Vaccines have some risks and cause mild or even moderate side effects or rarely, even more severe reactions.
Still, it is important to understand that vaccines are safe and necessary to keep your kids protected against vaccine-preventable diseases.
Vaccine Safety
Vaccines go through a long process of development and testing to make sure they are safe before they are approved.
“Vaccine development is a long, complex process, often lasting 10-15 years and involving a combination of public and private involvement.”
The History of Vaccines on Vaccine Development, Testing, and Regulation
But it doesn’t stop then.
We continue to see testing and monitoring for vaccine safety:
- by monitoring the potency of vaccines after they are manufactured
- by monitoring the temperatures of the vaccines while they are being shipped and stored
- continuing to do quality testing, even after the vaccine is released
- using phase 4 trials and with our post-licensure vaccine safety systems, including VAERS, the Vaccine Safety Datalink, and the Clinical Immunization Safety Assessment (CISA) Project
All of this testing and monitoring has led to some vaccine recalls and the withdrawal of the original rotavirus vaccine because of its association with intussusception.
What to Know About Vaccine Safety
Vaccines are well tested and monitored for safety, both before they are approved and after.
More on Vaccine Safety
- The Benefits and Risks of Delaying Vaccines
- Are Vaccines Causing Long-Term Health Problems?
- Are There Any Long-Term Studies On Vaccine Safety?
- Why Are You Still Worried About the MMR Vaccine?
- Why Aren’t Vaccines Regulated like Drugs?
- Are Vaccines Evaluated for Mutagenicity, Carcinogenicity or Impairment of Fertility?
- More Questions to Help You Become a Vaccine Skeptic
- Answers To Frequently Asked Questions About Immunizations
- What Are the Pro and Con Arguments for Vaccines?
- Are Vaccines Safe?
- CDC – Vaccine Safety
- Institute of Medicine’s Vaccine Safety Reports
- WHO – Global Vaccine Safety Topics
- Study – Safety of vaccines used for routine immunization of U.S. children: a systematic review
- Study – Post licensure surveillance of influenza vaccines in the Vaccine Safety Datalink in the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 seasons
- Are the recommended childhood vaccine schedules evidence-based?
- Vaccines. Are they safe?
- The Facts Behind Vaccine Safety
- Safety of Flu and Pertussis Vaccines in Pregnancy Assessed
- Vaccine Safety and Your Child: Separating Fact From Fiction
- Vaccine Safety Systematic Review
- Vaccine Safety
- Vaccines: A Safe Choice
- Debunking myths about vaccine testing and safety
- Vaccine Benefits vs. Risks
- Vaccine Development, Testing, and Regulation
- Debunking myths about vaccine testing and safety
- Vaccines aren’t tested – myth vs. science
- Debunking myths about vaccine testing and safety
- Study – Vaccine development: From concept to early clinical testing
Last Updated on April 6, 2024