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What Happens If a Child is not Vaccinated?
May 29, 2019
As a parent, your child’s growth and well-being is a priority. It is your responsibility to keep them safe from serious illness and disability caused by disease. To fight sickness and disease, vaccination and immunization are the best ways to give your child the protection he/she needs.
As a parent, your child’s growth and well-being is a priority. It is your responsibility to keep them safe from serious illness and disability caused by disease. To fight sickness and disease, vaccination and immunization are the best ways to give your child the protection he/she needs.
What is a Vaccine?
The body’s natural defense against sickness and disease is the immune system. It reacts and fights germs, viruses and bacteria that enter the body. Without a healthy immune system, we would be vulnerable to infections and become sick quickly.
A vaccine is a substance that prepares the immune system to fight a disease-causing germs or pathogens. Here’s how it works:
- A vaccine (let’s say for measles) is injected into a child.
- The vaccine enters the body and imitates a measles infection.
- The body, recognizing the infection, creates specific cells or antibodies to combat the threat.
- So, the next time a measles virus enters the body, the immune system is prepared to quickly eliminate the virus, protecting your child from its effects.
But let’s say you choose not to vaccinate your child, what are the risks involved? It is important that you are aware of the consequences that accompany your decision.
Your child may develop a life-threatening illness
Infant and childhood vaccines prevent diseases that can cause physical impairment and death. These include:
- Polio - can cause permanent paralysis.
- Meningitis - can lead to permanent deafness or brain damage.
- Mumps - can cause permanent deafness.
- Influenza - can cause severe flu complications and may lead to death.
- Measles - can cause brain swelling, which may lead to brain damage or death.
There are no cures for diseases like measles, mumps and polio. Fortunately, medicine has proven, time and again, that the only way to protect your child is through vaccines.
You may be putting others at risk
Mumps and influenza are just two of the many diseases that are highly-infectious. So, delaying or refusing to vaccinate your child meansthat if he/she can infect others. Those who are at risk include:
- People with weak immune systems
- Newborn babies, who are too young to be vaccinated against most diseases.
- People with lung, heart, liver, kidney problems or diseases
- The elderly, who have weak immune systems and have a higher risk of developing complications
If more parents choose not to vaccinate their children, the greater the risk that infections will spread to the community and the surrounding areas as well.
So, if you decide not to vaccinate your child, and a vaccine-preventable disease is active in your community, here’s what you need to do:
- Consider changing your mind about vaccines.Talk to your child’s doctor or to someone at a public health clinic if you’re looking for a more thorough understanding of vaccination.
- If you know that your child has been exposed to a vaccine-preventable disease, learn what symptoms to look for and get medical help as soon as possible.
- If your child becomes sick and you need to visit a health care provider, bring his/her vaccine records so that the attending physician is made aware of which vaccines your child has received, if any.This also affects the types of tests they can do and the precautions they can make to prevent the spread of any disease.
- Knowledge is one of the best tools to fight disease. Learn about the disease from reputable online resources. Consult your doctor for a more comprehensive discussion on what steps need to be taken to protect you and your family.
- Followingdoctor’s recommendations,make arrangementsto separate your child from family members, newborn babies, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems or chronic diseases. Observing cleanliness and proper hygiene can go a long way in preventing the spread of infection.
The importance of vaccination for travelers
When travelling withinor out of the country, you and your family may be at risk for diseases that are vaccine-preventable. To keep you safe and healthy while traveling, you need to do the following:
- Learn about possible health risks where you’re going. Check online for any health advisories that are relevant to your travel destination. Think about it: are there diseases there which you haven’t been vaccinated for?
- See your doctor at least a month before you travel to complete the recommended series of vaccinations. Plus, you’ll need this time to build up your immunity.
- Consider having your child vaccinated before travelling.It's always best to have your child treated by institutions you already trust.
- Be mindful of what you eat or drink. Diseases are easily spread through contaminated water or food.
- Bring along insect repellant to protect against disease-carrying mosquitoes, ticks and flies.
- Wash hands properly and often. If water and soap are unavailable, alcohol-based hand sanitizers will work just as well.
- Whenever you can, avoid touching animals like monkeys, birds and dogs.
How can The Medical City help you?
At The Medical City Department of Pediatrics, we have a complete roster of world-class physicians who can provide your child with appropriate and timely vaccinations - from birth to when they transition their healthcare to adulthood.
For more information, you may contact:
Department of Pediatrics (02) 988-1000 / 988-7000 ext. 6322
Medical Arts Tower Inc. (MATI) - 988-1000 / 988-7000 ext. 5400
References:
https://www.who.int/topics/vaccines/en/
https://www.healthline.com/health-news/this-is-what-happens-when-children-dont-get-vaccinated
https://www.webmd.com/children/vaccines/immunizations-vaccines-power-of-preparation#1
https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/explainer-what-vaccine
What Happens If a Child is not Vaccinated?
