Parents are very protective towards their babies. When a child is born, the parents would want to shower all the goodness on him/her and make sure they’re properly nourished and are safe from all health complications. Although, all of the new moms and dads wait on each word the paediatrician say, the parents often miss out or resist getting their children vaccinated.
This article will tell you why vaccination is important for babies, and talk about the most important three vaccines that you shouldn’t miss in order to protect your child from various ailments.
Why Vaccination is Important?
Every dose of vaccine is important for protection against infections and harmful diseases. Infants are especially prone to get infected, and are otherwise vulnerable health wise. Their underdeveloped immune system, thin tissue layers and delicate bodies cannot fight against all parasites for a long period, unlike adults.
This is also applicable to young children. Schools and the way they play with things that aren’t hygienic enough, provoke germs to attack them easily.
Therefore, vaccines protect infants and children by providing needed immunity in the beginning itself, before they are attacked by deadly infections like measles, polio, hepatitis, and whooping cough.
All these diseases are preventable if youfollow the recommended schedule and get your child vaccinated before she/he turns two. Vaccination or immunization can protect your child from several other diseases too.
However, the threemost important vaccines every child must have and every parent should insist are as follows
3 Vaccines Parents Shouldn’t Miss to Protect their Child
1. Influenza or Flu Vaccine
Flu vaccines are mostly ignored by parents. However, “You will be shocked to know that more than 36, 000 deaths in children occur due to fluâ€, says Dr. Michael Machknin, Cleveland Clinic Pediatrician. According to a survey, Influenza is the number one disease that can be prevented by vaccination in America.
Those who have weak immune, including adults are most vulnerable to influenza. Therefore it is very important that everyone above the age of 6 months should get yearly flu vaccines, urges Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Even healthy people with strong immune system can be affected by Flu virus, so you should be aware of the consequences when a tender immune system of a child is affected?
- Flu vaccines start working within 2 weeks of vaccination. Antibodies are developed by then that provide protection against infection caused by the viruses present in the vaccine.
- Trivalent vaccines are the traditional flu vaccine that protectsus against 3 flus namely, Influenza A (H1N1) virus, Influenza A (H3N2) virus and Influenza B virus.
- Quadrivalent vaccines protect us against 4 types of viruses (an additional B type).
- There are nasal flu vaccines and injection vaccines; however CDC recommends injection flu vaccine for the upcoming season of 2018 – 2019.
- A ‘Quadrivanlent Flu Shot’is approved for children above 6 months.Â
2. HPV Vaccine
HPV or Human Papilloma virus is the second most dangerous virus for infants that can be prevented from attacking with a HPV vaccine shot.
HPV is associated with cervical, vagina and vulva cancers in women, penis cancer in males and anal cancer in both, and other cancers that has a link with sexual activity in adults.
Human Papillomavirus also is the cause of the 500000 plus cases of genital warts in the US. The vaccine will protect both, males and females, from getting this disease.
“All kids who are 11 or 12 years old should get the 2 HPV Vaccination shots, 6 to 12 months apart. If your child is more than 14 years old, he needs to get 3 shots of HPV Vaccine, CDC warns.
3. Chicken Pox Vaccine
Chicken pox is a contagious and common disease, especially in children below 14 years. Most parents either don’t take the vaccination seriously or are not aware of it. Although it is far less deadly than other diseases, it can cause serious skin infection, scarring and even pneumonia.
The chicken pox vaccine, ever since being popularised has considerably controlled chicken pox across the world.
Two doses of chicken pox vaccination for children, teenagers and adults are must, recommends the CDC. Yes adults may also get chicken pox and apparently it’s worse than what children face.
“The first dose of chicken pox vaccine should be given between 12 and 15 months old and a second dose should be given between 2 and 4 years of age.
You can also give the second dosage earlier than recommended, probably 3 months after the first dose and not before that.
Make sure you follow the vaccination schedule prescribed by your child’s paediatrician to the fullest.
