Dr. Ana Aznar
A parent torn between vaccinating their child and their partner's anti-vaccine stance seeks advice from Dr. Ana, who explains the science and history behind vaccines to affirm their safety and importance.
Should I Stop My Baby’s Vaccinations?
Question: “I know all of the rhetoric around vaccines lately, but should I stop after my baby's 15-month vaccines? My partner says they're poison, but I'm torn. Thanks.”
Dr. Ana’s Expert Answer
I understand you are worried about it, but I really encourage you to keep vaccinating your child. Let me tell you why:
The History of the Anti-Vaccine Movement
The idea that vaccines are harmful has been going around almost since the start of vaccines in the 1800s. The anti-vax movement grew stronger in the 1990s when Dr. Andrew Wakefield published an article linking autism with the MMR vaccine. That study was full of problems, so many that it was retracted a few years later. In 2010, Dr Wakefield was forbidden from practicing medicine.
Since then, the anti-vax movement has spread much misinformation. They have blamed autism and other neurodevelopmental problems on vaccines; claimed that vaccine supporters are being paid off by pharmaceutical companies; and argued that other public health improvements have rendered vaccines unnecessary.
The US anti-vaccine movement is especially strong now, partly because of the Trump administration spreading misinformation. As a result, there are outbreaks of measles in the US. Early this year, two unvaccinated children died of measles in Texas. According to the CDC, the last time a child had died of measles in the US was in 2003.
Are Vaccines Safe for My Baby?
Are parents right choosing not to vaccinate their children? NO. There is NO evidence saying that vaccines are bad for your baby. On the contrary, it is estimated that in the past 50 years, 154 million lives have been saved by vaccines. There is plenty of evidence showing that choosing not to vaccinate your child places him at risk of contracting potentially deadly diseases.
The Importance of Community Immunity
You should also consider that when you choose not to vaccinate your baby, you are putting other babies at risk. To give you an example, an 8-year-old named Liam died of Haemophilus Inluenzae Meningitis this year in Indiana. We’ve had a vaccine for this disease since the 1980s. Liam was vaccinated but many kids around him were not. Choosing not to vaccinate your child is not a personal choice that will only affect your child, it will affect other children. We need very high vaccination rates for diseases that have been almost eradicated not to come back. Measles, for example, is so infectious that each case leads to 12-18 additional cases. We require over 95% of the population to be vaccinated for all of us to be protected against measles. Vaccines have worked so well that we are forgetting they prevent our children dying from horrible diseases.
Do Vaccines Cause Autism?
The controversy around vaccines and autism is still strong. We have many long-term studies showing that there is no link between vaccines and developmental disorders or autism. For example, one study followed around 537,000 children for eight years after they received the MMR vaccine and found no links. It is true that you may find the odd study linking vaccines with autism or any other disorder, but one study does not mean anything. Specially, since very often studies showing negative effects of vaccines are poorly designed and have many problems. We need to look at the body of research, at the full picture, and not to the odd study.
Questioning things is good and necessary. It is good to be skeptical. What it is not good is to become so fixated on your own beliefs that you ignore what the scientific evidence says. Scientists question the evidence on vaccines every single day. After all that scrutiny, the evidence keeps on finding the same thing: vaccines are safe and effective. There is NO evidence suggesting that vaccines are bad for children. Vaccines are not poison. On the contrary, they keep our children safe.
Related articles:
- Why Is Autism Rising?
- My 11- Month Is Very Fussy, Is It Normal?
- How Many Word Should a 17 Month Old Say?
I wish you all the very best.
Love,
Ana
What Does the Science Say About Vaccine Safety?
Decades of extensive research confirm that vaccines are overwhelmingly safe and effective. Major studies, including one observing over 500,000 children, have found no link between vaccines and developmental disorders like autism. While skepticism is healthy, the global scientific consensus is that the benefits of vaccination, which have saved millions of lives, far outweigh any risks.
Why Is It Important to Vaccinate My Child?
Vaccinating your child is crucial for protecting them from potentially fatal diseases like measles, which were once common. It's also a matter of public health. When enough people are vaccinated, it creates "community immunity," protecting vulnerable individuals who cannot be vaccinated, such as infants or those with compromised immune systems. High vaccination rates prevent the resurgence of eradicated diseases.
Is There a Link Between Vaccines and Autism?
No, there is no credible scientific evidence linking vaccines to autism. This myth originated from a fraudulent and retracted 1998 study. Since then, numerous large-scale studies have consistently shown no connection between the MMR vaccine or any other vaccine and the development of autism. The scientific community firmly agrees that vaccines do not cause autism.
