and others who can't be

https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Face-to-face-

vaccinated. Many people who have

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Master Emma and Liz

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vaccine allergies, too young, or have compromised immune

systems are left vulnerable ​-but-dont-expect-the-impossible

and at risk of their lives. False accusations about vaccines are spread throughout internet memes,

media stories and communities around the globe. Spread information not disease.

https://www.cancercenter.com/community/blog/2018/01/cancer-vaccines-do-exist

Works Cited

“Should Any Vaccines be Required For Children?” ProCon. org, ProCon.org, 2019,
​https://vaccines.procon.org/
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Master Emma and Liz

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McKee, Cheprha, Bohannon, Kristi, “Exploring The Reasons Behind Parental Refusal of
Vaccines.” US National Library of Medicine, ​National Center for Biotechnology
Information​, 2016, ​https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4869767/

Schultz, Sarah. “The Choice Not To Vaccinate Doesn’t Only Affect You!” Vaccines Today.
2015, July 26,

https://www.vaccinestoday.eu/stories/the-choice-not-to-vaccinate-doesnt-only-affect-you/

Zucker, Howard. “The Harm of Skippng Vaccinations or Delaying.” New York State, 2015,
June, https://www.health.ny.gov/prevention/immunization/vaccine_safety/harm.htm

Blume, Staurt. “Immunization: How Vaccines Became Controversial.” Reaktion Books LTD,
1942.

“The Anti Vaxxers’ Impacts.” The Week, The Week Publications Inc, 2019

https://theweek.com/articles/826405/antivaxxers-impact

Image sources:
1.)
https://www.cancercenter.com/community/blog/2018/01/cancer-vaccines-do-exist-but-dont-expe
ct-the-impossible

2.)​ ​https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Face-to-face-

3.)
https://www.infectioncontroltoday.com/infectious-diseases-conditions/measles-cases-spike-globa
lly
-due-gaps-vaccination-coverage
Chloe S
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Master Emma and Liz

8A Science

3 May 2019