Children’s Health: Make immunization a priority this summer for young children

Immunizations are one of the most effective strategies in protecting the most vulnerable. This includes newborns, toddlers and young children — especially those who spend time in day care settings and who will be heading to school this fall.

It’s imperative that immunizations are a priority for parents, as they provide long-term protection across a number of damaging, and sometimes deadly, diseases.

Young babies in particular are at some of the highest risks of serious disease complications. For example, in adults, something like whooping cough may mean a lingering cough for several weeks, but it can be possibly fatal for babies less than a year old.

Globally, more than 2 million infants under the age of 6 months die each year from infections, and it is widely believed that vaccines are a key measure in reducing infant morbidity and mortality. Delaying vaccines could leave your child vulnerable to disease when they are most likely to have serious complications.

If parents have concerns about a particular vaccine, it is most helpful that they talk to their child’s pediatrician and weigh the risks and benefits of vaccination.

“Vaccines help protect children when they are most at risk. Delaying or skipping them increases the risk of serious illness when protection is most critical,” said Saira Syed, DO, a pediatrician at Ascension Saint Alexius.

Below are some of the vaccines recommended for children and what they cover:

● An influenza vaccine is a widely used form of inoculation and is recommended annually for everyone 6 months or older.

● Diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTaP) is a combo vaccine that protects against three very serious diseases. Diphtheria swells up the throat, tetanus tightens the muscles, and pertussis — or whooping cough — makes it difficult for kids to breathe.

● MMR is a combo vaccine that protects against measles, mumps and rubella. Measles and rubella cause rashes and can cause brain swelling. Mumps causes painful, swollen salivary glands.

● Getting vaccinated for rotavirus can protect against some of the most common causes of diarrhea, vomiting and dehydration in babies

● The chickenpox vaccine protects against the varicella-zoster virus, an incredibly contagious disease which causes itchy skin, blistering rash, fever and fatigue predominantly in children.

● Hepatitis A and B vaccines guard against their respective viruses, which create extreme inflammation in the liver.

● The pneumococcal vaccine protects against Streptococcus pneumoniae, which causes meningitis, pneumonia and other ear infections.

● The polio vaccine is the key defense against the disease, which, at one point, paralyzed more than 25,000 people each year.

● The meningococcal conjugate vaccine guards against four different strains of bacteria that cause potentially deadly infections in the brain and bloodstream.

● The human papillomavirus vaccine (HPV) protects against a group of viruses that cause cervical cancer.

In addition to vaccines for children, immunization of pregnant mothers can play a pivotal role in a newborn's health. Vaccination allows pregnant women to provide immunity against diseases to their baby, and maternal immunization provides critical protection to the mother during a time when they are at a higher risk of complications from diseases, including influenza, COVID-19 and others.

• Children's health is a continuing series. This column was provided by Ascension Illinois.