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Vaccine hesitancy

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Vaccines are widely credited for reducing the prevalence and damage of several diseases. As a result, national and international public health organizations have made vaccination a central part of their strategies. Research efforts have led to the development of vaccinations against a broadening array of illnesses, raising hopes that some of the most deadly illnesses in the world will be eliminated or at least diminish.

The case for widespread vaccines

An overwhelming public and professional consensus agrees that children should routinely be vaccinated against a range of diseases, such as measles, polio, diphtheria, rubella, tetanus, pertussis, hepatitis B, and others. Some vulnerable groups are also advised to be vaccinated against influenza. Vaccines are credited for:

  • Saving more lives than any other form of medical intervention. Among the most striking succeses are the worldwide destruction of smallpox and the near eradication of polio in Africa despite little change in sanitary conditions.
  • Providing cost-effective health, compared to treatment of a manifest disease.
  • Preventing epidemics in vulnerable areas. When vaccination against polio was recently halted in Nigeria, for instance, the number of cases significantly rose [1].
  • Where controversies over vaccination arise, they closely mirror litigation. In the United States, the issue of thimerosal has come to the fore, as litigants seek to remove cases from the jurisdiction of vaccine compensation tribunals. In the UK, there has been little controversy over thimerosal, but great worry over MMR [2].
  • Vaccination uptake needs to be high, since even very successful vaccines rarely have an efficacy greater than 80%, creating a need to maintain herd immunity through universal immunization.
  • Critics of vaccination often lack relevant qualifications, may be ideologically opposed to mandatory health programs, and are commonly associated with fringe views about alternative therapies and the achievements of drug-based medicine. [3]
  • Physicians overwhelmingly support multiple vaccines, such as DPT and MMR, as being in the best interests of the child, even though they could make more money giving the shots separately.
  • The immune system does not get too overwhelmed by vaccination [4].

The opposing view of vaccines

The practice of vaccination has been opposed by some since its inception in the mid-19th century [5], but criticism has become re-energized in the US and some other developed countries in recent years. While positions vary from outright rejection of the practice to calls for more selective and cautious use of vaccination, one or several of the following arguments are typically invoked:

  • The public health benefits of vaccinations are exaggerated. Critics of vaccination policy point out that the mortality rates of relevant illnesses were already dramatically reduced before vaccines were introduced, and claim that further reductions cannot immediately be attributed to vaccines.
  • Secondary and long-term effects on the immune system from introducing immunogens directly into the bloodstream are not fully understood.
  • The recommended vaccination schedule does not consider the cumulative effect of being exposed to multiple immunogens at the same time and at a young age.
  • At least some vaccine studies did not include such young children (e.g., 5 week old infants, 2 month old infants), yet vaccination schedules start with newborns. There can be a vast difference between the weight and all around development of a newborn baby versus a toddler, yet this is not accounted for.
  • The increased incidence of previously rare diseases, including leukemia, multiple sclerosis, SIDS, autism, and others seem to coincide with the increased use of vaccinations.
  • Opponents of current vaccination policy question if vaccinations actually create immunity against the targeted diseases given what appears to them to be number of individuals in a number of cases who were assumed to be immunized and still contracted the illness.
  • By not exposing children to common childhood illnesses, they may in fact be more susceptible to diseases at a point when their immune system is weakened, e.g., at an old age or when sick for other reasons
  • Vaccinations contain chemical components that are known to be toxic, including formaldehyde, aluminum in various compounds, acetone, glyceride, ethylene glycol, and antibiotics. In particular, many express concern over the once-widespread, but declining use of thimerosal in vaccinations
  • The practice of early childhood vaccination is not typically subject to screening to determine whether a child is more likely to experience adverse effects.
  • Medical professionals and scientists agree that there are risks associated with vaccinations.
  • Reactions to the vaccine are sometimes worse than the disease itself, and there are numerous reports of serious neurological damage and even death within hours or a day or two of vaccination. Although there is now a national database where reported reactions can be recorded, many believe that negative reactions are still grossly underreported.
  • There are a number of conflicts of interest that may affect the research design, findings, and opinions about vaccines, including financial interests of companies, the self-regulatory mechanism of medical doctors, and fear of the consequences should vaccines be found to be dangerous. This includes the overwhelming influence of drug companies in physicians' offices, health clinics, hospitals, etc., not to mention in medical schools where future physicians learn what they should believe.
  • Some researchers have discovered possible links between the increasing incidence of cancer and vaccines, due to the way vaccines alter the cells in our bodies.


Sites supportive of vaccines

Sites critical of vaccines

  • 909Shot.com - 'National Vaccine Information Center: the oldest and largest national organization advocating reformation of the mass vaccination system'
  • About.com - 'Killing the Messenger: Dr. Andrew Wakefield Fired', Floyd Tilton (December 5, 2001)
  • GaryNull.com - 'Vaccines: A Second Opinion, Why We Should Question Our Assumptions', Gary Null (2000)
  • InformedParent.co.uk - 'MMR Manufacturers Keep Up Legal Pressure on MMR Children', Informed Parent
  • RollingStone.com - 'Kennedy Report Sparks Controversy: Intense reaction from medical establishment and leading news organizations' (editorial), Rolling Stone (July 14, 2005)
  • ThinkTwice.com - Think Twice Global Vaccine Institute
  • VaccinationDebate.com - 'Vaccination Debate', Ian Sinclair
  • Whale.to - 'Vaccine Website'
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