Vaccine Misconceptions: Addressing False Information
January 31, 2022
As vaccine skepticism has increased, so has the number of misconceptions regarding vaccinations, and a great deal of false information has spread far across the world. Though the World Health Organization “estimates that vaccines prevented over 10 million deaths between 2010 and 2015”, many people are apprehensive towards vaccinations, and are hesitant about the impact they may have on their health and wellbeing. While many people opt to get themselves vaccinated, along with their children, others choose to refrain from doing so, for a number of reasons. Some fear physical repercussions, while others worry about the possibility of mental effects a vaccination could have, and choose to avoid receiving any out of fear towards such. However, though many of these fears are indeed valid, there are thousands of studies that prove otherwise and put ease to these worries.
An apprehension to receive or give vaccinations can be extremely dangerous. While everyone has a choice as to whether or not they would like to receive one, there can be serious consequences if all vaccinations are avoided. The body is left susceptible to serious disease, such as measles or mumps, that could have otherwise been prevented with the incorporation of a vaccine, and its immune system is far weaker when confronted with a harmful virus or bacteria. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “From January 1 to December 31, 2019, 1,282 individual cases of measles were confirmed in 31 states.” This statistic is followed shortly by a greater explanation of this drastic increase in case numbers, stating “This is the greatest number of cases reported in the U.S. since 1992. The majority of cases were among people who were not vaccinated against measles. Measles is more likely to spread and cause outbreaks in U.S. communities where groups of people are unvaccinated” (CDC).
Diseases that were once thought to have been eradicated, such as measles, or even chickenpox and polio, have returned in such large quantities due to a decrease in vaccinations. While there certainly are rare exceptions in which a vaccinated individual may contract the disease, this is an incredibly rare and unlikely occurrence, and the patient often has additional circumstances that may have contributed to such. However, those that are unvaccinated are at an exceedingly heightened risk of contracting one of these dangerous and possibly fatal diseases, while also posing the risk of transmission.
So why is it that people are perhaps skeptical, afraid, or even angry at vaccines? What has contributed to this widespread, growing distrust in what was once deemed perhaps the greatest invention within the entire medical field? Well, there are a number of common misconceptions that often lead people to believe otherwise.
Misconception One: Vaccines can make you sick.
While some people may experience mild side effects due to a vaccine, such as a soreness at the location of the injection or a slight headache, they subside shortly afterwards, usually within a few hours following the vaccine. While more dangerous side effects are certainly possible, they are extremely rare - so rare that the World Health Organization, along with many other public health organizations, cannot analyze their impact as there is simply not enough statistical evidence available.
Misconception Two: Getting infected builds better immunity than vaccinations.
According to PublicHealth, “In some cases, natural immunity — meaning actually catching a disease and getting sick– results in a stronger immunity to the disease than a vaccination. However, the dangers of this approach far outweigh the relative benefits.” Immunity built by a vaccine may not be as powerful as that developed by undergoing the real illness, but it is the far safer option. Many of the diseases that are typically vaccinated against can be deadly, and in choosing to get infected rather than vaccinated, you risk death, as well as long-term side effects of the disease.
Misconception Three: We don’t need vaccines if the disease “doesn’t exist anymore”.
Unfortunately, vaccines are not magicians, and they cannot make diseases disappear forever. However, they can develop “herd immunity” when the majority of people within a certain area are vaccinated against a disease, significantly decreasing the possibility that they contract the illness and thereby spread it. When most members of a population are protected against a disease, thanks to vaccination efforts, infectious diseases will be unable to find a host, and are incapable of spreading to those that may be physically unable to receive vaccines, such as those with weakened immune systems.
Misconception Four: Vaccines contain harmful toxins.
In vaccinations, it is critical to consider the dosage being given. “Any substance - even water - can be toxic in large doses,” says the University of Maryland Medical System. While some vaccines do contain potentially toxic substances, such as formaldehyde, these materials are given in such minute doses that they are not deemed a threat or harm to the body. While certain people may also be allergic to some ingredients inside vaccines, such as eggs, a reaction can be avoided by discussing the vaccine with a doctor before receiving it.
Misconception Five: Vaccines can cause autism.
The belief that vaccines can cause autism originated from “a 1997 study published by Andrew Wakefield, a British surgeon. The article was published in The Lancet, a prestigious medical journal, suggesting that the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine was increasing autism in British children” (PublicHealth). However, since then, this theory has since been disproved, as a result of many errors found within Wakefield’s study, such as “serious procedural errors, undisclosed financial conflicts of interest, and ethical violations” (PublicHealth). Additionally, further studies were developed in order to examine Wakefield’s original theory, and none were able to draw a correlation between vaccinations and autism.
Misconception Six: If everyone around me is immune, I don’t need to be vaccinated.
While getting vaccinated is to protect yourself from disease, it is also to protect others - particularly those unable to receive such. Many people, such as those with weakened immune systems, pregnant women, infants, and elderly people are advised against getting a certain vaccine, as their body may not be in the optimal condition to accept it. Therefore, the greater percentage of a community that is vaccinated, the safer these individuals are from harm.
Misconception Seven: Infant immune systems are weakened by so many vaccines in such little time.
Infant immune systems are far stronger than you may expect. A study conducted by the Columbia University Irving Medical Center found that, in a comparison of naive T cells (“immune cells that have never encountered a pathogen”) taken from both adult and infant mice, “the infant T cells won handily” after being injected into an adult mouse infected with a particular virus. The infant T cells eradicated the virus far more efficiently and effectively than that of the adult. Donna Farber, PhD, professor of microbiology and immunology and the George H. Humphreys II Professor of Surgical Sciences at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, states that “What this is saying is that the infant’s immune system is robust, it's efficient, and it can get rid of pathogens in early life. In some ways, it may be even better than the adult immune system, since it’s designed to respond to a multitude of new pathogens.”
Misconception Eight: Vaccines contain “government tracking microchips”.
Even though countless conspiracy theorists on the internet claim the government is attempting to “track our every move” with the alleged microchips being “forced into our bodies” through vaccinations, these claims have been proven false time and time again. The University of Maryland Medical System clarifies that this idea is “not only false, but impossible.”
Misconception Nine: Vaccines can infect you with the disease they are trying to prevent.
Sometimes, vaccines can produce side effects that are similar to the disease it is attempting to prevent in the first place. However, “in the small percentage (less than 1 in one million cases) where symptoms do occur, the vaccine recipients are experiencing a body's immune response to the vaccine, not the disease itself” (PublicHealth).
Misconception Ten: The flu vaccine can protect you from COVID-19.
As of January 2022, there is no evidence to support the idea that the flu shot can provide safety from COVID-19. Regardless, it is recommended that you receive both vaccines, to keep you safe from both illnesses.