Una verdad simulada

Here is a very sad case of an infant girl dying from preventable disease just two weeks before she was scheduled to get her first vaccine shot:

Or view it here.

There is a lot of chatter about vaccination and its now-debunked link with autism. There are a few pediatricians who believe in the vaccine-autism link. The question is that in such a situation, whom does one listen to. Well, one should listen to the experts, experts: the US National Institute of Health (NIH) and American Academy of Pediatrics.

There might be some who would argue that the decision to get their children vaccinated is parents personal decision. I mostly agree with that statement; hence there is a greater need to educate people on the benefits of vaccinations and risk associated with refusing vaccination.

The bigger issue, though, is that the unvaccinated kids do not live in an isolated environment. The fact that most of them are healthy is because of herd immunity, where vaccination of more than 90% of the population gives protection to the minority who did not or could not get vaccinated. One fear is that some communities may be fast reaching a tipping point, which could lead to a large number of preventable health problems or even deaths.

So, please get your children vaccinated.

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