Vaccines – Are all Vacines Safe?

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Are All Vaccines Safe?
Outline
The question of whether all vaccines should be embraced is very controversial
Some people think that vaccines are not harmful if administered correctly
Another group of people believes that vaccines are unsafe
Vaccines are supposed to lessen the adversity of infection in the vaccinated person or make an individual’s immune to targeted diseases (von Stebut, Esther 506-509).
The two main types of vaccine are the attenuated or weakened and the dead vaccine.
Main points
The objecting group of people suggests that the dosage could be too much for infants hence harmful instead of protecting them against infections.
Research shows that whooping cough vaccine is safe for babies, adults, and pregnant women though side effects may occur.
A safety research conducted in the UK by proved that the vaccine was safe for the expectant women
Whooping cough vaccine has limited and less severe reactions and hence safe for use.
Many studies have shown that HPV vaccine is very safe and efficient at HPV prevention, but also have adverse effects
HPV was tested in more than 15,000 participants and proven to be safe (Reissner, N.P).
Gardasil, which was licensed in 2006 after a series of trials with more than 29,000 individuals.
CDC and FDA monitor HPV to approve of its safety of vaccines through three systems before administering to patients
There are regular reports from experts of CISA on more advanced effects to improve vaccine safety.

There has been a controversy of whether HPV vaccine could be used in children under the age of nine years old
Vaccines are safe
they are clinically tested to determine their safety before licensing
they are given to healthy individuals there is no vaccine given when a person is already infected with the disease
The risks that come with vaccination are lower than the risks that would occur had the person contracted the disease.

The question of whether all vaccines should be embraced is very controversial. Some people think that vaccines are not harmful if administered correctly following the five rights of drug administration. Another group of people believes that vaccines are unsafe and hence their wide use should be limited. The latter group of people argues that the chemicals used in the manufacture of the vaccines are not safe for human especially children whose immunity is low. The objecting group also claims that vaccines have several side effects; therefore, it is safer not to be vaccinated.
The objecting group of people suggests that the dosage could be too much for infants hence harmful instead of protecting them against infections. The individuals against vaccination also argue that the vaccines have not been subjected to toxicity experiments due to their ingredients such as aluminum, which is known to be neurotoxic (Marques, Rejane C. et al. 130-135). There has not been a study to scrutinize the adverse events of the vaccines in their combination forms the way they are given and therefore not guaranteeing their safety. This paper will outline if all vaccines are safe and so should parents for their children embrace all or some.
According to Christie, CDC et al., vaccines refers to preparations made biologically to provide acquired immunity to an individual. The process of administering vaccine is called vaccination. The vaccine is made from attenuated forms of the disease causing pathogen. When the vaccine is introduced in the body, it is recognized as foreign, and the body tries to kill it by producing antibodies, which work to destroy it (Christie, CDC et al. N.P). The body then keeps the record of the pathogen such that if there is a future attack by the pathogen the body can easily recognize and destroy it and therefore providing a lifetime protection. Vaccines can be therapeutic like the ones against cancer, which are still under investigations. Prophylactic also fights against poliomyelitis, measles, and tuberculosis. Vaccines are supposed to lessen the adversity of infection in the vaccinated person or make an individual’s immune to targeted diseases (von Stebut, Esther 506-509). Vaccines are therefore safer when administered.
Vaccines were used in the control of serious ailments. For example, Smallpox was contained by use of the vaccine (Munk, William and J.F. Marson, 210-211) and more studies are being conducted to eradicate other infections as well. Currently, some vaccines contribute to the prevention of twenty-five diseases according to WHO report. The two main types of vaccine are the attenuated or weakened and the dead vaccine. The weakened type of vaccine is made from living but attenuated pathogen. Examples of such vaccines include measles, yellow fever, rubella, mumps, and typhoid and tuberculosis vaccines. The dead vaccine is made from a dead disease-causing organism. The examples are hepatitis A, cholera, polio, rabies influenza and bubonic plague vaccines (“Acknowledgement to Reviewers of Vaccines In 2015” 1). The toxoid vaccines are those made from toxic compounds of the disease-causing pathogen and examples are diphtheria and tetanus vaccines.
