Vaccines Specialist

What are vaccines?

Also known as immunizations, vaccines help strengthen your child’s immune system in an effort to prevent serious illness. By exposing their immune system to a very small, very safe level of weak or dead viral or bacterial material, vaccines teach your child’s body how to successfully defend itself when those germs invade.   

Once your child is vaccinated against a specific disease, their immune system learns how to recognize and attack the infection if they’re exposed to it later in life. They may not become ill at all, or they may develop a milder infection; either way, their risk of developing a serious, life-threatening infection is low.  

Which vaccines are given in early childhood? 

Healthy children who can receive immunizations should be vaccinated against several serious, preventable illnesses by the age of two. These include:

• Hepatitis A and B
  
• Diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis 
  
• Measles, mumps, and rubella
  
• Hib, polio, and rotavirus
  
• Pneumococcal disease
  
• Influenza and chickenpox
  

Keeping your child current on their recommended vaccines is a highly effective way to protect them from these debilitating and potentially fatal contagious diseases. 

Do newborns receive vaccines? 

Newborns receive their first vaccination (first dose against hepatitis B) in the hospital within 24 hours of birth, but their next vaccination (second dose against hepatitis B) doesn’t occur until they’re one or two months old. 

Although babies have some natural protection against disease-causing germs following birth, this short-lived immunity goes away within a few weeks. 

That’s why it’s important to make sure all the members of your family are up-to-date with their own vaccinations, and that anyone who handles or cares for your newborn practices good hygiene habits, including frequent hand washing.  

What are the benefits of vaccinating my child? 

Making sure your child stays on track with recommended vaccines is one of the best things you can do to protect their long-term health and well-being. 

But did you know that vaccines can also save your child’s life? Many of the diseases prevented by today’s vaccines — including polio, whooping cough, and measles — injured, disabled, or killed countless children before the advent of routine vaccination. 

Making sure your child is up-to-date with their immunizations also helps protects those who may not be able to receive vaccinations, including newborns and people with compromised immune systems. 

To learn more about vaccines or schedule your child’s next immunization appointment, call Kids Kare & Woodbine Pediatrics or book online today.