As a parent there are so many crucial choices that need to be made for your child. Some decisions can feel fraught with indecision and even fear. For many parents, vaccinations fall into this category. The WHO reported that 21 million children missed out on one or more routine vaccines in 2022. In order to make the best informed decisions about vaccinations, you need to communicate openly with your doctor. Here are a few questions you should consider asking your doctor about vaccines.
How Do I Know When to Get My Child Vaccinated?
The CDC has put out extensive information on recommendations for vaccinations. A vaccination schedule has been created that works well for most children. There are always exceptions to the rule though. This is why you need to communicate with your child’s doctor to find out what type of schedule they should be on. You should be aware that there are some vaccines that require more than one dose in order to be effective. These need to be spaced out from each other in order to not overwhelm your child’s system.
How Do Vaccines Work?
Vaccines are intended to reduce the risk of getting an infectious disease. It does this by supporting the body’s natural immunity and defenses. If a bacteria or virus infects the body, they will attack and multiply this causes the illness. The immune system fights the infection by building cells that can find and fight off the disease. A vaccine will imitate this process before a child actually gets sick. This gives the child the benefit of the immunity boost without suffering through the illness to get there.
Are Vaccines Safe?
This is the main concern that most parents have concerning vaccines. There is a lot of information swirling around concerning vaccines so it’s important to get the right information so that you can make a good choice. You should know that before a vaccine is ever allowed to be administered, it goes through years of testing for safety.
There can be side effects to vaccines, just like with anything. You should discuss these side effects and risks with your doctor so that they can give you solid information concerning risk factors.
These are just a few questions you might want to consider asking your child’s doctor before they undergo vaccinations. If you’re looking for a quality pediatrician for your child, please contact us today.
Posted 4/25/24
