Project 1

There are many things in life that humans have the ability to control. Illness however, is usually not one of them. Disease has been a part of human reality since the beginning of time. Although diseases have faded and developed over the years, it is a worry that bonds everyone together. Humans of today have amazing technology and science is making things possible that most people never would have dreamed of. One of these things that science has created that is recent in terms of human history is vaccinations. Vaccination is the administration of antigenic material to produce immunity to a disease (Wikipedia.com).

Although vaccines do not cure disease, they have a very high rate of success in preventing them. In the thousands of years before the creation and use of vaccines, a disease could wipe out hundreds of thousands of people in a short time, and there was nothing that could be done about it. For example, in the 14th century the bubonic plague became a pandemic and claimed the lives of nearly a third of the world population (williamshakespear.com). In the early 20th century, a polio epidemic maimed over 27,000 people and killed over 6,000 in the U.S alone (Wikipedia.com). However, since these times, these diseases are not seen as threatening. This lack of concern is due to the increasing success of vaccinations.

Unfortunately, this lack of concern is mostly just in the Western world. In third world countries such as Africa, these diseases are very much a part of everyday life. Neglected tropical diseases such as hookworm and trachoma kill and handicap thousands, causing blindness and malnutrition (globalnetwork.org). What many people fail to realize is that these diseases are usually 100% preventable. However, most of these countries cannot afford the research to find cures and vaccinations for prevention. They are overlooked by those of the Western world. Recently, it has been argued that vaccinations are useless and dangerous. The danger lies in this thinking, and not in the vaccinations.
When a vaccine is taken, the immune system of the body produces antibodies that weaken and destroy disease causing bacteria. It builds up a bodies’ resistance to the disease, so if later in life a person comes into contact with the bacteria the body already knows how to fight it (Farlex dictionary). Since almost all children in the West nowadays are vaccinated, diseases are nearly unheard of. However, if some people stop being vaccinated, there are gaps in this system. The more gaps there are, the more people are less immune and more susceptible to harmful, life threatening diseases. The diseases did not cease to exist; they still exist in our modern world, just not where we live. The fact that they are still in existence means that as soon as resistance goes down, people can be infected. Diseases that are seemingly gone can again spread and run rapid, killing thousands. This is why it is important that all children be vaccinated, and that there is increased funding for disease research, prevention, and vaccination creation.

The Vaccines for Children program is a United States federally funded program that provides free vaccinations to children whose parents could otherwise not afford to vaccinate them. It is a part of each state’s Medicaid plan (cdc.gov). Programs like this are important to stop the spread of disease world wide. Increased funding for these programs and research is necessary. A country’s job is to protect its’ people. This is not just in the form of physical protection, but also in the way of preventing illness that could affect everyone. Programs such as this and vaccine research funding is about saving human life. I chose to advocate this program because human life is very important to me.