Measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, or MMR vaccine for short, is administered to all children in Singapore to prevent them from contracting any of these very painful diseases.
According to Inquistir.com, this compulsory vaccine, MMR, has recently been ruled as the cause for autism by an Italian court.
We flesh out the ins and outs of the MMR vaccine and give you a guide on the potential risks of MMR.
Covering the basics
To be able to talk about the MMR vaccine at length, we must first understand what exactly the MMR vaccine is and the problems that have been raised in regards to it.
Essentially, the way a vaccine works is an injection of the weakened form of the virus, which stimulates the body to form memory cells that would result in a faster response if subjected to the same antigen. The MMR vaccine is not different, it being a constituent of weakened form of the measles, mumps and rubella viruses.
The debate whether the MMR vaccine is safe has been going on for years.
Controversy
The controversies surrounding the MMR vaccines have long preceded the autism saga. In fact, many people are wary of the vaccine due to the side-effects that are related to it. The side effects commonly retracted from this vaccination are a mild form of each disease. Children could show light symptoms of measles or mumps.
More rare side effects usually are associated with certain allergies to eggs/chickens. And these side effects are the ones that are really harmful to the body. However, in a country like Singapore, the trained doctors are usually well equipped to deal with these side-effects and a full recovery is usually expected.
Correlation to autism
There has been absolutely zero medical evidence that shows any correlation with the MMR vaccine and the increase in autism.
In fact, this whole controversy was borne out of a fraudulent paper. That has since resulted in the doctor allegedly being stripped of his license to practice for producing a fictional piece of work. This, in addition to breaching many different codes of ethics in his scientific research.
Playing it safe
The MMR vaccine has been proven to be a safe way for our children. It protects them from the harms of measles, mumps and rubella. And, in spite of the side effects that could arise; we shouldn’t fear the administration of this vaccine.
In fact, we should continue to put our faith in the medical board of our country.
You can learn more about the MMR vaccine in the video below.
Also read: Vaccination schedule for children and babies in Singapore