I'm pro-vaccine.

It's 2018 and I can't believe I have to say I'm pro-vaccine. I believe in vaccinations, I believe in science; vaccinations keep us alive. Vaccines have eliminated deadly diseases such as polio, smallpox, measles and rubella.

At least they did until Jenny McCarthy and a former doctor by the name of Andrew Wakefield who had his licensed revoked for published a false paper claiming that vaccines cause autism. They don't and they never have. Because of this sheer ignorance and frankly, stupidity, diseases such as measles are making a comeback. For example, on March 14, 2018, a case of measles was reported in southeast Michigan, more than likely due to a parent who prefers to take the advice of a clueless D-list celebrity and a former doctor whose study was proven false.

The false notion that vaccines cause autism and the increasing popularity of homeopathic medicine and essential oils has been a threat to public health.

All states except for California, Mississippi and West Virginia have religious exemptions and personal belief exemptions that can allow parents to sign a waiver and send their unvaccinated child to school. Anti-vaxxers are selfish, careless and delusional people who don't care about the health and well-being of society as a whole or even their own child.

Their carelessness and ignorance is causing grief and heartache for families whose children with compromised immune systems who catch diseases and illnesses from an unvaccinated child - or an anti-vaxxer's child becomes severely ill or dies because they contracted a disease that was 100% preventable by a vaccination.

You see, when everyone is vaccinated, there's this cool thing called herd immunity where if enough people are vaccinated against a disease, the disease can't travel as quickly from person to person. This also means that people who can't get vaccinated for health reasons won't get sick because of the entire concept of herd immunity.

A parent choosing to not vaccinate their child because they believe their essential oils or whatever bullshit snake oil remedy they read in a poorly composed infographic is absolutely, unequivocally selfish and shortsighted. I personally believe that parents who don't vaccinate their kids should be charged with medical neglect, because it is medical neglect to not vaccinate your child to protect them against deadly diseases that were once entirely wiped out by vaccines many years ago.

Vaccines are essential to preserving public health and keeping us from dying from horrible and painful diseases that likely many of our ancestors died from years ago. Anti-vaxxers also don't realize the privilege they have in a developed country that has the resources to protect their children and themselves from horrific diseases. In third world countries, people die from diseases such as malaria or measles because they don't have the resources to obtain vaccines against these diseases.

I am fed up with the sheer ignorance and stupidity permeating society and people who believe that vaccines have mercury (they don't, they contain thimerosal, which is a compound that contains mercury and it's harmless). Thimerosal prevents the growth of deadly microbes. All of this naturopathic/anti-vaccine bullshit needs to die before more children and adults die from other people's stupidity.

I make sure to I am up to date on my vaccines and I am sure to get my flu shot every year because I care about my health and the health of the general public, especially as an individual who works with children.

So please, do us all a favor and get vaccinated. If you have kids, vaccinate them too. Encourage your friends and family to get vaccinated. We don't want to die from measles or smallpox because somewhere, some mom read some shitty mommy blog full of bullshit about how eating raw kale prevents cancer and vaccines cause autism. (Again, VACCINES DON'T CAUSE AUTISM AND THEY NEVER HAVE.)

Remember, vaccines cause adults.