When we get sick, our immune systems recognize the bacteria or viruses causing the disease and produce antibodies. These antibodies remain in our blood as memory cells and if there were to be a slightest chance of getting the same infection, these antibodies would recognize and quickly destroy foreign bacteria or viruses before they have a chance to invade further and cause sickness.
The role of a vaccine is to introduce a weakened or dead organism so that our immune system can create antibodies without getting sick in the first place. Getting vaccinated and getting sick produce the same antibodies for each disease; vaccines simply prevent us from having to experience the disease in the first place. This is especially important for diseases with high mortality that our bodies cannot cope with.
We have been able to eradicate deadly diseases like smallpox from the face of the earth and polio is on the verge. When the vast majority are immunized against a certain organism, it leads to a herd immunity, where even the unvaccinated are protected because the disease has little place to take hold within the vaccinated herd.
As with any medicine, vaccines do come with side effects. But compared to the serious symptoms of the vaccine preventable diseases, these side effects are generally mild.
Vaccine scare and anti-vaccine movement started in the USA and UK way back in the 1990s. The anti-vaccine movement uses a lot of fear-mongering and scare tactics to frighten parents into not vaccinating their children.
A study published by Wakefield et al in 1998 revealed the link between MMR vaccine and autism. This however has been refuted by several studies done in the last 2 decades. Thimerosal, a mercury based agent known to be used in vaccines, was also associated with similar side effects though not proven. Thimerosal is no longer used in most childhood vaccines, though some forms of influenza vaccine available in multi-dose vials may contain the preservative.
I have seen parents of both extremes. On one hand we have parents who are overprotective, and vaccinate their children but do not let their children play and enjoy for fear of infections. On the other hand we have parents who oppose vaccination because they feel children should gain natural immunity by getting all infections.
We need to vaccinate to reduce the burden of illness in the early years of life due to life threatening illnesses but also let the child develop immunity towards day-to-day viral illnesses on their own.
SOURCE COURTESY>>
https://medium.com/@kulkarni.gowri/why-vaccines-are-important-723ce479a78b