Vaccinate your children to protect them from Measles

London: According to the U.S.-based Measles Initiative about 164,000 died from measles in 2008 down from 733,000 in 2000. Global deaths from measles fell by 78 percent between 2000 and 2008 thanks largely to mass childhood vaccination campaigns.

Parents’ refusal to have their children vaccinated because of fears of links to autism caused a rise in measles cases in the United States and parts of Europe in recent years. Many studies have debunked the notion vaccines can cause autism.

“Three out of four children who died from measles in 2008 were in India,” UNICEF’s executive director Ann Veneman said in a statement. She added India’s plan to scale up its measles vaccination campaign was “encouraging.”

The Measles Initiative warned it faced a funding gap of $59 million for 2010 which could allow a resurgence in measles deaths. “The combined effect of decreased political and financial commitment could result in an estimated 1.7 million measles-related deaths between 2010-13,” it said.

Thomas Frieden, director of U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that while global progress had been impressive, more than 400 children, mainly in poor nations, were dying every day from “completely preventable infection.”

Category: Health