Answers to FAQs About Routine Childhood Immunizations

When you’re a parent, your top priority is ensuring your child’s health and safety — and routine childhood immunizations (vaccines) are one of the best ways to do that. Vaccines protect your child from serious illnesses and, in some cases, death. But it's normal to have questions and concerns about vaccines. 

In this blog, Drs. Tina Floy and Trinidad Rojas, our expert pediatricians at Wellness Pediatrics, answer some common questions about childhood immunizations.

What are childhood immunizations, and how do they work?

Childhood immunizations are vaccines that protect against serious illnesses that can harm children. They stimulate your child's immune system to produce antibodies, protecting them against specific diseases. 

When your child receives a vaccine, their immune system responds to its antigens, building up immunity to that disease. So if they're ever exposed to the disease in the future, their immune system will recognize it and fight it off before it can cause serious harm.

What diseases do childhood immunizations protect against?

Childhood immunizations protect against a range of serious illnesses, including:

• Measles, mumps, and rubella
• Chickenpox
• Polio
• Hepatitis B
• Diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (whooping cough)
• Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib)
• Pneumococcal disease
• Rotavirus
• Human papillomavirus (HPV)
• Meningococcal disease

We administer these vaccines on a schedule that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends. Talk to us about how frequently your child should get vaccinated. 

Does my child really need vaccines?

Children need vaccines to protect against serious illnesses that can cause lasting harm or even death. Before vaccines, many children died or suffered from serious diseases like polio, measles, and whooping cough. 

Vaccines have significantly reduced the number of cases of these diseases, making them much less common. Vaccines also help to protect the broader community by preventing outbreaks of disease.

Are vaccines safe?

Yes, vaccines are safe. Before their approval, vaccines undergo extensive testing to ensure they're safe and effective. 

The CDC carefully monitors vaccines to ensure their safety. And any potential side effects are usually mild and temporary, such as a sore arm or a low-grade fever. Serious side effects are infrequent.

Are there any reasons a child should not receive vaccines?

There are very few reasons your child shouldn't receive vaccines. Some children may have medical conditions that make it unsafe to receive certain vaccines, but these cases are rare. 

If your child has a medical condition, talk to your doctor about which vaccines are safe. Some children may have a severe allergy to a vaccine ingredient, such as eggs, and may not be able to receive certain vaccines. In these cases, your doctor can recommend alternative vaccines or other ways to protect your child.

Do vaccines cause autism?

No, vaccines do not cause autism. This is a myth that numerous scientific studies have debunked. 

The original claim that suggested a link between vaccines and autism has been discredited and retracted by the medical journal that published it. The overwhelming majority of scientific evidence shows vaccines are safe and do not cause autism.

What are the risks of not vaccinating your child?

Not vaccinating your child puts them at risk of serious illnesses that can cause lasting harm or even death. It also puts other children at risk, particularly those who cannot receive vaccines for medical reasons. 

When enough children in a community are vaccinated, it creates herd immunity, which means that even those who cannot receive vaccines are protected because the disease cannot spread easily. Low vaccination rates weaken herd immunity and may trigger disease outbreaks.

Childhood immunizations are a safe and effective way to protect your child from serious illnesses. If you have concerns about vaccines, talk to us at your child's next appointment. We can walk you through the research and answer any additional questions. 

Call or click to schedule an appointment at our Fairfax, Virginia, office today.