Introduction
The issue of vaccination has elicited numerous reactions among various stakeholders. Among them advocating for vaccination to be applied on children to prevent some of the world’s deadliest diseases, on a similar note, there are also others who claim various are not healthy hence should not be applied on children as it may lead to numerous complications. However, over the recent years, the world has seen some of the worst diseases that even scientists and health professionals have not been able to come up with a solution. This study is concerned with finding out whether it is appropriate for children to be vaccinated amidst all these reactions and speculations. To some extent, the use of vaccination on children is justified.
In this century, there are still diseases that affect us and their treatments have not been found. Furthermore, health and medical professionals argue that the human race is kept safe from life-threatening illnesses and diseases through the administration of vaccines. The world has seen numerous changes both technologically, socially and in other areas, therefore infections have also found a way of spreading fast and being effective and efficient hence when one acquires them, they do not leave one with an option of visiting a physician since they take very little time before claiming life and a good example of such a disease is Ebola. Most people believe that in this century of advancement diseases cannot affect people in the same way it did in the previous centuries. However, medical practitioners differ with this thought as they state that the only way to eradicate these infectious diseases is through vaccination (Anderson, 1982).
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
According to the medical researchers throughout the world, children are at a higher risk of getting infected by various infections since their immune system is not strong to resist these infections. Therefore with the administration of vaccines, they are protected as the vaccinations ensure the foreign invaders in the immune system are destroyed when the microbes are recognized by the macrophages. There are some diseases that do not have specific license vaccines and pose a great danger to the children, therefore the only way to ensure the children are protected is through ensuring vaccination is administered since vaccines strengthen the immune system and reduce the resistance level of the diseases (Stehr-Green et al,2003). Various studies have concluded that vaccines are very effective when applied at an early stage since it ensures one is potentially safe from future diseases and a good example is the case of 1962 measles outbreak ("MEASLES VACCINE", 1962).
Vaccination is very important given the role it has had in the eradication of diseases. Polio is best administered in young children. Vaccination has helped the medical sector do away with life-threatening diseases like polio, yellow fever, measles and chicken pox which were dead before their treatment and vaccinations were discovered. Vaccination has helped people develop a strong immunity against such infections and any other stronger infections related to them. Dedication in the medical sector has ensured humanity can live safely without being affected by infections which can be prevented before they take effect and according to Louis Pasteur, man is very capable of eradicating infections from earth. An example is the eradication of yellow fever from Africa and India’s eradication of Poliomyelitis (Ogilvie et al, 2010). These efforts all show that it is necessary for the young children to be vaccinated since their immune systems are weak hence with an infection like yellow fever which has claimed the lives of many throughout Africa, can easily kill them if they are not vaccinated.
The health sector has been promoted throughout the world due to the vaccination programs. Among the diseases eradicated by vaccination which are considered deadly in the body of a full grown adult include; rinderpest, yaws, smallpox, and onchocerciasis. These diseases cannot last long in the body of a baby. Therefore the contribution made in medicine has saved the life of the future generations with the discovery of their vaccination. According to UNICEF reports most of these deadly infections have been eradicated by the vaccines developed against them. In India Poliomyelitis has been eradicated due to vaccine intervention. Furthermore reports state that in a year, the prevention of diseases by vaccination stands at 8,500 child hospitalization in Colorado while the death of 33, 000 more is prevented in the United States through vaccination (Adams, 2010). The vaccination programs initiated have led to the eradication of these diseases leading to a better life.
Infections are very effective and do not take a lot of time before entering the body of an individual especially when they are in groups. Therefore it is important that children get vaccinated at an early age since when they grow up to school going age, it becomes very difficult to control their movements. Furthermore, they tend to play in large numbers hence it is easier for them to exchange infections since infections transfer from one person as they mostly airborne. Additionally, children need to be vaccinated since they accompany their parents everywhere they go hence they can easily get infected due to the weak status of their immune system. Moreover, children can act as vessels of transferring infections since they go from every household to another. Therefore immunizing them can help prevent such issues since when they cannot acquire or transfer any infection.
