Missing a shot may not seem like a bad thing — nobody wakes up in the morning thinking they'd love to go out and get a jab in the arm. But there are good reasons to get shots:.
One little "ouch" moment protects you from some major health problems. For example, older teens and adults who get diseases like mumps may be at risk for side effects of the illness, such as infertility the inability to have children.
Vaccinations are about protecting you in the future, not just as a kid. Many of the diseases that we are vaccinated against when we're kids — like hepatitis B or tetanus — actually affect more adults than kids. Plus, anyone can get "kid diseases" like chickenpox, and they can be far more dangerous to teens and adults than they are to little kids.
Shots could even save your life. Hepatitis B attacks the liver and can eventually kill. The HPV vaccine can protect against several types of cancer. And scientists are constantly working on new vaccines against deadly diseases like HIV. So which vaccines should you be getting?
Doctors now recommend that teens are vaccinated against the following diseases:. You can still get a shot if you've missed it. If you've missed some shots in a series of vaccines, you don't need to get the whole series again — you can simply pick up where you left off.
Some people may need more vaccines than the ones listed above. For example, people with diseases that affect their immune system like diabetes, HIV infection, or cancer should get a pneumococcal vaccine.
Yes, your vaccination is free. COVID vaccines are free to all people living in the United States, regardless of their immigration or health insurance status. You may be asked to show ID or health insurance, but it's not a requirement. We can do this. Vaccinated children do better at school, with economic benefits that ripple across their communities.
Today, vaccines are estimated to be one of the most cost-effective means of advancing global welfare. Despite these longstanding benefits, low immunization levels persist. Some 20 million children miss out on life-saving vaccines annually.
The most poor and marginalized children — often most in need of vaccines — continue to be the least likely to get them. Many live in countries affected by conflict , in remote areas, or where polio remains endemic. Low immunization rates also compromise progress in areas of maternal and child health and well-being. While vaccine hesitancy is as old as vaccination itself, the nature of the challenge continues to shift with the social landscape.
In over countries, we work with governments, the private sector, non-governmental organizations, and other United Nations UN agencies to engage communities, procure and distribute vaccines, keep supplies safe and effective, and help ensure affordable access for even the hardest-to-reach families. UNICEF works with partners to establish, maintain or improve the cold chain for vaccines and other essential medical supplies, and to put health teams torn apart by conflict back in place.
No matter how challenging or remote the setting, we find new ways to reach the children, adolescents and mothers most at risk of life-threatening diseases and outbreaks.
Our efforts identify and prioritize marginalized and underserved communities, and strengthen the front-line immunization workforce to reach them.
We engage with communities to learn their values and needs around quality vaccination services. In , a rotavirus vaccine was taken off the market because it was linked to an increased risk for intussusception , a type of bowel obstruction, in babies. However, two different rotavirus vaccines RotaTeq and Rotarix are now available and are very safe. Some studies suggest that they have a very small increased risk for intussusception, but that problem is rare.
These vaccines have been shown to prevent most cases of rotavirus infection and almost all of the severe cases. The vaccine is now on the regular immunization schedule to be given orally to infants as a liquid during standard vaccination visits — RotaTeq at ages 2 months, 4 months, and 6 months, or Rotarix at ages 2 months and 4 months.
Your doctor will have the most current information. There are concerns, many of which circulate on the Internet, linking some vaccines to multiple sclerosis, sudden infant death syndrome SIDS , and other problems.
To date, studies have failed to show any connection between immunizations and these conditions. Diseases that are rare or nonexistent in the United States, like measles and polio, still exist in other parts of the world. Doctors continue to vaccinate against them because it's easy to come into contact with illnesses through travel — either when Americans travel abroad or when people who aren't properly immunized come to the United States.
In recent years, there have been measles outbreaks in many different states, even though measles was declared eliminated from the U. These cases were mostly among people who did not get vaccinated. Other preventable diseases that had recent outbreaks include whooping cough pertussis and mumps.
It's only safe to stop vaccinations for a particular disease when that disease has been eradicated worldwide, as with smallpox. A few vaccines, like the two for measles or the series for hepatitis B, may make you immune for your entire life.
Others, like tetanus, last for many years but require periodic shots boosters for continued protection against the disease. The whooping cough pertussis vaccine also does not give lifelong immunity, and that may be one reason why outbreaks still happen. Whooping cough isn't a serious problem for older kids and adults, but it can be for infants and young children. Because of this, teens and adults now receive a pertussis booster along with the tetanus and diphtheria booster Tdap — an important step in controlling this infection, particularly for pregnant women and other adults who will be around newborn babies.
It's important to keep a record of vaccinations so the doctor knows when your kids are due for a booster. Also make sure your kids get the flu vaccine each year. Having been immunized last year won't protect someone from getting the flu this year because flu viruses constantly change. The vaccine is updated each year to include the most current strains of the virus. It can't prevent infection by all viruses that can cause flu-like symptoms, though, so being immunized isn't a guarantee that someone won't get sick during flu season.
Still, even if someone who's gotten the vaccine has the flu, symptoms usually will be fewer and milder. New vaccines are licensed only after thorough laboratory studies and clinical trials, and safety monitoring continues even after a vaccine has been approved. There have been — and will continue to be — improvements such as those that have already been made to the DTaP and polio vaccines, for example that will minimize potential side effects and ensure the best possible safety standards.
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