From One Parent to Another: Laura Romano, D.O. Shares Reasons to Get Children Immunized

By Laura Romano, D.O., hospitalist at Cook Children's

August is a chaotic month for any busy parent. Between back-to-school preparations and the last days of summer, it's easy to get overwhelmed. On top of that, August is also National Immunization Awareness Month—a perfect time to make sure your children are up-to-date on their vaccinations.

When people learn that I’m a pediatrician they often ask if my own two children are vaccinated and I always reply with a resounding yes. My children are vaccinated for several reasons: 

Vaccines are safe! 

• Every vaccine that is currently in use has gone through a rigorous testing phase to make sure that the vaccine is safe. Side effects and potential reactions are closely reviewed by multiple agencies at the federal level. Even after the vaccine has been approved, the Vaccine Adverse Effect Reporting System (VAERS) continues to monitor for additional side effects. 
• Millions upon millions of vaccines will be administered this year with minimal side effects. The most common side effects are low-grade fever, redness around the injection site or maybe some mild muscle aches. 

Vaccines are effective! 

• Vaccines have led to the eradication of previously fatal diseases like Smallpox. 

Vaccines save lives!

• Vaccines have saved the lives of nearly 200 million people in the past century. Many of those lives saved are of young children and babies. 
• Vaccines prevent diseases and illnesses that have serious consequences, even in healthy children. 
• Vaccines prevent diseases that can lead to hospitalizations, pneumonia, potential hearing loss, potential loss of an arm or a leg, brain damage, and even death. 

Vaccines do not cause autism. 

• Decades of research has shown again and again and again that there is no link between vaccines and autism. 

The ingredients in vaccines are safe. 

• Just as the individual vaccine is studied, the ingredients in vaccines are also rigorously studied. 
• Some vaccines contain ingredients like aluminum, which can be found in fruits and vegetables. Aluminum helps the body produce an immune response and is perfectly safe. 
• Vaccines can be preserved with very small amounts of formaldehyde, so small that it is not harmful at all. 
• These ingredients are like baking powder when you’re making cookies. By itself, baking powder does not taste good but in small amounts, it’s needed for your cookies to come out looking and tasting great! 

Vaccines are recommended by my children’s doctors.

• My kids’ pediatrician - along with the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the Infectious Disease Society of America, the American College of Physicians, the American Medical Association, and the American Nurses Association - all support routine childhood immunizations. 

Vaccines help keep my community safe. 

• My children are vaccinated because doing so protects them and our community. 
• Vaccines can help prevent your child from spreading illnesses to at-risk individuals such as your parents who have diabetes, your child’s classmate who has a newborn at home, your neighbor who is undergoing chemotherapy for cancer, your co-worker who just received a kidney transplant, or the cashier in the grocery store who has an autoimmune condition. 
• We rely on everyone to get their vaccines to keep the community safe. 

And the most important reason to me is that I want to protect my dad. My dad has type 1 diabetes and is immunocompromised. My kids will always get their flu vaccines every year so we can give him the BIGGEST hug without worrying about making him sick. 

So, this month, in between back-to-school shopping, meet the teacher nights and the ever-exciting first day of school, please call your child’s pediatrician and make sure that they are up-to-date on their vaccines. We would love to talk to you more and answer all of your questions and concerns! 

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