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Vaccination’s crucial role in public health. Know how quickly diseases can resurface if immunisation efforts stop. Expert insights reveal the potential risks and consequences.
New Delhi:
Vaccines are one of the greatest, most affordable weapons in contemporary medicine, yet their reach is underappreciated. We now have vaccines that prevent over 30 potentially fatal diseases and enable individuals of all ages to live healthier, longer lives. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), immunisation prevents between 3.5 and 5 million deaths each year from illnesses like measles, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), and influenza. But what if this life-saving shield were suddenly removed? The consequences would be swift, severe, and far-reaching.
What could happen if we stopped vaccinating?
Dr Bhumesh Tyagi, Associate Professor, General Medicine, Sharda Crae Healthcity, Noida, said that diseases we have controlled or nearly eliminated could resurface rapidly, especially in today’s interconnected world. If we stopped vaccinating, the world could face:
- Quick revival of lethal diseases: Diseases such as measles, polio, and pertussis would come back rather quickly following the halt of vaccination programmes. (CDC, 2024).
- Increase in child deaths: Measles alone was responsible for more than 140,000 deaths in 2019, mostly among unvaccinated children under the age of five.
- Overloaded healthcare systems: Clinics and hospitals may become clogged with outbreaks of contagious diseases that can be prevented.
- Disruption of herd immunity: Newborns, the elderly, and those who are immunocompromised would be disproportionately at risk.
- International spread of outbreaks: A single unvaccinated tourist can make a local outbreak into an international public health crisis.
- Economic downturns: Health expenditures, lost productivity, and emergency response would put national economies under immense stress.
Why preventing relapses matters
The germs that produce vaccine-preventable illnesses don’t vanish; they persist, anticipating immunity deficits. Vaccines operate not only by shielding people but also by producing a community defence through herd immunity. When the defence becomes weak, even “eliminated” diseases can make a comeback.
For instance, measles, which was eradicated in many countries, has resurfaced in areas where vaccination coverage has decreased. Whooping cough and diphtheria have come back in populations where immunisation programmes have plateaued. Preventing relapses is not just about maintaining the status quo; it is about protecting future generations, preserving healthcare resources, and continuing the progress we have made in global health over the past century.
Vaccination for adults
Vaccination isn’t limited to children; adults must remain current on their vaccinations as well. Although childhood vaccinations give one a solid foundation of immunity, the protection of some vaccines may eventually decline, and adults are also susceptible to various diseases that children are not. Recommended vaccines for adults include seasonal influenza (flu) shots annually; tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (Tdap) booster doses; the shingles vaccine; the pneumococcal vaccine; and measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccines if they weren’t vaccinated before or are not immune.
Some adults might also require vaccines against hepatitis A and B, HPV, meningococcal infection, or varicella (chickenpox), depending on their risk factors, lifestyle, or travels. Seeking advice from a healthcare professional is important in deciding on the right vaccination schedule for every individual adult to keep them safe from preventable diseases for life.
Vaccination is a collective responsibility
Vaccination is not just a personal health decision; it’s everyone’s responsibility. It guards against the most vulnerable, it shields communities, and it saves a million lives a year. Suspension of vaccination would not be a temporary setback but a step backward in progress. The message is simple: if infectious diseases are present, the requirement for vaccines is present. We cannot afford to cease vaccinating now, nor ever.
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