The anti-vaccination crowd sure must be feeling proud of themselves these days. Thanks to their dangerous and ill-conveived views, B.C. is now in the middle of the worst measles outbreak ever recorded in the province. Worse is likely yet to come. There have been 320 cases of measles reported, mostly in the eastern Fraser Valley, and the outbreak has spread to the U.S.
People who refuse to immunize their children against measles and other diseases, either due to misguided views that their kids’ little immune systems will protect them or that God’s will should prevail, are playing a dangerous game.
Measles kills. The most recent data from Europe suggests one to two per cent of people who get the highly-infectious disease will perish, Dr. Dino Ramzi of the Washington Academy of Family Physicians said in a recent article. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control says just over 120,000 people die of measles each year around the world.
But even if measles doesn’t kill, it’s a lousy thing to get. Apart from a horrible rash, complications include ear infections, severe diarrhea, dehydration, pneumonia and encephalitis. Up to one in three kids with measles ends up in hospital.
Some parents fear that vaccines will harm their children. While it’s true that a tiny percentage of kids who get shots will have a reaction, and also true that no vaccine provides total protection, those risks are very small compared to the 90 per cent risk of your kid getting measles if they come in contact with someone with the illness.
Don’t mess with measles or other preventable diseases — immunize your children.
Editorials are unsigned opinion pieces that represent the views of The Province editorial board, a group of senior editors.
The editorial pages editor is Gordon Clark, who can be reached at gclark@theprovince.com. Letters to the editor can be sent to provletters@theprovince.com.
