Photo: Shot@Life
I know vaccinations are an issue of some contention and emotions run high about the issue. I know Michele Bachmann has made the already fraught debate a little murkier with her falsehoods and either misunderstanding or ignorance of the facet of the issue she chose to tackle. Most of all, I know kids hate shots. In addition, I know the science backs up the fact that without immunizations against preventable diseases, kids are vulnerable…and some die, needlessly. Two million kids around the world will die this year due to a lack of access to vaccines. Another one slips away from preventable illness every 20 seconds. The science/medicine will keep getting better, but right now, vaccines are the most accessible way to save these children’s lives.
Pneumonia. Diarrhea. Measles. Polio. They don’t take the same toll on kids in our home communities because of the history of years, even decades of vaccinating the vast majority of children. In developing countries, this is not the case. The medical trend is, thankfully, getting better. Since 2001, measles fatalities have been decreased internationally by 78%, because vaccines are being made more widely available. The world is nearly free of polio, as over 2.5 billion kids around the globe have been vaccinated.
The United Nations Foundation has launched the Shot@Life program, to educate communities in every nation about the lifesaving tool available to them, and to get those medical tools to the people.
It’s not just about surviving, it’s about thriving. Get involved and give more kids what they deserve…give them a shot at life.
Change by Doing 