Good ideas and conversation. No ads, no tracking. Login or Take a Tour!
kyleisbadatthis · 3861 days ago · link · · parent · post: New poll shows shocking lack of belief in basic scientific facts among Americans
The efficacy of childhood vaccinations is in absolutely no doubt, and no sane medical professional would tell you otherwise. Immunity works, and population level immunity is a real, meaningful concept. That a vaccination is not a 100% guarantee that a particular person will never get a disease is not a strike against what we mean when we say "vaccines are effective." There aren't very many things in medicine that are ever 100%, and there is no reason to expect that inciting a natural immune response will always lead to complete immunity, particularly when you are dealing with an evolving target as is the case in all vaccinations. The fluid nature of safety and usage of vaccines is the only possible area of meaningful discussion.