National Immunization Month

August is National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM). This annual observance highlights the efforts of Lifecare Family Health & Dental Center to protect patients of all ages against vaccine-preventable diseases through on-time vaccination.
During NIAM, we encourage our patients to be up to date on recommended vaccines. Research has consistently shown that healthcare professionals are the most trusted source of vaccine information for parents and patients.

Why Immunize?
Thanks to vaccines, some diseases are almost gone from the U.S. But we need to continue to immunize our children, ourselves as adults, and the elderly.

Diseases are becoming rare due to vaccinations.
Some diseases (like polio and diphtheria) are becoming very rare in the U.S. Of course, they are becoming rare largely because we have been vaccinating against them. But it is still reasonable to ask whether it’s really worthwhile to keep vaccinating.

Keep immunizing until disease is eliminated.
Unless we can eliminate the disease, it is important to keep immunizing. Even if there are only a few cases of disease today, if we take away the protection given by vaccination, more and more people will become infected and will spread disease to others. Soon we will undo the progress we have made over the years.

What if we stopped vaccinating?
So what would happen if we stopped vaccinating here? Diseases that are almost unknown would stage a comeback. Before long we would see epidemics of diseases that are nearly under control today. More children would get sick and more would die.

We vaccinate to protect our future.
We don’t vaccinate just to protect our children. We also vaccinate to protect our grandchildren and their grandchildren. Our children don’t have to get smallpox shots anymore because the disease no longer exists. Smallpox is now only a memory, and if we keep vaccinating against other diseases, the same will someday be true for them too.

Vaccinations are one of the best ways to put an end to the serious effects of certain diseases.

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