In honor of National Infant Immunization Week (NIIW), April 18-25, 2015, our friend and guest teammate shares why vaccines are important for protecting her infant and keeping her family of five healthy.
My husband keeps asking me, “When does BabyGirl get her shots?”
“At six months,” I remind him.
“Measles?” he’ll ask again.
“Not until she’s at least a year old.”
“So we’re waiting on pins and needles for six more months?” he’ll ask. [Read more…]
Goodbye, March. Hello, April! With cold weather behind us and the active flu season slowing down, April brings a renewed, hopeful focus on health. In fact, April boasts FOUR immunization-related observances. [Read more…]
By Dan Stoll
Most parents know that immunizations are a great way to protect their children from vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles, pertussis, and many others. But did you know that immunizing your kids also contributes to your community? [Read more…]
By Edwin J. Asturias, MD
This editorial appeared in The Denver Post Feb. 5.
Though dormant for years, measles reemerged this year with a vengeance. The first cases erupted in Disneyland before spreading outward, involving 14 states and counting. Now there are 102 confirmed cases, making it the largest measles outbreak since 1990.
This growing epidemic is fueling fierce debate over how to balance public health risks against the rights of increasing numbers of parents choosing not to vaccinate their children. [Read more…]
By Joseph R. Foster
Joseph R. Foster is a husband, d
ad, Air Force officer, college professor, and cancer survivor. He’s been married to his wife Shelli for 21 years, has 16- and 14-year-old sons, has served as an aircraft maintenance officer in the Air Force, and currently teaches Political Science at the United States Air Force Academy. He has been cancer-free for 18 months. Joseph and his family live in Colorado Springs, Colo.
I love Thanksgiving. In fact, I think it’s the best holiday of the year. I love the focus on getting together with family and friends, the football games, the food, and the walk after eating the food…if only to prove to yourself that you can, indeed, still move. Some people go to movies on Thanksgiving. Some watch the parades. My wife’s family often spends Thanksgiving night with the advertisement inserts from the newspaper, devising their Black Friday strategy. Until a few years ago, my Thanksgiving memories were pretty typical, I think, nice and predictable. Then I had an appointment with the ENT (ear, nose and throat) surgeon at the Air Force Academy hospital in 2012 about that pesky swollen lymph node that wouldn’t “shrink back down.” [Read more…]
In the tenth installment of the Immunology 101 Series, Aimee will explain the science behind the vaccines for influenza.
It’s that time of year again. You guessed it – time to get your annual flu shot! As an immunologist I relish this time of year. The flu shot lets me train my immune system to defend me against the flu virus. I must admit that I call my children’s pediatrician office every year in late August and sign up for the first flu shot clinic available. I make sure that my family will have an immune army built, trained, and ready to defend us long before influenza (aka ‘the flu’) makes it to Denver! I do this because I know that the vaccines for influenza are safe and effective and that illness from the flu is very serious and potentially deadly. As a scientist who has read the literature, I understand that the risk from the flu shot is minimal compared to the danger of becoming sick from the flu.
Most people I encounter who are skeptical about the flu vaccine have the same questions. They often wonder why we need to get a flu shot every year, if the flu shot can actually give you the flu (spoiler alert – no!), and if the flu is even really a serious disease (spoiler alert – yes!).
[Read more…]
This month marked the launch of a new movement that serves to highlight that which is well-known but seldom stated: vaccination adds value to our lives. The Value of Vaccination (valueofvaccination.org) is calling attention to the benefits that vaccines bring to every community. The initiative features personal stories, videos demonstrating the positive impacts of vaccination, and easy-to-understand guides to the science behind vaccines and the immune system. The goal is to encourage conversation at home, at work, and at school about the value of vaccination. [Read more…]
Are the ingredients in vaccines necessary and useful? YES!
All of the ingredients within vaccines are vital and play a role in important things like helping the immune system respond, maintaining the longevity of the vaccine itself, and keeping the vaccine safe from contamination.
In the ninth installment of the Immunology 101 Series, Aimee will explain the science behind the ingredients in vaccines. [Read more…]
True or False? A developing baby acquires protection against infectious diseases from its mother during pregnancy. TRUE! The immunizations a mother-to-be receives before and during pregnancy can help protect her newborn baby from some infectious diseases during the first few months of life.
In the eighth installment of the Immunology 101 Series, Aimee will explain the science behind immunization and pregnancy.
[Read more…]
On Friday, April 29 the Colorado House of Representatives voted to pass, on concurrence, an amended version of House Bill 1288: Concerning Personal Belief Exemptions to Immunization Requirements for Children Prior to Attending School.
Many parents may be wondering what House Bill 1288, as currently written, means for their families and schools. As a parent of three school-age children who attend three different schools, the issue hits close to home—as it surely does for every parent who has made a vaccine decision on behalf of their children. [Read more…]