Written By: Shaloo Tiwari | Updated : April 27, 2018 2:56 PM IST
It is world immunisation week. This year the World Health Organisation(WHO) has urged all the member countries 'to ensure covering 90% of the population' and even laid down ways of achieving the given target. In India, however, vaccination in the past few years has improved the statistics of the population suffering from vaccine-preventable diseases like Measles, Japanese Encephalitis, Rubella, Pneumonia and Polio. Which is a really good sign and people are becoming more and aware of vaccinations and its benefits in preventing various diseases. But the rural areas still have a long way to go as according to a recent study by National Family Health Survey (NFHS) about 45% urban children are still not completely vaccinated in Maharashtra. The understanding is very important that the idea of vaccination is about boosting a child's immune system against the attacks by foreign antibodies that cause diseases that are even fatal.
However, what would you do if you came to know that vaccines used to protect people from various diseases could lead to other diseases? There was a huge uproar about toxic mercury being one of the major content in various vaccines known as the thiomersal controversy. Thiomersal was known to be used in the vaccination as preservatives. Aan organomercury compound that has been preservative in vaccines since the 1930s.
We asked Dr Ankit Parasd, Consultant, Dept of Pediatrics, Fortis Hospital, Noida about the whole thiomersal controversy. He said, ' The thiomersal controversy describes claims that vaccines containing the mercury-based preservative thiomersal contribute to the development of autism and other brain development disorders. Thimerosal is no longer used & most Vaccine companies are manufacturing thiomersal-free Vaccines to yield better results.'
He also said that 'Mercury i.e. Thiomersal (mercury-based derivative )is no longer used in children's vaccines in the any of the countries, except some types of flu shots (older strains). Some multidose vial still has thiomersal but gradually, that is also cleaning out.'
It is very important that you as person stay more aware about vaccinations as the statistics about awareness isn't that great in our country. According to the National Family Health Survey IV of 2015-16, 6% of children between 12-24 months of age have not received any childhood vaccines mentioned under the National Immunization Program.
