The answers were written by @kkjetelina.bsky.social, PhD, MPH, @meganranney.bsky.social, MD, MPH, @jasonlschwartz.bsky.social, PhD, and @enirenberg.bsky.social.

We hope they help you keep your families healthy in an increasingly confusing world.

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You can find our full answers to the top 12 childhood vaccination questions at m.yale.edu/cyy8. We also put all the information together in a PDF that you can download and distribute.

8/9 @kkjetelina.bsky.social @meganranney.bsky.social @jasonlschwartz.bsky.social @enirenberg.bsky.social

Many people have questions about routine vaccinations: their need, their safety, and rumors surrounding them. That’s why we at @yalesph.bsky.social and Your Local Epidemiologist (@kkjetelina.bsky.social) are working together to answer your questions with evidence-based information and nuance.

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Here are some references if you'd like to read further:

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"Protecting against flooding" is most important for people who can’t save themselves—babies, the elderly, the sick.

When adults and kids are vaccinated against common diseases, it helps protect people whose immune systems aren’t fully functioning or who haven’t been able to be vaccinated.

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Think of population immunity like a water dam built to prevent flooding.

Once the dam is built, we won’t have flooding anymore.

But if the next generation says,“Hey, there’s no flooding anymore—do we really need this dam?” and decides to get rid of it, the flooding will return.

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Although many diseases, like measles, are no longer widespread in most U.S. communities, children still need vaccines to maintain their immunity.

These diseases are still alive and well in other parts of the world 🌎 In the U.S., we have rubella cases, but only from international travelers.

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