Vaccinations have been an important part of medical history, and their creation has allowed for communities around the world to stay relatively immune to many types of diseases.  Because many people have been concerned about vaccines, the debate concerning their safety has drastically increased over the last several years. Due to the spread of misinformation about vaccines by prominent figures in the medical field and mainstream media, parents are reluctant to vaccinate their children. Many of these parents are led to believe that vaccinations are too dangerous to administer, are not needed because most communities are not negatively affected by vaccine preventable diseases, and that certain vaccines can cause developmental disorders like autism. Because these ideas are becoming more accepted due to inaccurate information and an inability to distinguish emotional appeals from fact, parents are not able to make educated decisions regarding their child’s health and wellbeing. Despite the overwhelming claims made by the opposition, many studies and countless hours of research have been completed to refute the overall argument that vaccines are not beneficial or safe. 

The use of vaccinations has been seen in many countries across the world since the 1500s when smallpox inoculations were first practiced in China and India and eventually, doctors were able to isolate a weakened strain of a virus or bacteria and introduce it into the immune system. This allowed the recipient’s body to develop an immunity against the pathogen. By the 1900s there were two virus vaccines to treat smallpox and rabies, and three bacterial vaccines to treat typhoid, cholera, and the plague (World Health Organization). Because of their life-saving abilities, there was not much opposition when administering them. It was not until the late 1990s when many people started to question how beneficial vaccines really were. Even though government officials had declared diseases like polio, chicken pox and hepatitis A to be well under control, several individuals in the medical field began to argue that vaccines, specifically the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine were more harmful than helpful. Andrew Wakefield was one of the main proponents of this claim and sought to prove that the MMR vaccine was dangerous. In the research published by Wakefield, the MMR vaccine had been linked to causing gastrointestinal problems as well as autism. This study caused large amounts of parents not to vaccinate their children and subsequently put many people in danger of contracting debilitating diseases. Due to Wakefield’s falsification of data and dishonest financial motivations, his study was retracted from the Lancet and his medical license was revoked (Rao). Although his claim was proven wrong, many parents were still hesitant to vaccinate their children. Jenny McCarthy, a prominent figure in mainstream media, also shared Wakefield’s belief that the MMR vaccine caused autism. She supported this by claiming that her son developed symptoms of autism because he received the vaccine. Because she was so vocal on this issue, McCarthy was able to use her influence as a celebrity and a mother to convince parents that vaccines were not safe. Since Wakefield’s study has been debunked, more people are willing to listen to doctors and other medical officials about the numerous benefits of receiving vaccinations. 

Because many people have been led to believe that the ingredients in vaccines are not safe enough to enter the body, parents felt that their children should not receive them. Those against vaccinations argue that certain vaccines such as MMR, contain harmful additives like thimerosal. Along with other prominent figures in the medical field like Wakefield, Dr. Joseph Mercola claimed that this substance was a danger to those receiving the vaccination because it could cause the immune system to react negatively due to the ethylmercury contained in thimerosal. Individuals like Mercola are justified in having doubts about the ingredients of the vaccine, as anyone should be when it comes to new substances being introduced to the body, however, thimerosal is only included in vaccines in order to preserve the other ingredients. Equally, thimerosal is only included in mutli-dose vials whereas most vaccines are given in single doses. The MMR vaccine only contains 25 micrograms of ethlymercury, making it less harmful than if someone were to consume large amounts of fish (Centers for Disease Control). This prevents vaccines from being contaminated and allows people to be immunized without experiencing negative side effects. Those skeptical about the safety of vaccines also argue that the side effects following vaccination are too dangerous. When a vaccine is given to a patient, a weakened strain of a virus or bacteria enters the body and makes it way to the immune system where antibodies attempt to recognize and asses the threat. Since the pathogen is not capable of doing damage, the immune system is able to build up an immunity against future infections (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases). Since the process of building up an immunity to the weakened virus or bacteria can result in a fever, rash, or tenderness at the injection site, parents become alarmed and are quick to think that their child is experiencing adverse reactions. While some recipients do experience seizures or more serious complications, these cases are rare and usually arise from an unknown allergy or other complication. Patients who show signs of fever and sore muscles are proof that the vaccine is working and support the fact that vaccines are safe to use for the majority of people. 

