Protect Your Family from Measles
Children’s Preventive Care Part 2
Measles is a highly contagious childhood disease that can lead to serious, and even fatal, complications. While measles is vaccine-preventable, the World Health Organization reports that global cases rose 79% in 2023 and outbreaks could spread to half of the world’s countries by the end of 2024.
In the U.S., during the first two months of 2024, California and at least 14 other states reported multiple and uncontained measles outbreaks. Young children, pregnant people and the immunocompromised are among the most vulnerable.
Health experts also say measles vaccination rates in our country are at the lowest levels in 10 years, mainly because children fell behind on receiving regular check-ups and vaccinations during the pandemic.
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) requires that children attending transitional kindergarten through 12th grade be vaccinated against nine diseases before starting school. These include diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, polio, hepatitis B, measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox.
Schools, pre-kindergarten facilities and licensed childcare centers are required to enforce immunization requirements, maintain current records and submit status reports to the CDPH. Before the first day of school, parents must submit their child's complete immunization records.
Even before the COVID-19 public health emergency, a dangerous wave of anti-vaccine activism spread across the U.S. During this time, a growing number of parents (including some well-known celebrities) used traditional and social media to influence public opinion by claims that vaccines cause autism and other serious health conditions in children.
As a result, many parents refused additional vaccines, such as the ones for COVID-19, and even rejected boosters of the same shots their children received in the past. Alarmingly, the rampant spread of misinformation that vaccines are harmful to children has caused measles, polio and other preventable diseases to flare up in different parts of the world.
The fact is that vaccines have proven safe and effective for millions of people of all ages, including children, for over 50 years. Skipping or delaying shots leaves your child at risk of catching serious diseases at a younger age, when these diseases are most dangerous.
Measles is one of the deadliest and most contagious infectious diseases in the world. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nine out of 10 people exposed to a person with measles will become infected if they aren’t protected by vaccines.
The measles virus can stay in the air and infect others for up to two hours after a contagious person has left the room. Measles also can remain undetected in a person up to 21 days before symptoms begin. Infected people can spread measles for up to four days before they develop its characteristic rash, and up to four days after.
The initial symptoms of measles are similar to those of many other common viral illnesses in the U.S., such as fever, cough, runny nose and red eyes. Several days after symptoms begin, tiny white spots develop inside the mouth and then a facial rash spreads to the rest of the body. Measles can also lead to serious complications such as swelling of the brain, deafness, intellectual disability and even death.
The best long-lasting protection against measles is the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine. After getting one dose of the MMR vaccine, about 95 of every 100 people are protected from the disease. And, this number increases to 97-99 of every 100 people after getting the second dose.
Parents should immunize their children according to the pediatrician’s recommended schedule. A child needs the first dose at 12 through 15 months of age and the second dose at 4 through 6 years of age. Some children at higher risk may need three doses if there is a disease outbreak. Also, infants ages 6 through 11 months old can get a measles vaccine during an outbreak or before international travel.
Remember, children who are vaccinated develop lasting immunity and protect others. The most important thing you can do to protect your family is to make sure everyone in your household is up-to-date with the measles vaccine. When most people in our community have immunity to measles, it is less likely to spread. For more information, please click here.
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