Children should be prioritized when vaccination is being administered given that children are the future generation hence it would be a pity if something wrong were to happen to them. Additionally, children can transfer diseases faster from one person to another compared to an adult since they go everywhere and everyone always wants to hold or carry them. Similarly they can also acquire infections easily; moreover, their defence system is very weak compared to that of adults. The importance of vaccines cannot be disputed given role it has played in eradicating various diseases. Furthermore, vaccinations save the future of children; a good example is the role vaccines have played in eradicating polio. Polio destroyed the future of many children through crippling them. This hinders them from participating in various activities making them a liability.
Great investments are made in the field of medicine to ensure discoveries are made to prevent and permanently finish deadly diseases. Therefore when children are being immunized, then it means the process is safe and highly effective. Vaccinations go through numerous processes including testing which show the side effects of the vaccine and the potential benefits therefore when doctors decide to administer a certain vaccine then it is safe.
There are numerous diseases associated with infants and are very costly hence the introductions of vaccines ensure they are eradicated. Infections take a lot of time and money; this also brings families a lot of psychological problems. Additionally, a lot of time that the children should be spending in school results in the family and the children spending in the hospital thereby stalling various projects the family has so as to ensure the children are safe. Therefore vaccinations save people from all that stress. Vaccination reduces the expenses associated with diseases as it is cheap (Black, 2010). A good example is the prevention programs of measles and poliomyelitis which have proven cheap to vaccinate than to treat.
Approximately $13.6 billion per year is saved through childhood immunization programs. The cost-effectiveness of Papillomavirus Rapid Interface was developed so as to assess HPV girl's vaccination's effectiveness; this was done by the Lancet Global Health (Taira et al, 2004). Conversely, it has also been concluded that the vaccination of children ages 6 to 23 months onwards is more expensive than those of all children. Therefore this means childhood vaccination is cost-effective.
Similarly, there is nothing good without having side effects. The critics of child vaccination have always used the side effects to dispute vaccination and its role in the society. Despite most vaccines being cheap, some have proven relatively expensive. A good example being the HPV virus vaccine, which is used in the cervical cancer prevention and it usually, costs about $ 100 dollars. There are various screenings that are still associated with the vaccine since its efficiency is 70 percent, this leads to a lot of spending (Taira et al, 2004). Many people are not capable of affording the vaccine against cancer given that it has 3 doses that a patient should use to completely stay safe this makes it difficult for parents to purchase it.
Transporting live attenuated vaccines is difficult given that it often causes virulence after going through secondary mutation. Additionally, persons who are immunosuppressed can acquire diseases thereby making the virus useless to those with immunocompromised. This makes it very dangerous for children since children have not gone through numerous tests to know whether they are immunosuppressed or not.
The critics of vaccination often use the swine flu vaccine as an example of the side effects of vaccines. The swine flu vaccine is often associated with severe side effects including; vasculitis, anaphylactic shock, paralysis, Guillian Barre syndrome, and sometimes death, these side effects make it difficult for many people to trust vaccines in general furthermore these make it even difficult for it to be administered on children. Given the side effects associated with the swine flu virus, most people have therefore stereotyped every vaccine to be bad for health.
The human body is constituted differently. Therefore they react differently to different vaccines since they have different resistance level hence there may be strong or mild reaction depending on the body system. Conversely, vaccines are often associated with side effects like allergy, swelling and even fever. This makes it difficult for it to be administered on children since the reaction that may result may be severe leading to various health complications or even death of the child hence this makes many people fear to vaccinate children.
It is better for the body to maintain its natural immunity system. Vaccines interfere with the body’s natural ability to heal naturally. Therefore the artificial immune body system is not that safe as it weakens the body system after a certain period of time. This leaves the body vulnerable to many health complications. The body's innate ability to fight on it's on is weakened. Therefore making the children's immune system used to vaccines that protect them will weaken them even further hence when they grow older; the body's ability will be greatly weakened. This makes it difficult for people to accept the importance of vaccines hence would not take chances with their children.
