A new study has made startling revelations about vaccinations and myths related to it. A group of researchers at the University of Colorado has found that more than 90 percent of doctors face greater pressure from the parents for delaying their children’s vaccinations and in most cases they agree to their request. Health experts said the survey findings are highly concerning as such actions can lead to the rise of preventable, infectious diseases.
Three-quarters of doctors agreed to a delay request at least some of the time despite knowing it was harmful, according to the survey.
As per the recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), American children between birth and six years are administered with vaccinations against nearly 14 illnesses, including flu and hepatitis.
During the survey, the doctors said it becomes very difficult for them to convince parents wishing to delay vaccinations. The doctors said they are forced to go by the parents’ wishes as there is huge possibility of them leaving the recommended schedule and medical procedures for the children mid-way.
“They feel torn. They feel both the desire to have an alliance with the family but also they feel strongly about the medical and scientific reasons for immunizing,” study lead author Allison Kempe, a pediatrics professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and Children’s Hospital Colorado in Aurora.
Nearly 13 percent of parents said they used an alternative vaccination schedule for their young children, according to a recent survey in the US.
Health experts say parents are against vaccinations and seek to delay them because they fear this could lead their children to serious complications, such as autism. Parents are of the belief that the vaccines can do more harm than doing good for their children.
The study showed a common belief existing in the parents that their children can be harmed by too many shots and result into weakening their young ones’ immune system, ending up in a dangerous disease.
For the survey, the researchers surveyed 534 family physicians and pediatricians from June 2012 to November 2012.
93 percent of the doctors were found saying they received requests to spread out vaccines from the parents each month. 21 percent of the doctors said over 10 percent of parents asked for vaccination delays during their practices, while 23 percent talked about a significant increase in the number of requests for delays over the previous year.
The findings of the study were detailed in the journal Pediatric on Monday.
Share this:
