Question: whats your response to anti vaxxers?

Frances Shiely answered on 11 Nov 2019:

I listen and read the evidence. There is NO evidence that any of the vaccines offered to patients and the public are unsafe. Anti vaxxers are scare mongering. There have been NUMEROUS studies testing the anti vaxxers theories, and the evidence still shows that there is no link between a vaccine and any illness suggested by the antivaxxers. For example, MMR and Autism. This research question has been tested rigorously by epidemiological studies. There is NO evidence. I have three children and all three are vaccinated with all available vaccines. Most recently my two girls received the HPV vaccine. I worry about the future. Have you heard of the term ‘herd immunity’? People that do not vaccinate their children put other children at risk as well as their own. Herd immunity is a form of immunity that occurs when the vaccination of a significant portion of a population (or herd) provides a measure of protection for individuals who have not developed immunity.’ So some very vulnerably children cannot get vaccinations. They may be premature babies, for example. If all other parents vaccinate their children, then it protects the premature baby that can’t be vaccinated because the vaccinated children can’t spread the disease. This is called herd immunity. However, if children don’t get vaccinated, herd immunity will not be present and then vulnerably children will contract the disease and have a high risk of death. This is a tragic, unnecessary circumstance.