Summary And Reflection: The Panic Virus

One of the 3 elementary schools in Malibu California reported that 42% of its students have not taken all the required vaccines. Since autism has been wrongly linked to inoculation, the anti inoculation movement grew in all corners of the world and since then, many parents have chosen not to inoculate their children. It is premature and irresponsible to assume that autism is directly caused by vaccination when this condition can affect people who have not been vaccinated. To better understand the anti vaccination movement and the importance of vaccinations, I will explain how the movement started, how their claims are faulty and discuss facts on non vaccination.

Children are the future. That is why it is important for them to receive the best healthcare as possible. However, there are some questions as to what is included in the best healthcare, including whether or not it is safe for children to be vaccinated. Questions arose when an article was published with alarming results that indicated vaccines could be the cause of autism in children. The disputed article lead to many anti-vaccine movements. However, there are more resounding evidence that disproves the relationship between vaccines and autism that can’t be ignored.

Anti-vaccine supporters strongly protest against vaccines primarily because they contain harmful ingredients. Indeed, this is true, but many pro-vaccine supporters urge that these ingredients are found in such minuscule quantities that they are deemed harmless. In fact, they claim that “Children are exposed to more aluminum in breast milk and infant formula than they are exposed to in vaccines.” Not to mention, the CDC and the FDA insist that vaccines are thoroughly tested and made safe. Although countless anti-vaccine protesters believe that vaccines are the origin of many autism cases, there is no definite evidence proving a link between vaccinations and autism. In 1998, scientist Andrew Wakefield published an article stating that his experiment has proven that vaccines cause autism. Eventually, it was uncovered that lawyers paid Wakefield hundreds of thousands of dollars to forge the results of his experiment, reinforcing the fact that there is no proof that vaccines cause autism. Furthermore, anaphylaxis occurs in only “one per several hundred to one per million vaccinations” ("Should Any Vaccines Be Required for Children?"). On the other hand, “Studies have shown that influenza vaccine is 70 percent to 90 percent effective in healthy adults younger than 65” (Bren). Due to vaccines, millions of children are

Vaccination Nation is about the controversy of vaccinations causing autism. The United States federal court denied any link between autism and vaccines, more specifically the MMR vaccine. Vaccines causing autism has been the talk on news, celebrities and magazines. Despite scientist denying that there is no connection this topic has gained several legal claims against vaccines. This has led parents into panic about autism. The medical cost for an autistic child is about $100,000. Today one in every 150 kids are diagnosed with autism which is a great increase from 20 years ago which was only one in 10,000 kids. This whole controversy began in 1998 when a British gastroenterologist named Andrew Wakefield examined 12 children, nine of them

Introduction: "Go to vaccinate" my mum said. I believed that almost everyone ever heard this phrase many times when you were child. "Why to vaccinate" I always doubt it? And believed that anybody doubt it too. Vaccinate is preventing severe disease in children that aims to thwart the spread and reduce the devastating of the disease and I think it's a good thing to do. But recently, there was news that a number of parents in the U.S

In the essay “The Culture of Denial” (2015) by Christopher Delgado, he expounds on the opinion that there is an issue within the public with the trusting of the scientific community’s discoveries. Delgado does this by providing numerous examples of the kind of discoveries that a good amount of the public does not fully believe along with some examples of why those people do not trust said scientific concept. Delgado explains this in order to expose the masses to how much we mistrust the scientific community, and how we must alter that mistrust into trust. The intended audience for this reading is the general public, or specifically the ones who are in denial of scientific information.

To vaccinate or not to vaccinate? That is the question. Vaccination has sparked heated debate since its development amongst the following groups; parents, naturopaths, medical professionals, etc. Fuel has been added to the fire of the vaccine debate by the media and anti-vaxxer fear mongering tactics, making it hard for those considering vaccination, to decipher fact from myth. It is vital that we first understand the facts rather than believing the latest rumor before making an informed decision to vaccinate or not. This is the aim of this report. Through analytical research presented in this report I have come to the conclusion that vaccines are not only crucial and beneficial but that everyone who is eligible should be vaccinated, as that

