Weekly Trust (Kaduna)
13 December 2002
document
Kaduna — Facts of life by UNICEF
Immunization protects against several dangerous diseases. A child who is not immunized is more likely to become undernourished, disabled, or die.
Immunization protects children against some of the most dangerous diseases of childhood. A child is immunized by vaccines which are injected or given by mouth. The vaccines work by building up the child's defences. If the disease strikes before a child is immunized, immunization is too late.
A child who is not immunized is very likely to get measles and whooping cough. These diseases can kill. But even children who survive these diseases are weakened by them. They may not grow well. And they may die later from malnutrition or other illnesses.
Measles is also an important cause of malnutrition, poor mental growth, and blindness.
An unimmunized child will almost certainly be infected with the polio virus. And for every 200 children who are infected, one will be crippled for life.
Tetanus germs grow in dirty cuts and kill most of the people who become infected - if they are not immunized.
Breastfeeding is a kind of natural immunization against several diseases. Some of the mother's resistance to disease is passed to the child in her breast milk, and especially in the thick yellow milk (called colostrum), which is produced during the first few days after the birth.
Immunization is urgent. All immunizations should be completed in the first year of the child's life.
It is vital to immunize children early in life. Half of all deaths from whooping cough, one third of all cases of polio, and a quarter of all deaths from measles, occur before the age of one year.
It is vital for infants to complete the full course of immunizations otherwise the vaccines may not work. Some vaccines need to be given only once. Others have to be given three times, with a gap of at least four weeks between each dose.
The important thing for parents to know is that a child should be taken for immunization five times in the first year of the child's life:
* at birth, or as soon as possible afterwards, babies should be immunized against tuberculosis
* in countries where polio is still a problem, newborn babies can also be given a dose of polio vaccine. This is in addition to the three doses given at the ages of 6, 10 and 14 weeks
* at the age of 6 weeks, parents should bring their babies for a first immunization against diphtheria, whooping cough, and tetanus. These three vaccines are given together in a single injection called DPT. The first of three doses of polio vaccine should also be given at this time
* at the ages of 10 and 14 weeks, parents should return for their infants to complete the full course of DPT and polio vaccines
* as soon as possible after the age of nine months, parents should bring their babies for immunization against measles.
Measles is one of the most dangerous of all childhood diseases. For the first few months of life, the child has some natural protection against measles. This natural protection is inherited from the child's mother. It may prevent measles vaccination from doing its job. But after about nine months, natural protection comes to an end. The child is now at risk from measles and can and should be immunized. So, it is vital to take a child for measles vaccination as soon as possible after the age of nine months.
If for any reason a child has not been fully immunized in the first year of life, it is vital to have the child immunized as soon as possible.
It is safe to immunize a sick child.
One of the main reasons why parents do not bring their children for immunization is that the child has a fever, a cough, a cold, diarrhoea, or some other mild illness on the day the child is to be immunized. Even if the child with a case of mild illness or malnutrition is brought for immunization, health workers may advise against giving the injections. This is wrong advice. It is now known that it is safe to immunize a child who is suffering from a minor illness or malnutrition.
After an injection the child may cry, develop a fever, a rash, or a small sore. As with any illness, a child should be given plenty of food and liquids. Breastfeeding is especially helpful. If the problem seems serious or lasts more than three days, the child should be taken to a health centre.
Every woman between the ages of 15 and 44 should be fully immunized against tetanus.
In many parts of the world, mothers give birth in unhygienic conditions. This puts both mother and child at risk from tetanus, a major killer of the newborn. If the mother is not immunized against tetanus, then one baby in every 100 will die from the disease.
Tetanus germs grow in dirty cuts. This can happen, for example, if an unclean knife is used to cut the umbilical cord or if anything unclean is put on the stump of the cord. (Anything used to cut the cord should first be cleaned and then boiled or heated in a flame and allowed to cool.)
If the tetanus germs enter the mother's body, and if she is not immunized against tetanus, then her life will also be at risk.
All women of childbearing age should be immunized against tetanus. All women who become pregnant should check to make sure they have been immunized against tetanus. This way, both mothers and their newborn babies will be protected.
If a woman is not already immunized, a first dose of tetanus vaccine should be given as soon as she becomes pregnant. The second dose can be given four weeks after the first. This second dose should be given before the last two weeks of the pregnancy.
A third dose should be given 6 and 12 months after the second dose or during the next pregnancy.
These three tetanus vaccinations protect the mother, and her newborn baby, for five years. All infants should be immunized against tetanus during the first year of life.
If a girl or a woman has been vaccinated five times against tetanus, then she is protected against the disease throughout her years of childbearing. Any child she may then have will also be protected for the first few weeks of life.
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