Once a child is born, parents have to diligently conform to the series of vaccinations to be administered to the kid. However, a study by scientists from the University of Michigan has put forth that more than 1 in 10 parents of young kids seem to opt for alternative vaccination programs which tends to put children at risk.
The CDC and American Academy of Pediatrics have recommended a vaccination schedule for all children. The analysts believe that those who deviate from this program may be at a risk of having their kids under-immunized. The latter is known to be responsible for conditions like measles and whooping cough.
Amanda Dempsey, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H., assistant professor in the department of pediatrics and communicable diseases and a member of the Child Health Evaluation and Research Unit at C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital shared, “Small decreases in vaccine coverage are known to lead to dramatic increases in the risk of vaccine preventable disease outbreaks. Not following the recommended schedule leaves kids at risk for these diseases unnecessarily.”
Nearly, 771 parents of children aged 6 months to 6 years were surveyed in May 2010. Almost 135 of them reported that they did not stick to the recommended schedule and 2% seemingly neglected all vaccines. Around 41% of the parents said that they created the vaccination program themselves or through a friend. However, 8% of them appeared to shift to schedules put forward by Dr. Bob Sears of AskDrSears.com.
Selecting an alternative schedule seemed to imply that the child did not receive appropriate health care. The usually delayed vaccinations included U measles-mumps-rubella and diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis. Also, some parents said that they transited to a new schedule from the one advised, as it looked safer. Moreover, 1 in 4 parents who followed the normal vaccination schedule were of the opinion that delaying the process may be useful.
The authors conclude that there ought to be resources to tackle preconceived beliefs against vaccination. The study namely ‘Alternative vaccination schedule preferences among parents of young children’ is published in the journal, Pediatrics.