Dorothy FarrarVaccinations – Protect yourself and your body
Vaccinations not only protect against diseases, they can even save lives. You can find out here which vaccinations are not only important for children, but also regularly for adults.
Which vaccinations are important?
Vaccinations are not only important for children to protect against whooping cough, polio or measles, mumps and rubella. Adults should also have their immune protection against tetanus ( lockjaw ) or diphtheria refreshed at regular intervals . In addition, it is also possible to be vaccinated against diseases such as the flu, tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) caused by tick bites or meningococci, which can cause meningitis .
In addition, the standing vaccination commission recommends vaccination against the hepatitis B virus, which can otherwise cause chronic liver inflammation. Young girls and women are also advised to get the HPV vaccine, which reduces the risk of cervical cancer by protecting against some sexually transmitted papillomaviruses that cause this type of cancer.
Which vaccinations are specifically recommended for whom should be coordinated with a doctor. He can advise on the necessity and any side effects.
This is especially true before travel. Hepatitis A or TBE (tick-borne encephalitis) should also be vaccinated when vacationing within Europe. For long-distance travel, vaccinations against rabies, cholera or yellow fever may be necessary. The same applies here: It is essential that you seek advice from a doctor or travel vaccination center beforehand.
Overview of vaccinations
- measles
- whooping cough
- poliomyelitis
- Tetanus
- Mumps
- chickenpox
- rubella
- diphtheria
- TBE
- Hepatitis A
- Hepatitis B
- rabies
- Cholera
- yellow fever
How does the vaccination principle work?
Our body has a certain protective mechanism of its own. If pathogens penetrate, it forms antibodies, i.e. antibodies, that fight the invaders. It is precisely this principle that vaccination medicine uses. The vaccines consist of the respective bacteria or
Viruses or parts of them, but in a weakened form. They are therefore harmless, but the body still gets to know the pathogen and can form antibodies. In the case of real pathogens, he can defend himself directly.
With the principle just described, experts speak of active vaccination. So it serves as a precautionary measure. It is opposed to passive immunization. It is used when a patient has already been infected with the disease in question or is already ill. It works immediately and can help the body faster. Because instead of forming its own antibodies, the body receives an antiserum that already contains the antibodies.
However, passive immunization does not last that long. Healthy people therefore usually receive the active vaccination. This also needs to be refreshed from time to time. When and how often does a doctor know. It is therefore important to always record the vaccinations you have received in a vaccination card.
Vaccinations can eradicate diseases
The importance of vaccination becomes clear when you look at their successes. While drugs only provide relief or healing in the event of illness, the comparatively cheaper vaccination can completely prevent the outbreak of the disease and thus also disabilities and deaths.
Vaccination celebrated one of its greatest successes on May 8, 1980, when the World Health Organization (WHO) declared smallpox eradicated. Measles has, after all, been eradicated in the USA. This has not yet been fully achieved in the German-speaking countries of Europe. The reason is the low vaccination participation. It would have to be at least 95 percent to finally eradicate the disease.
In the case of polio , 80 percent would be enough, since the disease is not as contagious as measles. Nevertheless, this vaccination participation has not yet been achieved in this country. Vaccination in Germany declining
The reason for the falling vaccination rates is that many are no longer aware of how vital protection is not only for children but also for adults. With many of the deadly diseases now eradicated or at least under control, willingness to be vaccinated is declining. Instead of the life-saving function, people are increasingly concerned about the side effects.
The trend towards vaccination is therefore declining in Germany. This decline is not yet dramatic. But compared to the life-saving function of vaccination, according to the Standing Vaccination Commission (STIKO), the side effects are absolutely overestimated. This becomes immediately clear when you look at some countries in Africa and Asia. Thousands of children are still dying here from measles, which has almost been eradicated elsewhere, or other diseases that could be avoided by vaccination. In Germany, too, every thousandth or two-thousandth measles infection in children and adults is still fatal.
Safety of the vaccines
The permanent vaccination commission checks whether the vaccines are safe. For this purpose, each vaccination is examined for its benefits and risks, then they give a recommendation when which vaccinations are advisable. STIKO is made up of doctors and scientists based at the Robert Koch Institute. It belongs to the federal authority responsible for disease prevention and disease surveillance in Germany. All vaccinations recommended by the STIKO are therefore considered safe. In addition, the costs are covered by most statutory health insurance companies. To be on the safe side, you should ask your own health insurance company about this. Vaccination damage occurs only in very rare cases. Modern vaccines are very well tolerated, but like all medicines, they can also have side effects.
Alleged side effects of the vaccines
Around 10 percent of all vaccination patients complain about side effects such as short-term hardening or redness at the injection site, aching arm, headache , tiredness or high temperature . It is believed that many more people react to the vaccines without realizing it or associating it with the vaccine because the reaction is so minor.
But what is perceived as a side effect of the vaccine is actually a noticeable signal from the body that the vaccine is working.
The immune system classifies the vaccine as a pathogen and fends it off by sending inflammation-causing messenger substances and immune cells to the injection site. The result: the puncture site swells, turns red or hurts. Somewhat more intense reactions are body aches or increased temperature.
If you don’t feel any symptoms, you don’t have to worry that the vaccination hasn’t worked. Every immune system reacts differently to the vaccination. For some, the formation of the antibodies causes slight pain, for others it does not.
Only very rarely does the vaccination provoke strong reactions in the body. If the fever rises very high or the arm is very swollen, a doctor should be consulted as soon as possible. It is then probably an allergic reaction.
Hello and welcome to my Health Guide & Encyclopedia! My name is Dorothy Farrar, and I'm the founder and main author of this platform.
My passion for health and wellness started at a young age when I became interested in the connection between the food we eat and the way we feel. This fascination led me to study nutrition and dietetics in college, where I learned about the importance of a balanced diet and the impact of various nutrients on the body.