I strongly believe that vaccines are one of the greatest human inventions. Over time, vaccines have shaped the course of human history. It has saved humanity from a lot of deadly diseases. Vaccines seem simple and common, yet they have been saving millions, if not billions of lives. In fact, vaccines start protecting people from the moment they are born. Vaccines may not always. Over time, vaccines have been constantly and quietly ensuring a safer, healthier world for us to live in.
Let’s explore how vaccines work. Conventional Vaccines work by introducing a harmless load of the pathogen (e.g. a virus) into the body. This triggers the body’s immune system which is meant to protect us against diseases. So the immune system gets trained and becomes aware of that pathogen so that if it eventually infects the body (an actual threat), the immune system will be up to the task of fighting against that pathogen.
My opinion about vaccines is simple. Vaccines are absolutely crucial. One can never know when or how they or their baby could be exposed to a terrible disease. These vaccines act as a steady protective mechanism against such diseases. I know that there are people who are against vaccination, and they may have their opinion, but vaccines are never meant to harm. It is important to be vaccinated because not only does it protect you, it protects those around you who might be vulnerable. Before the advent and proliferation of vaccines, people, especially infants dies or suffered disabilities from terrible diseases like polio, measles, etc. Vaccines came into the picture and these things are now things of the past. Most of these diseases have either been eradicated completely or on the brink of eradication.
Covid-19 is a typical and recent example of the power of vaccines in combating global pandemics. Covid-19 came like a storm, flooding the hospitals worldwide with a sea of critically ill patients. It was an unprecedented time, and a lot of people either lost their live or their loved ones. However, covid vaccines were manufactured and soon enough, the spread of the disease slowed, eventually coming to a halt.
In a way, vaccines aren’t just for individuals. They keep communities safe whether at the local level or at the global level. The more people in a community are vaccinated, the closer that community gets to achieving disease eradication. Vaccines give hope in the midst of crippling health crisis. Vaccines are evidence of our ability as humans to seek and create solutions when faced with threats to our health on a massive scale.
