Children are often exposed to various kinds of germs and viruses as part of daily activities. As parents we should provide our precious ones with maximum protection against such germs and viruses. As always, first and foremost comes prevention. The best prevention we can recommend besides hygiene is immunisations/vaccines.
The vaccination clinic at Mediclinic Deira, open six days a week, from 10 am to 6 pm, is where parents can bring their little ones without fear to a safe and child-friendly environment, and provide them with the best protection against serious illnesses.
Vaccines teach the human body how to fight viruses and germs by exposing their secrets to its immune system, so if they later attack the body, it finds itself ready to fight them back and to prevent diseases from spreading.
They do this by exposing our bodies to very small and safe amounts of viruses or bacteria that have already been weakened or killed. Our immune systems then learn how to recognise and attack infections if, and when, we're exposed to them later in life. As a result, we avoid many illnesses or we may only experience milder infections. This is the natural way of dealing with infectious diseases.
There are several kinds of vaccine mechanisms used to accomplish this:
- Live virus vaccines use the weakened (attenuated) form of the virus. The measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine and the varicella (chickenpox) vaccine are good examples.
- Killed (inactivated) vaccines are made from a protein or other small pieces taken from a virus or bacteria. The whooping cough (pertussis) vaccine is an example.
- Toxoid vaccines contain a toxin or chemical made by a bacteria or virus. They make us immune to the harmful effects of infection, instead of the infection itself. Examples are the diphtheria and tetanus vaccines.
- Biosynthetic vaccines contain manmade substances that are very similar to pieces of the virus or bacteria. The Hepatitis B vaccine is an example.
It is extremely important to follow the immunisation schedule as recommended by your doctor. Each time your child gets their vaccines, their immunity system gets stregthened against the targeted diseases. Your child will be protected up to 85%-99% from many diseases, including life threatening ones.
