A Shot Full of Dead Germs

The fourth emperor of the Qing dynasty in 1661 inoculated his children after he survived smallpox as a child.  He ground smallpox scabs and helped his children breathe them in through their noise, and others rubbed smallpox sores into healthy skin. It was a risky procedure, in earlier civilizations, to infect themselves with diseases in order for their bodies to learn how to recognize foreign substances and acquire a proper immune response to them.

 Figures showing the preparation of a vaccination needle with an infected animal scab

This was a turning point as it prompted newer generations to discover how vaccines helped the body build an immune response. The helper T-cells play a major role in immune responses; without them, there would be no response. Once the vaccine is in your system, it quickly activates helper T-cells. These cells help in other ways as well. For example, CAR T- cell therapy is a treatment that is being studied in the treatment of some types of cancer. In this treatment, a patient's T-cells are altered in the laboratory so they will bind to cancerous cells and kill them. Most importantly, they signal to other cells that your cells have been infected, or that something is off, releasing chemical messengers called cytokines, which enter the T-cells and signal that cell to start dividing. This process leads to the production of more helper T-cells, which stimulate cytotoxic cells that kill infected cells, and B cells that secrete antibodies, which help in preventing invaders from damaging your body. Most importantly, helper T-cells give rise to memory cells, which are left behind to live in the body for a few years to remember that specific pathogen, just in case it enters again. The next time your body is exposed to that same pathogen, it will be able produce antibodies faster, and elicit an efficient immune response. In simpler terms, the vaccine tricks the body into making more memory cells to help the body gain immunity to a disease. From this, it seems as though vaccinations are tremendously helpful in keeping the body safe from diseases lurking around today. So, why do many individuals refuse to get vaccinated when all it does is strengthen your immune system? 

Cytotoxic cell killing a cancerous cell

Well, for one thing, some people think that they are being injected with "bad" things. However this statement is false. Vaccines are shots that contain pathogens- dead or weakened, of course. Opponents of vaccines believe that vaccines cause allergies or disorders like autism. However, there is no definite evidence for these claims. Of the 10,000,000 million kids injected with vaccines, only 125 kids have side effects that are somewhat serious, like encephalitis, or genitalia inflammation. It is safe to conclude that vaccines  have a very high success rate.

Evidence that vaccines do work- After the Chickenpox vaccine was licensed, a steep decline of cases resulted

In a close-knit and fast-paced world today, we encounter more than 60,000 thousand germs everyday, each wanting to find a host to reproduce in. Ever wonder about the vast amount of germs on a doorknob, a water fountain, or any other fomites? All these germs could easily enter your body, and cause massive damage to your health. But, thanks to vaccinations, we can become immune to certain diseases that can cause worse issues in our healths than a shot of dead germs can. As it is such a controversial topic, it is one that needs to be accurately informed about. Although they may sting and make you feel nervous, vaccines are worth it as they make you immune to diseases!

Building immunity