Posted by Signature Medical Group on Wednesday, February 22, 2017 in Family Medicine
Sometimes, even the best medical advances are taken for granted. That's why Dr. Betty Cross, a veteran pediatrician for Signature Medical Group, believes many people are mistakenly advocating that vaccines are harmful to children.
“Young parents aren’t seeing diseases take children’s lives or cause permanent damage like they used to,” Dr. Cross says.
The chief reason is that vaccines have curtailed many previously fatal diseases. It's even more important now to have your child vaccinated, Dr. Cross adds.
Once fringe, the anti-vaccine movement is becoming more popular, raising doubts about basic childhood healthcare among politically and geographically diverse groups, The Washington Post reports.
Public health experts warn that this growing movement is threatening one of the most successful medical innovations of modern times. Globally, vaccines prevent the deaths of about 2.5 million children every year, but deadly diseases such as measles and whooping cough still circulate in populations where enough people are unvaccinated, the Post adds.
Dr. Cross says, "It's frightening if we start forgetting science and let people manipulate the facts.''
Why have your child vaccinated? "Because it saves lives,'' Dr. Cross says. "That's the bottom line.''
Opponents of vaccines cite a link between vaccinations and autism in children.
"There's a lot of data that show there is not a correlation between autism and vaccinations,'' Dr. Cross says. "Vaccines are much safer now than they were 30 years ago.''
What's her most important advice to parents?
"Follow the vaccination schedule and get your kids vaccinated on time,'' Dr. Cross says. "It may save their lives one day.''
At Signature Medical Group, we care about your child's health. Our pediatricians manage the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of your kids - in good health or in illness. Make an appointment today to see one of our specialists.
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