by Marisa Wright

Created on: November 20, 2007

"Vaccination is dangerous." That's the argument put forward by parents who don't want their children vaccinated. And yes, with some vaccinations there is a small risk of the child suffering a reaction. And yes, it's small comfort to know that risk is millions to one, if it's your child who turns out to be the one in a million.

But ask yourself, what is the greater risk: that my child could be harmed by the vaccination, or that my child could be harmed - or even killed - by the disease the vaccination prevents?

In the Western world, we all smugly think there's little chance of our child catching polio, or diphtheria, or most of the other diseases we're vaccinated against. So the risk of vaccination doesn't seem worth it.

Think again!

I will never forget the shock of living in Africa and finding that hundreds of children are blinded every year by measles, or crippled by polio. People die from diphtheria all the time. The same story applies in many poor countries of Asia and South America.

Once upon a time, those were faraway, exotic places. Now, they're only a short plane ride away. For all you know, the man who bumped into you in the subway may have just arrived from Somalia. The woman serving you at the deli may have just returned from visiting a sick relative in Guatemala. The handsome young man who steps off the treadmill at the gym to give you a turn, may be an engineer who's just got back from inspecting a Zambian mine. Any one of them could be an innocent carrier for one of these dreadful diseases.

In a world where everyone was vaccinated, these people would pose no great threat. In fact, that was the case not so long ago, because the majority of today's thirty to fifty-year-olds were vaccinated as children: their parents had experienced the awful consequences of these deadly diseases, and didn't hesitate to have their children protected when the opportunity arose.

However, those children grew up to be parents themselves without ever being exposed to the terror of childhood epidemics, and started to question whether vaccination was necessary. The result is that a frighteningly large portion of the population in most Western countries is NOT vaccinated. This leaves the gate open for diseases like polio, measles and diphtheria to infiltrate our society again and cut a swathe through our young people.

Yes, vaccination has some risks. Not vaccinating has more.

Learn more about this author, Marisa Wright.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.