Since vaccination process is complicated this makes it possible for some health complications to take effect. Some vaccines have had controversies surrounding them for years. A good example of such a vaccination being the MMR vaccine, this vaccine is used in the treatment of measles. The MMR is an abbreviation for measles, mumps and rubella. For years, people have had the thought that when their children are vaccinated, they risk being affected by these three infections. Therefore this belief has led to most people fearing for the health of their children.
Conclusion
Vaccines are widely used worldwide to eradicate infections. The benefits contributed to the world by vaccines cannot be ignored despite the many criticisms made by the critics. Health and medical professionals argue that the human race is kept safe from life-threatening illnesses and diseases through the administration of vaccines. This is true considering the role played by the measles vaccine that has eradicated the disease throughout the world. Poliomyelitis is also an example of a disease eradicated through vaccination. The world has seen numerous changes both technologically, socially and in other areas, therefore infections have also found a way of spreading fast and being effective and efficient hence when one acquires them, they do not leave one with an option of visiting a physician since they take very little time before claiming life and a good example of such a disease is Ebola. Swine flu is also another infection that is feared. Given the side effects associated with the swine flu virus, most people have therefore stereotyped every vaccine to be bad for health.
However, the side effects of vaccines have also proven tough despite the benefits enjoyed by vaccinating children. Many people are not capable of affording the vaccine against cancer given that it has 3 doses, this highlights the division it creates since not everyone can afford it especially to be administered to children. Furthermore, some vaccines like the swine flu vaccine are often associated with severe side effects including; vasculitis, anaphylactic shock, paralysis, Guillian Barre syndrome, and sometimes death, these side effects make it difficult for many people to trust vaccines in general furthermore these make it even difficult for it to be administered on children. In conclusion, the benefits of vaccinating children outweigh the negatives associated with it. Since the world has come a long way finding solutions for certain health conditions which used to affect people during the 19th and the 18th centuries. Therefore children should always get vaccinated to avoid the many complications that may cause harm to them when they grow up.
References
Adams, T. (2010). Global eradication of poliomyelitis: Is the end of the campaign in sight?. Journal Of Paediatrics And Child Health , 46 (11), 619-622. doi: 10.1111/j.1440-1754.2009.01691.x
Anderson, R., & May, R. (1982). Directly transmitted infections diseases: control by vaccination. Science, 215(4536), 1053-1060. doi:10.1126/science.7063839
Black, S. (2016). Recognizing the Importance of Vaccine Confidence. Ebiomedicine , 12 , 28-29. doi:10.1016/j.ebiom.2016.08.048
MEASLES VACCINE. (1962). JAMA , 179 (6), 453. doi: 10.1001/jama.1962.03050060063013
Ogilvie, G., Anderson, M., Marra, F., McNeil, S., Pielak, K., & Dawar, M. et al. (2010). A Population-Based Evaluation of a Publicly Funded, School-Based HPV Vaccine Program in British Columbia, Canada: Parental Factors Associated with HPV Vaccine Receipt. Plos Medicine, 7(5), e1000270. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1000270
Stehr-Green, P., Tull, P., Stellfeld, M., Mortenson, P., & Simpson, D. (2003). Autism and thimerosal-containing vaccines. American Journal Of Preventive Medicine, 25(2), 101-106. doi:10.1016/s0749-3797(03)00113-2
Taira, A., Neukermans, C., & Sanders, G. (2004). Evaluating Human Papillomavirus Vaccination Programs. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 10(11), 1915-1923. doi:10.3201/eid1011.040222
TUCKER, M. (2008). San Diego Measles Outbreak Shows The Effect of Vaccine Exemptions. Pediatric News , 42 (3), 14. doi: 10.1016/s0031-398x(08)70114-0
