Are Vaccines Beneficial?
Have you ever been so sick you haven’t been able to get out of bed? Have you wished for a cure or a way to prevent said diseases from happening? Well, we have an answer.
Vaccines.
In Gid M-K’s article “8 Common Arguments Against Vaccines: And why they don’t make any sense at all,” we research deep into different claims of the potential drawbacks of medical vaccines. Gid M-K, a pro-vaccine, self-claimed health nerd refutes each one of these 8 arguments complete with statistics as well as sources.
As far as the facts go, Vaccines are definitely something that is taking place not only in the US, but throughout the world from first world countries to third world countries alike. Some of the potential issues that are refuted in Gid M-K’s article include: 1. Vaccines cause autism, 2. There hasn’t been much research, 3. Vaccines are enormously profitable, 4. Vaccines cost loads 5. The CDC (Center for Disease Control) is lying, 6. The United States is special, 7. Vaccine manufacturers can’t be sued for making kids sick, and 8. Vaccine injury is common/people are getting sicker. We also will be looking further into “What Would Happen in a World Without Vaccines?” an interview of Poppie Mphuthing, and how the claims made by Mphuthing support those made by Gid M-K.
In addressing the first argument (that vaccines cause autism), Gid K-M claims that this claim is irrelevant as it has been refuted “time and time again.” He quotes a study on sciencedirect.com by Luke E. Taylor, Amy L. Swerdfeger, and Guy D. Eslick, in which a main highlight of the research is finding that “there was no relationship between vaccination and autism (OR: 0.99; 95% CI: 0.92 to 1.06).” Gid M-K goes on to state that while this may have been a valid concern in the early 90’s, we now have 30 years of evidence showing that autism is not linked to vaccines. It seems as though Gid K-M has done valid research on his claims in this section, and well proves that vaccines are not–at least in relation to this argument–dangerous to health.
The second argument stated is that there hasn’t been much research on vaccines. Gid M-K quickly refutes this as well, citing the same study done on sciencedirect.com. Gid M-K is trying to use this as a valid claim that many studies have been done, while in fact he only cites one of those many studies. So, we are stuck to take his word, or to research for ourselves whether or not many studies have been done on the topic. Luckily, we also have Mphuthing backing up claims in his article about vaccine-research and referencing various researches that have been done.
The third argument given is that vaccines are enormously profitable. This is rebutted in a near–mocking fashion by comparing it to the profitability of the flour market. Gid M-K’s main goal is in proving that just because it is profitable does not make it evil. He further cites a study done on stadista.com that shows the top twenty pharmaceutical products by sales in 2015, proving that vaccines are not even on the list of top 20 money-making products in the medicine industry. This is an impressive point in proving that vaccines are not just for the profit. It would definitely add extra assurance if he were to cite more than one study on this topic.
The fourth argument is based on the bounds that the CDC (the Center for Disease Control and Prevention) is lying. This argument is focusing on the fact that even though the CDC supports vaccines, they could be lying. Of all the arguments made in the essay, this may be the most well-refuted. Gid M-K proves this to be untrue by reminding us that even if the CDC is lying, there are numerous other countries that support the use of vaccines. He names France, Australia, the U.K., China, and japan as countries that support the use of vaccines and have done their own studies on the effectiveness, and the safety of vaccines.
The fifth argument is that the US is special–that we give a uniquely high number of vaccines compared to the rest of the world. This point is proven wrong by the giving of the website app.who.int which includes all the data by region, country, and vaccine. You can personally search this website to find that vaccine data is relatively evenly distributed country-to-country. In fact, it is stated in the article that the US has much more relaxed laws as compared to many other countries around the world. France is given as a specific example of a country with strict laws–parents can be imprisoned for failing to vaccinate their children.
The second-to-last argument stated in the article is that vaccine manufacturers cannot be sued for making kids sick. Gid M-K uses the 1986 National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act as a source in refuting this argument. He makes it clear that what this act actually does is makes it easier for children who are injured by vaccines to receive compensation. He also speaks of the fact that there are many countries around the world in which anyone can sue anyone, and yet the courts are not filling up with people trying to receive compensation, because it is unnecessary.
The last argument given is that vaccine injury is common, and people are getting sicker. This is quickly torn down by Gid M-K who cites an article in the Telegraph written by John Bingham which states that life expectancy is surely shooting upwards, and by 2057, the average life expectancy for woman will be 100 years old. He also points out that vaccines have been heavily studies, and we know the risks (roughly 1 serious problem for every million vaccinations is stated). He also states that this is the same risk-factor that has been replicated in many countries throughout the world.
The conclusion of Gid M-K’s whole article is as simple as this: he states, “Vaccines Rock.” And based on the pointes he gave and the way he responded to those eight arguments against vaccines, they definitely do seem pretty awesome. That being said, I want to look closer at the specific rebuttal to the argument that vaccine injury is common, and that people are getting sicker. First off, Gid M-K gives great sources to prove that life expectancy is increasing, and part of that is vaccines. While his response to this argument is strong in itself, it is not left to stand alone. In an article based on an interview of Poppie Mphuthing and published by World Economic Forum titled What Would Happen in a World Without Vaccines, there are many statements backing up Gid M-K’s argument.
Speaking of specific diseases, Mphuthing states: “We’re nearly to the point where there’s not a single person paralyzed from the polio virus anywhere in the world. That would come back, and we would have needless, countless numbers of people paralyzed by a virus that we can prevent today. There would also be a resurgence of the epidemic diseases that not only kill or disable people, but strike fear in the hearts of people.” Not only has life-expectancy improved, but so has quality of life. No longer need people be scared of many of the diseases that used to plague the human race.
Also stated in the interview is that “global vaccinations work to protect women and children and communities every day from about 2.5 million preventable deaths a year right now.” That definitely strengthens the arguments made by Gid M-K. The articles cited have proved their points through rhetoric, numbers, studies, and graphs.
Vaccines ARE awesome.