The link between childhood vaccinations and autism is unfounded and can be proven by a plethora of research. MMR vs Autism: A False Choice, written by Alison Knopf, sets out to show the importance of vaccinating children. Not only does the article explain the importance, but it also debunks the myth of the link to autism. Knopf explains, how measles can be a deadly disease. As less parents are vaccinating their children, they can no longer rely on “herd immunity”. The lack of vaccinations can be linked to a direct fear of autism. However, with the

The main point of the article was to debunk the five myths surrounding why vaccines cause autism. Those are the dangers of mercury, the amount of evidence to support the correlation between vaccines and autism, any other explanations, government over up, and it’s no different than any other controversy. Throughout most of the article there are not many studies or documents to help support the claims. There was one experiment in Denmark where the thimerosal was removed from all vaccines and autism rates continued to climb, and is was also true for Sweden as well. Also, there was a study done showing there was an inverse effect to problems with hyperactivity and motor

Alice Park, a writer/reported for TIME, explained, “A 9-year-old Georgia girl with a preexisting cellular disease had been made worse by inoculations she had received as an infant, which "significantly aggravated" the condition, resulting in a brain disorder with autism-like symptoms” (Park). This young girl previously had a cellular disorder, which makes her more vulnerable to acquiring some other diseases. The attempt to make her immunity stronger failed; however, she did not get autism. It just unfortunately made her disease more prominent to where autism-like symptoms occurred. There is a risk to putting anything foreign in one 's body, but the risk often pays off with more patient benefitting then getting worse. Along with autism many thought that vaccines caused cancer. Paul Offit, and American Pediatrician who specializes in vaccines, looked into an experiment and explained,“Eight years after the tainted vaccines had been given, the cancer incidence was the same in both groups” (97). This experiment confirms that there is once again little to no proof that these vaccines cause life changing disorders. One of the groups were exposed to the vaccine and one was not, the number comparison was the same so ultimately vaccines do not cause harm. Some vaccines do contain the live virus so it is possible to get the sickness but it is very rare. Most of these controversies are misconceptions. For example, the influenza vaccination is often mistaken to be able to cause someone to get the flu; however, this is not a live vaccine so that is not even possible. They must obtain the flu before they get the vaccine. Since many of the negative thoughts of vaccines are misconceptions many doctors recommend their patients get vaccines, especially their patients with weaker immune systems. Groups of people

A young mother and father look in on their small frail daughter lying listlessly in her bed. Feverish, sweaty, and lethargic, she peaks up at her parents pleading for the pain to go away. Her glands are swollen and her body is hot, her beautiful skin welted in red. The note from school warned of an outbreak of rubella measles. Their young daughter became a victim of a non-discriminating virus that attacks with no mercy. As they sooth her whimpers they question their decision not to vaccinate their child. They had discussed it so many times, whether to vaccinate or not, what about the rumors of autism? They had been lucky and avoided rubella as a child, perhaps it spare their child too. Now, they are not so sure they made

Vaccines are one of the most successful programs in modern health care. Vaccines have reduced, and in some cases eliminated serious infectious diseases. According to the Centers for Disease Control public support for vaccines remains high in the United States with a more than 95 percent vaccination rate (CDC 2015). However, there are still several who criticize vaccines and their effectiveness. In today’s society individuals who are against vaccinations believe that vaccines, most notably the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine, are causing our children to develop Autism. Many people who share this belief are involved in a movement known today as the anti-vaccine movement. While not a new movement, it is making headlines and gaining traction due to the

Modern medicine provides people with the ability to protect themselves from the world’s most fatal diseases. Merely a century ago, it was not uncommon for a child to die as a result of diseases such as polio, pertussis, and tuberculosis. Today, it is highly unlikely for a person to contract these diseases, let alone die from them. However, refusal of vaccinations has been increasing throughout the years due to the anti-vaccination movement. This movement declares mandatory vaccines unconstitutional and vaccinations overall as the cause of autism. Unfortunately, the anti-vaccination movement is becoming increasingly popular due to individuals’ unfounded fears and imagined consequences associated with the idea of purposely inserting a disease into one’s body. However, despite one’s beliefs, vaccines are essential not only to a person’s well-being, but to the health of those around them. Mandatory vaccinations do not cause autism; rather, they save lives while upholding values of

this paper is to shed some light on the Antivaxxers, their arguments for choosing not to vaccinate