Due to the belief that the ingredients of vaccines like MMR are too dangerous to be in the body, many argue that vaccines are no longer needed because most vaccine-preventable diseases have not seen an increase. This is partly true due to the concept of herd immunity, which allows those who are not immunized to remain healthy under the assumption that the majority of the population did receive vaccines. While this idea may appeal to those who do not wish to be vaccinated due to personal reasons, it is extremely selfish and detrimental to the surrounding community. People who are receiving chemotherapy and radiation, along with those who have HIV/AIDS are at an extremely high risk of contracting deadly diseases because they are not able to be vaccinated due to their compromised immune system (Infectious Diseases Society of America). Herd immunity is not reliable because there is not an efficient way to ensure that the majority of the population has been vaccinated throughout the world. Because fewer parents are deciding to have their children receive their scheduled MMR vaccine, they are thirty-five times more likely to contract the disease than children who are vaccinated. Neglecting to vaccinate for measles increases the number of cases and could leave doctors and medical professionals overwhelmed and ill-prepared to treat a disease that has not been dealt with in decades (Chen). Beginning in 2008, CDC officials began tracking three large measles outbreaks in various regions of the United States. This trend continued from 2011 up until current times, and hundreds of thousands of measles cases were being reported all across the country. As the number of cases increase, the cost of treating measles increases as well. In a study researching the declining vaccination rates of children in certain parts of the United States, it was found that even a 5% decline in MMR vaccine administration would cause public sector costs to triple to a total of $2.1 million every year (Lo and Hotez). Considering these economic and scientific factors, it is important for people to understand the serious implications of choosing not to vaccinate their children. 

Along with the arguments that the MMR vaccine contains dangerous chemicals, or that they are irrelevant in today’s world because of herd immunity, many believe that it is one of the main causes of autism. In the documentary Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe, the connection between the ingredients in the MMR vaccine and symptoms of autism spectrum disorder was heavily stressed. The author, Andrew Wakefield, who had been previously known for attempting to prove his theory concerning this connection in a scientific journal, recruited many families who claimed to have autistic children so that they could share their stories. Because the scientific community did not take him seriously he resorted to using the subjective experiences of the families taking part in the documentary to convince people of his theory, rather than using objective evidence. In response to this documentary many researchers and other individuals, qualified to comment on developmental disorders made it clear that Wakefield was once again grasping for straws. Carol Povey, director of the National Autistic Society’s Centre for Autism, observed that it was very troubling to see this idea resurfacing after a large amount of research had been done to disprove the theory (Packham). Along with Povey, many were concerned that this documentary was portraying children with autism spectrum disorder in a negative and discouraging way. Throughout the film, the parents expressed how the MMR vaccine and eventually their child’s symptoms had ruined their lives, and how they constantly were forced to make unwanted sacrifices. Unfortunately, Wakefield’s manipulation of these stories was very effective in leading thousands of other parents to believe that the link between the MMR vaccine and autism was sound. Besides the documentaries attempts to develop a personal connection with viewers, the creators aimed to present inaccurate information in a way that would convince parents that Wakefield’s message was credible. Several individuals in the medical field were brought in to give their opinions and appeared to be knowledgeable figures on the matter of developmental disorders. While these people were qualified to discuss certain medical and scientific topics such as pediatric gastroenterology, they lacked the authority to remark on autism spectrum disorder. Brian Hooker was one of the individuals included in the documentary and he was able to possess much of the attention because he had a son who showed signs of a developmental disorder. Like Jenny McCarthy had used her authority as a mother to convince other parents that the MMR vaccine had caused her son to develop autism, Hooker was able to do the same while attempting to use scientific evidence. In the film, he claimed that he had been apart of many studies proving the link between the MMR vaccine and autism spectrum disorder, but because Hooker is primarily a biochemical engineer he did not have the correct information to give sound proof. It was later found that these studies had little or no correlation to developmental disorders at all (Gorski). In an attempt to refute the claims made in the documentary, researchers across the world began conducting in-depth studies to show that there was no link between autism and the MMR vaccine. In Denmark, the Department of Epidemiology and Social Medicine at the Danish Epidemiology Science Centre, conducted multiple trials that tested Wakefield’s original hypothesis that the MMR vaccine was responsible for causing gut-mediated toxic encephalopathy, but no epidemiological or ecological evidence for an association between the vaccination and autism spectrum disorder was found (Madsen and Vestergaard). This study, along with countless others are enough to disprove Wakefield’s theory and assure those who are still doubtful about vaccines that they are safe, effective, and do not cause autism spectrum disorder. 

Throughout the world, vaccines have provided communities the ability to remain relatively healthy and become immune to dangerous diseases. Their creation has give medical professionals insight as to how pathogens interact with the human body. Because vaccines have the power to save lives, as well as limit the costs of dealing with disease outbreaks, they are one of the most important medical innovations. Just like how people have questioned other inventions that have a significant impact on the human race, many have speculated the effectiveness of vaccines. Due to increased skepticism, science and health education have become more important than ever. Similarly, it is vital for parents with young children to be able to understand the basic science behind vaccines in order to make the best decision for their child’s future. In the current age of mainstream media, it is easy to accept what is labeled as fact even when it is inaccurate information. This difficulty in distinguishing misinformation causes hundreds of parents to be ill-equipped when assessing vaccinations. Increasing public health education and emphasizing logical thinking are the next steps in combatting the decrease in routine vaccinations. 