May 29, 2019
As a parent, your child’s growth and well-being is a priority. It is your responsibility to keep them safe from serious illness and disability caused by disease. To fight sickness and disease, vaccination and immunization are the best ways to give your child the protection he/she needs.
As a parent, your child’s growth and well-being is a priority. It is your responsibility to keep them safe from serious illness and disability caused by disease. To fight sickness and disease, vaccination and immunization are the best ways to give your child the protection he/she needs.
What is a Vaccine?
The body’s natural defense against sickness and disease is the immune system. It reacts and fights germs, viruses and bacteria that enter the body. Without a healthy immune system, we would be vulnerable to infections and become sick quickly.
A vaccine is a substance that prepares the immune system to fight a disease-causing germs or pathogens. Here’s how it works:
- A vaccine (let’s say for measles) is injected into a child.
- The vaccine enters the body and imitates a measles infection.
- The body, recognizing the infection, creates specific cells or antibodies to combat the threat.
- So, the next time a measles virus enters the body, the immune system is prepared to quickly eliminate the virus, protecting your child from its effects.
But let’s say you choose not to vaccinate your child, what are the risks involved? It is important that you are aware of the consequences that accompany your decision.
Your child may develop a life-threatening illness
Infant and childhood vaccines prevent diseases that can cause physical impairment and death. These include:
- Polio - can cause permanent paralysis.
- Meningitis - can lead to permanent deafness or brain damage.
- Mumps - can cause permanent deafness.
- Influenza - can cause severe flu complications and may lead to death.
- Measles - can cause brain swelling, which may lead to brain damage or death.
There are no cures for diseases like measles, mumps and polio. Fortunately, medicine has proven, time and again, that the only way to protect your child is through vaccines.
You may be putting others at risk
Mumps and influenza are just two of the many diseases that are highly-infectious. So, delaying or refusing to vaccinate your child meansthat if he/she can infect others. Those who are at risk include:
- People with weak immune systems
- Newborn babies, who are too young to be vaccinated against most diseases.
- People with lung, heart, liver, kidney problems or diseases
- The elderly, who have weak immune systems and have a higher risk of developing complications
If more parents choose not to vaccinate their children, the greater the risk that infections will spread to the community and the surrounding areas as well.
So, if you decide not to vaccinate your child, and a vaccine-preventable disease is active in your community, here’s what you need to do:
- Consider changing your mind about vaccines.Talk to your child’s doctor or to someone at a public health clinic if you’re looking for a more thorough understanding of vaccination.
- If you know that your child has been exposed to a vaccine-preventable disease, learn what symptoms to look for and get medical help as soon as possible.
- If your child becomes sick and you need to visit a health care provider, bring his/her vaccine records so that the attending physician is made aware of which vaccines your child has received, if any.This also affects the types of tests they can do and the precautions they can make to prevent the spread of any disease.
- Knowledge is one of the best tools to fight disease. Learn about the disease from reputable online resources. Consult your doctor for a more comprehensive discussion on what steps need to be taken to protect you and your family.
- Followingdoctor’s recommendations,make arrangementsto separate your child from family members, newborn babies, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems or chronic diseases. Observing cleanliness and proper hygiene can go a long way in preventing the spread of infection.
The importance of vaccination for travelers
When travelling withinor out of the country, you and your family may be at risk for diseases that are vaccine-preventable. To keep you safe and healthy while traveling, you need to do the following:
- Learn about possible health risks where you’re going. Check online for any health advisories that are relevant to your travel destination. Think about it: are there diseases there which you haven’t been vaccinated for?
- See your doctor at least a month before you travel to complete the recommended series of vaccinations. Plus, you’ll need this time to build up your immunity.
- Consider having your child vaccinated before travelling.It's always best to have your child treated by institutions you already trust.
- Be mindful of what you eat or drink. Diseases are easily spread through contaminated water or food.
- Bring along insect repellant to protect against disease-carrying mosquitoes, ticks and flies.
- Wash hands properly and often. If water and soap are unavailable, alcohol-based hand sanitizers will work just as well.
- Whenever you can, avoid touching animals like monkeys, birds and dogs.
How can The Medical City help you?
At The Medical City Department of Pediatrics, we have a complete roster of world-class physicians who can provide your child with appropriate and timely vaccinations - from birth to when they transition their healthcare to adulthood.
For more information, you may contact:
Department of Pediatrics (02) 988-1000 / 988-7000 ext. 6322
Medical Arts Tower Inc. (MATI) - 988-1000 / 988-7000 ext. 5400
References:
https://www.who.int/topics/vaccines/en/
https://www.healthline.com/health-news/this-is-what-happens-when-children-dont-get-vaccinated
https://www.webmd.com/children/vaccines/immunizations-vaccines-power-of-preparation#1
https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/explainer-what-vaccine
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