I know this for a fact because all my three kids got measles when they were only a few months old, thanks to their older friends who are not vaccinated.
The Ministry of Health recently reported that the number of cases of parents ‘rejecting’ vaccination for their children is rising.
Rising in tandem are the number of cases of measles and pertussis, also known as whooping cough.
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It was really heart-wrenching and harrowing for my husband and I to care for our six-month old baby with measles. No child should have to bear such suffering, if it is preventable.
It’s just so frustrating that there are parents out there who are misinformed and continue to be ignorant about vaccination and its benefits.
Whether you like it or not, the fact remains that vaccines are not only safe, but also possibly the greatest public health success in the history of civilisation.
I have friends who are really against vaccination and proud of it. Some are the same kind of mothers who are against giving birth at proper hospitals.
It is mind boggling how some modern parents, who claim to be forward-thinking and are up-to-date with latest gadgets and technology, can be so backwards when it comes to the primary care of their own children.
Scientists endlessly and tirelessly develop cures and vaccination for childhood illnesses. So what’s the deal with these anti-vaxxers?
If they can go the extra mile to read up on studies that claim vaccination causes autism, even though there isn’t really any hard-proof evidence to this, then, why can’t these parents put in the same effort to read up and learn the history of vaccination and what it has done for mankind?
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What’s even more baffling is the ‘weird’ contemplation of priorities amongst parents who are anti-vaxxers.
For instance, I have friends who don’t vaccinate their kids for fear of ‘poison’ or pig DNA, yet they smoke cigarettes just a few feet away from their babies.
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Another friend, who is very active in the anti-vaccine movement, is an ardent vaper. She vapes even when lactating and nursing. She feeds her toddler processed food and cereal, and allows the kid to sleep with her tablet.
These anti-vaxxers simply choose to deny the fact that their stance on the issue is exposing more children to diseases like measles, mumps, rubella, polio, and meningitis.
Measles and the likes of it are not something to be taken lightly. If there is a movement to deny vaccination, should there not be a counter-movement to ban children who aren’t vaccinated from going to public schools?
Do we need to ‘rewind’ history and witness an epidemic of infant deaths before these people realize the importance of vaccination?
The views expressed here are strictly those of the author's and does not necessarily reflect Astro AWANI's.