When my boys were 1 and nearly 4-years-old the chicken pox vaccine came out. Their pediatrician explained the benefits of the vaccine versus the complications of chicken pox. My husband had a base case of chicken pox and shortly after our second son was born had shingles. I also had a very serious case of chicken pox as a child. I did not have to be told twice that the vaccine was available. The boys were given the vaccine. My friends chose not to vaccinate their children and suffered for weeks with chicken pox.
Whenever a new vaccine or a recommendation change for a vaccine is made public I have a conversation about it to my children's physicians. It is important to me to do everything that I can for their health and that includes having the vaccinations up to date. It is one of the most important task I can do for my children.
My oldest son will be heading off to college very soon, just a few weeks. I have been planning this for some time and that includes Meningococcal vaccine, Pertussis (Whooping Cough) as well as Tetanus and Diphtheria booster. My younger son is also being prepared for adulthood with this series of immunizations.
I have boys, but there is a vaccine that is very necessary for young girls on up to their early 20's that is a must have for their future health. The HPV vaccine or as it is also known as the human papillomavirus. HPV can lead to cervical cancer and infertility. A few of my friends with daughters were unsure about this vaccine as it sounds like it is a permission vaccine for girls to have sex. I pointed out research that states that even if a girl was a virgin upon her wedding day and her husband was not, she could be infected with HPV by her husband and develop cervical cancer. It is not a permission slip but a life saving vaccine.
It is no different than if you vaccinate your child from tetanus. You do not want your child to walk on rusty nails, but you will do all you can to protect your child if he does by being immunized from the disease. You want to make sure your child is protected into adulthood from all the diseases that have taken lives of others who were unprotected from these diseases. Vaccinations is the best choice you can make for your infant, toddler, school age, pre-teen and teenager.
Money should not be an issue when it comes to making sure that your child is immunized. There are many agencies that will offer free immunizations for children. Here is some great information for you to check out that will give you what you need to make sure your children are safe inside and out.
For families with health insurance, all or most of the cost of vaccines is usually covered. For families without insurance, children age 18 and younger may be eligible to get the vaccines for free through the Vaccines for Children program (VFC). Why Do Pre-teens and Adolescents Need Immunizations?
Taking care of the written word,
dannielyn
Copyright Dannett Frey, Taking Care of the Written Word, 2010, all rights reserved
I am writing this post as part of a CDC blogger outreach program. I may receive a small thank you gift from the CDC for my participation in raising awareness about pre-teen immunizations.
