Vaccines Save Lives
Vaccines keep us healthy and save lives. Sometimes in the United States, proof of vaccination may be a requirement. For example, when you send your children to school. Or for some jobs and immigration applications. Vaccines have been around for hundreds of years. Vaccines protect us from many serious diseases, like measles, polio, flu, COVID-19, and more.
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Vaccines have saved more people than any other medical invention.
How do vaccines work? Vaccines are safe and prevent illness. They prepare your immune system to detect germs like bacteria or viruses.
A vaccine teaches the body how to fight a future infection before the germ can make you sick. Like how a child learns to read and write, the immune system reads and remembers details about the disease from each vaccine.
The timing, frequency, and dose of vaccines varies. For example, some vaccines are best taken when a person is a baby or child. Others when you are an adult, elderly, or pregnant.
Some vaccines you only need once. Others every year such as the flu shot.
Have questions about vaccines? Speak with your healthcare provider. They can best advise you on which vaccines you and your family need.
