Hat Tip, WHITECOAT. It’s amazing, how you don’t see these childhood diseases, and how willing people are to put other children at risk. There are children with leukemias now, and other immunosuppressed people living in the community. Fifty years ago, they would have died. But some people don’t vaccinate their kids, and herd immunity declines. So lots of people are at risk. Diphtheria, polio, H. flu, rubella, all can have devastating sequelae. Personally, I had chicken pox at age 21. It really was awful, and I didn’t get a viral pneumonia or meningitis. I hope I don’t get shingles, TYVM.
I can see were you might want to consider taking a pass on vaccines for other diseases that aren’t spread so easily. HPV and hepatitis B are harder to catch, true. But hep B can be transmitted from mother to infant, and cause chronic active hepatitis and lead to hepatocellular carcinoma. But really, people born in 1900 lived to be around 45. People born in 2000 life to around 78. Vaccines account for a significant portion of that extension.
When I was a kid (I am 56 years old) it was common practice that if anyone’s child got measles, mumps, or chicken pox, everyone brought their children over to catch the disease. I’ve known people who didn’t do that, and ended up getting mumps in their late teens, which was extremely painful to them.
Comment by BobG — Friday, 12, September, 2008 @ 17:45 |
I wonder why they left small pox off the list.
I’m grateful every day to live in an era of vaccines and antibiotics, basic plumbing, too. I’m a big fan of potable water (which is probably another thing that’s really increased the lifespan in many areas).
Comment by Bardiac — Friday, 12, September, 2008 @ 19:52 |