Vaccinations were first invented by the French chemist Louis Pasteur in the late 1800s (historyofvaccines.org). They have been used and modified ever since, helping to transform the world of public health and aiding in reducing the risk of dangerous diseases that once ravaged entire communities. However, there are many different claims about them being harmful and possibly even deadly to those vaccinated.

One of the many different beliefs held by some is the idea that vaccines cause autism. There was a study done in 1998 that connected the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine with autism and hence raised concerns. This was proven flawed in a variety of ways and ever since, there has been no evidence linking the two. Part of the reasoning behind such a relation is that children are scheduled to receive vaccinations around the same time that autism begins to emerge. This is the same reason the former has been linked to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (parenting.com).

Another falsity pertaining to vaccinations entails the notion that in the US for example, there is no reason for the former since it is eradicated in the country. This is not necessarily true, for even though “vaccine preventable diseases have become uncommon in many countries, the agents that cause them continue to circulate in some parts of the world” (who.int). In a vastly globalizing world, where international travel has become commonplace, vaccination has transformed into an ever more important health issue.

Moreover, childhood vaccines nowadays are thought to contain mercury and hence cause neurological disorders in the children who receive them. Some used to have a preservative in them which contained mercury (thimerosal), but now, except for a few flu vaccine variations, this is no longer true. Additionally, studies have not been able to prove a link between thimerosal and developmental disorders (cbsnews.com).

Furthermore, some parents believe that if others are vaccinated, then there is no need for their own children to go through the process. Skipping vaccinations though can put kids at a greater risk for preventable diseases, and keeping these illnesses at bay requires all children to be immunized. For example, in the case of measles, the level of immunization required between children to hinder the spread of disease is 95 percent (parenting.com).

There are many falsehoods relating to a variety of different health concerns and vaccination is one of them. Not knowing what is true and what is a fabrication though, can be life-threatening and sometimes, even deadly. Although controversy seems to be a consistent aspect of immunization, knowing the truth is still possible.