"You'd expect kids to cry about getting poked with a vaccine, but sometimes no one resists more than parents. Headlines that exaggerate, or outright fabricate, the risks — 'Vaccines cause mental retardation! autism!' — don't help. A new report found that in eight states, more than one in 20 public-school kindergarteners aren't getting all the required shots. I had to consider the facts when it was time to immunize my own kids: Serious reactions to vaccines, like neurological damage, can happen, but they are incredibly rare. For each dose of vaccine a child gets, the risk is about 1 in 100,000. But the likelihood of a child's landing in the hospital with a vaccine-preventable illness is far greater: about 1 in 600. If you're worried, ask your pediatrician to identify whether your child may be more likely to have a bad reaction because of your family health history. The vaccines required are safe, and critical for your child's health."
Jim Sears, M.D., is a board-certified pediatrician and a cohost of the syndicated health talk show The Doctors. Check local listings for showtimes.