Whooping cough (pertussis) vaccine is combined with other vaccines that include tetanus and diphtheria to ensure protection from various infections with a single shot. The pertussis vaccine is made from a dead form of the infection-causing microbe (Iman et al. 1107-1112). Research shows that whooping cough vaccine is safe for babies, adults, and pregnant women though side effects may occur. Midwives, gynecologists, and scientist have asserted that pertussis vaccine is crucial in pregnant women in their third trimester.
A safety research conducted in the UK by the “Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency” (MHRA) involving about 20,000 women proved that the vaccine was safe for the expectant women. The same vaccine had also been given to pregnant women in the US, and no concerns were raised (Collier, J. 117). Pertussis vaccine is made from a dead form of the infection causing pathogen (CDC, N.P) this makes it safer to be used. The side effects which include redness and swelling at the injection site, headache, and tiredness that occur with the administration of the vaccine are usually due to the other vaccines combined.
Whooping cough vaccine on its own has limited and less severe reactions and hence safe for use. Most people whose arguments are against the safety of pertussis vaccine believe on the herd immunity. They believe that the body has a particular way, which no human being can understand of fighting diseases unlike the use of antibodies like those that the use of vaccines implies. However, these claims can be dismissed by the reduced number of whooping cases in 2012-2014 with reduced cases of side effects.
Another vaccine, which has received many questions about its safety, is the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. CDC recommends the use of the three HPV vaccines i.e. Gardasil 9, Gardasil and Cervarix as they have proven that they are safe. Many studies conducted in the US have shown that the vaccine is very safe and efficient at HPV prevention, but just like other medicines, they also have adverse effects. HPV vaccine is given at an interval of six months for protection against the HPV in a series of three shots.
Gardasil 9, which one of the licensed HPV vaccines was approved for use by the Food and Drug Act in 2014. Gardasil 9 vaccine protects against various types of HPV, which include 6, 11, 16, 18, 31,33,45,52, and 58. Before its licensing its safety was tested in more than 15,000 participants and proven to be safe (Reissner, N.P). The use of Gardasil9 is still being monitored just to confirm its safety.
Another HPV vaccine is the Gardasil, which was licensed in 2006 after a series of trials with more than 29,000 individuals. Gardasil is protective against HPV “ types 6, 11, 16 and 18” (Reissner, N.P). The studies confirmed its safety and therefore recommended by CDC as a vaccine. However, the safety is still being monitored to limit the side effects that may occur with its administration. Cervarix, which is the third type of HPV vaccine, was licensed in 2009 after clinical trials with over 30,000 individuals (Gee, Julianne et al. 8279-8284).
CDC and FDA monitor HPV to approve of its safety through three systems. The systems consist of Adverse Event Reporting System (VAER), Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD) and Clinical Immunization Safety Assessment (CISA). VAER are systems that detect early warnings and therefore helps CDC and FDA monitor problems that may follow immediately after administration. CISA is a system that allows for a partnership between CDC and other medical centers, which carry out research on associated health risks of vaccines (Davis, Robert Lowell, and 1162-1164).
Before the licensing of Gardasil, seven studies were conducted, and they indicated that the commonest adverse effect was the pain, swelling, and redness at the injection site. Fainting was also found to be another negative effect though very rare. In response to this, the FDA provided that doctors be giving information on preventing falls and injuries, therefore improving the safety of the vaccine. There are regular reports from experts of CISA on more advanced effects to improve vaccine safety.
