Vaccines are one of the best ways to prevent disease. They help the body recognize diseases so that if you are exposed you will not get the disease, or you will only get a milder form. Widespread vaccination also leads to herd immunity where unvaccinated people are protected because the population is resistant to the disease.

Vaccination Schedule

In the Republic of Armenia, children receive vaccinations according to the National Vaccination Calendar. If vaccinations are given incompletely or untimely, children do not have lasting protection (immunity). Children receive the vaccine by injection or by drinking. There are vaccines that are given only once and vaccines that require re-vaccination.

You can get more detailed information from the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia Vaccination Calendar․

Common Myths Versus Facts

Myth	Fact
The effectiveness of vaccines has never been proven.	Widespread use of vaccines has nearly wiped out diseases like smallpox, measles, and polio since the 1900s.
Vaccines cause the diseases they are designed to prevent.	Vaccines contain dead and weakened viruses. Exposure to these helps the body recognize and produce antibodies to protect against the disease.
I don’t need to vaccinate if everyone else does.	Herd immunity helps reduce the chance of an outbreak when a large percentage of the community is immunized against the disease. If too many people don’t vaccinate, it opens up opportunities for diseases to establish themselves and spread, especially to those who are medically vulnerable and cannot be vaccinated.
Vaccines cause health issues in children.	There is no credible scientific study linking vaccines to autism – the condition that most inspires this myth.
Vaccines aren’t worth the risk.	Diseases prevented by vaccines can be serious – even deadly.

Resources:

References:

“Infographic: 5 Facts about Vaccines.” PeaceHealth, 16 Apr. 2020, www.peacehealth.org/healthy-you/infographic-5-facts-about-vaccines.