The decision whether to vaccinate is a substantial one in light of the available medical evidence but this does not mean that people should simply reject vaccinations as unsafe, ignoring the numerous benefits because of general concerns about the potential risks. Vaccinations afford many health benefits and have a long-standing...

When Jenny McCarthy and other celebrities have spent time persuading their fans and audiences that childhood vaccines have caused their children to develop autism, they have done a tremendous disservice to children everywhere. When people decide not to have their children vaccinated, the "herd immunity" is threatened; such community protection...

Throughout Canada, there are limited vaccination requirements for polio, tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis prior to the school years, as New Brunswick and Ontario are the only provinces which enforce this mandate; furthermore, religious or medical exemptions are possible for some patients who qualify. However, due to the continued risk of...

In 1796, a landmark event in the history of medicine took place when an English physician called Edward Jenner successfully inoculated an eight-year-old child against the smallpox virus, which was a leading cause of death at the time. Since then, several serious diseases which claimed the lives of countless children,...

Introduction Vaccination is a method by which antigens, also known as vaccines are administered to a person’s body so as to stimulate the immune system. The body develops an adaptive immunity to a particular pathogen, and thus, one will not get the disease. Vaccination is mostly used to prevent infectious...