There has been a controversy of whether HPV vaccine could be used in children under the age of nine years old (Marques, Rejane C. et al. 130-135). The side events are similar with those that occur in adults, and it is very useful in the prevention of cancers, cervical cancer. Since the benefits outweigh the adverse events, many parents opt to take their children for the vaccine. The CDC and FDA are also continuously monitoring it and therefore there is assurance that it is safe (Davis, Robert Lowell, 1162-1164). CDC recommends that the vaccine be given routinely to girls but not to boys.
Vaccines are safe because of various reasons. Firstly, they are clinically tried to determine their safety before licensing. Secondly, they are safe because they are given to healthy individuals there is no vaccine given when a person is already infected with the disease. The risks that come with vaccination are therefore usually lower than the risks that would occur had the person contracted the disease. Another reason is that vaccines have helped in the eradication of infections such as chicken pox; this means the benefits outweigh the disadvantages. Therefore, many people choose to be vaccinated.
In conclusion, we find that vaccines use is on the increase since many people are accepting it as the best prevention against diseases. Vaccines such as whooping cough and HPV vaccines have been proven beyond measure to be safe. The adverse events that come with vaccination are lesser dangerous than the complication that would occur if a person contracts the infections. People are therefore encouraged to go for treatments and take their children for routine vaccination.

Work Cited
“Acknowledgment to Reviewers of Vaccines in 2015”. Vaccines, vol 4, no. 1, 2016, p. 1. MDPI AG, doi:10.3390/vaccines4010001.
CDC, “Vaccine Safety | Vaccine Safety | CDC”. Cdc.Gov, 2016, http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/index.html.
Christie, CDC et al. “New Rotavirus Vaccines for Infant Gastroenteritis Arriving Soon”. West Indian Medical Journal, vol 55, no. 1, 2006, Fapunifesp (Scielo), doi:10.1590/s0043-31442006000100001.
Collier, J. “New Arrangements for the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency”. BMJ, vol 330, no. 7497, 2005, pp. 917-917. BMJ, doi:10.1136/bmj.330.7497.917.
Davis, Robert Lowell. “The Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System And Vaccine Safety Research In The Genomics Era”. Vaccine, vol 30, no. 6, 2012, pp. 1162-1164. Elsevier BV, doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2011.12.018.
Gee, Julianne et al. “Monitoring the Safety of Quadrivalent Human Papillomavirus Vaccine: Findings From The Vaccine Safety Datalink”. Vaccine, vol 29, no. 46, 2011, pp. 8279-8284. Elsevier BV, doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2011.08.106.
Marques, Rejane C. et al. “Perinatal Multiple Exposure to Neurotoxic (Lead, Methyl mercury, Ethyl mercury, And Aluminum) Substances and Neurodevelopment at Six and 24 Months of Age”. Environmental Pollution, vol 187, 2014, pp. 130-135. Elsevier BV, doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2014.01.004.
Munk, William and J.F. Marson. “MEDICAL REPORT OF THE SMALL-POX AND VACCINATION HOSPITAL FOR 1870.”. The Lancet, vol 97, no. 2476, 1971, pp. 210-211. Elsevier BV, doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(02)77929-4.
Reissner, H. “Access To Gardasil HPV Vaccine: A Public Health Concern”. Research, vol 2, no. 1, 2015, Synatom Research, LLC, doi:10.13070/ev.en.2.1351.
Ridda, Iman et al. “Attitudes, Knowledge And Perceptions Towards Whooping Cough And Pertussis Vaccine In Hospitalized Adults”. Vaccine, vol 32, no. 9, 2014, pp. 1107-1112. Elsevier BV, doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2013.12.010.
Von Stebut, Esther. “Research In Practice: Different Dendritic Cell Types In Skin With Various Functions – Important Implications For Intradermal Vaccines”. JDDG: Journal Der Deutschen Dermatologischen Gesellschaft, vol 9, no. 7, 2011, pp. 506-509. Wiley-Blackwell, doi:10.1111/j.1610-0387.2011.07696.x.