Polio on the verge of extinction, thanks to the vaccine

American Council on Science and Health

Every October 24, people around the world join together to shed light on the importance of eradicating the devastatingly crippling disease of polio. Although polio is on the verge of being eliminated from the world – with the introduction of effective vaccines in the 1950s and 1960s – polio still remains prevalent in two parts of the world: northern Nigeria and the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

India marked a milestone when the World Health Organization removed it from the list of polio-endemic countries in February after no new cases were reported for more than a year. In national campaigns that occur twice a year, 2 million volunteers travel to India’s train stations, bus depots, temples, churches and mosques, armed with vials of polio vaccine. Although the nation must remain polio-free for three years before the WHO will certify that it has eradicated polio, India’s polio eradication program appears promising.  To Read More….. 

My Take - For all those anti-vaccination activists out there I have to ask.  What alternative do you offer?  They claim that vaccinations aren't necessary.  Ok....then why is it that when vaccines become available for certain diseases those diseases decline precipitously?   In fact one of these groups claims that polio vaccinations cause cancer, claiming that the rate of childhood cancer has increased as a result.   This is a claim that has little foundation.  The small increase in childhood cancer rates is largely due to leukemia, which has been shown to be caused by a virus contracted by pregnant mothers.    RK.