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Home › Articles › Kid Connections › On the Record

On the Record

The Risks and Benefits of Infant Immunizations

By Nicole Magistro

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Dr. Cashore recalls closed playgrounds and empty schools during the polio epidemic of 1952, which crippled 58,000 people in one summer. During medical school, he also treated pregnant women with measles and boys who later suffered infertility following bouts with the illness. And though the diseases have all but been snuffed out – mostly due to international immunization efforts – Dr. Cashore warns that children are the most vulnerable when it comes to getting sick.

Keys to Good Health
So what can parents do to keep their children healthy?

First, parents must understand why most doctors insist on immunization. "The first reason is to protect the child from getting a severe infectious disease," Dr. Cashore says. By the time they reach school age, an already healthy crop of children will spread less illness to each other and to their families. Even in a population with a high rate of immunity, disease still happens.

Doctors also encourage parents to immunize their children as early as pssible. In fact, most vaccines are administered before the child's 2nd birthday. This is the result of a combination of biology and practicality, according to medical experts.


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