Although vaccines were developed to help protect us from disease, many people still don’t get them.
Reasons for this might include allergies, mistrust of science, sickness, autism, religious reasons, etc. Most reasons for avoiding vaccinations are just misconceptions and have been proven false. You should only not get a vaccine if you have an allergy to it, have a weakened immune system or have other special circumstances in which a doctor feels it is unsafe.
There are vaccines to prevent flu, measles, polio, hepatitis, and more. Vaccines are usually given through a shot but some are available orally or nasally.
How they work
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), vaccines contain weakened or dead germs that cause a particular disease. Because the germs are in such a state, they won’t make you sick.
“A vaccine stimulates your immune system to produce antibodies, exactly like it would if you were exposed to the disease,” they say. “After getting vaccinated, you develop immunity to that disease, without having to get the disease first.”
Medline Plus claims vaccines can do this because they teach your body how to defend itself against invading germs such as viruses or bacteria. They mention four different types of vaccines:
- Live virus vaccines
- Killed (inactive) vaccines
- Toxoid vaccines
- Biosynthetic vaccines
These either weaken a virus, inactivate a virus, use part of a virus, or use part of the bacteria.
What they’re made of
The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services says “each ingredient in a vaccine serves a specific purpose.” These purposes include:
- Provide immunity against a specific disease
- Keep the vaccine safe and long-lasting
- Use during the production of the vaccine
Vaccines provide immunity due to the antigens and adjuvants they contain. Preservatives, like thimerosal, and stabilizers, like sugar or gelatin, keep vaccines safe and long-lasting. Components that are used in the production of vaccines can be things like cell culture material such as eggs, germ-killing ingredients such as formaldehyde, and antibiotics such as neomycin.
Why they’re important
Vaccines aren’t only important in preventing you from getting certain life-threatening diseases, it affects others too. “Vaccines don't just work on an individual level, they protect entire populations,” according to Public Health. “Once enough people are immunized, opportunities for an outbreak of disease become so low even people who aren't immunized benefit.”
If enough people reject receiving a certain vaccine, dangerous rare diseases could return. There will always be people who can’t be vaccinated, so those that can help should if they can. Ineligible individuals will be safer as long as chances of spread of disease are kept low. This is why nations are scrambling to create a vaccine for this most recent global outbreak--the Corona Virus or COVID-19. Vaccines can save lives and decrease the spread of sickness.