To Vax or Not to Vax
By Tom Herrin
As the world has been struck by a pandemic that has changed the way everyone lives, many people have hung their hopes on the development of successful treatments and/or vaccines. While the world has been waiting, many have spent time pondering whether or not they would consider taking a vaccine once they become available. There is good reason for concern as the thought of taking in some foreign substance can be a little scary. There have been times in the past in which vaccines were believed to contribute to some reactions that may have been life-threatening. On the other hand, some vaccines have had a tremendous impact on health.
Some Vaccines Have Proven Records
The first recognizable use of a vaccine dates back to more than 200 years ago. It was observed that the deadly disease of smallpox did not affect certain people while it ravaged communities. This disease may have been the real weapon that was used by Europeans against the Native Americans once they arrived in this new land. The one group of people who seemed to have some kind of immunity to the disease was milk maids. Once they determined that these milk maids had been exposed to cowpox, a primitive vaccine was developed. It worked, and the rest is history. As a result, what was a serious disease has now been virtually eradicated. No matter how one may feel about vaccines, the one for smallpox has changed history.
There Can Be Side-Eeffects
Because some people have sensitivity to some of the things used in making the vaccines, they can lead to problems. It is important to be informed about the source of the vaccine. In the past, more live-organism vaccines were made. This posed a risk for some people as they would end up with a light case of the disease. This was not a problem for most, but some had serious issues as a result. Most vaccines today are entirely different in the way they are designed. Some of the newer ones are made with codes that are designed to identify and attack the disease. It is unfortunate that some people have mistaken this term of code as something that is implanted into the body to track them.
It Is a Personal Decision
I have taken vaccines with mixed outcomes. For the most part, I have had no issues. I even took the famous swine flu vaccine in the '70s with no bad effects. It requires careful thought to take one or reject them. I will have to say that a few vaccines, such as tetanus, have a proven track record as making a solid contribution. I know enough about disease to know that there is no way I would want to risk a tetanus infection as the overall mortality rate from it is around 30 percent. That is too high for me. I may choose to play the odds on the COVID vaccine as well.
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