Measles cases surged by 50 per cent globally in 2018. The World Health Organisation (WHO) attributes the increase in cases to a lack of access to the vaccine in poorer countries but some experts believe in wealthier areas, misinformation led by the anti-vaccine movement is causing a decrease in vaccine uptake.
Articles written and shared on social media promoting anti-vaccine information have been deemed problematic and most recently, Facebook said it would consider removing such material from its recommendations of things to read, Bloomberg reported.
This anti-vaccine movement has been a “wake-up call” for all GPs, say Health experts. “The reality is stark and clear with decreased vaccine uptake, there are now increasing numbers of young children and adolescents being exposed to measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), amongst other illness.”
Last year there were nearly 1,000 laboratory-confirmed cases of measles in England alone, and it killed 72 children and adults in Europe in 2018. Data from Public Health England (PHE) shows that uptake of most childhood vaccines has been steadily decreasing since 2012-13.
Surveys by the health body suggest parental confidence in vaccines is high, with “very few” refusing to get their children vaccinated. There is “little evidence” that anti-vaccine social media activity has had a major impact on vaccine coverage in England, a spokesperson for PHE said.
However research from the health body shows almost one quarter (22 per cent) of parents think social media is a trusted source of information, and the worry is that some children may miss out on jabs and remain vulnerable to serious or even fatal infections.
Some parents shy away from giving their kids the MMR vaccine over unfounded fears that it may cause autism, yet there has never been any proven link between the two.
“The misconceptions surrounding autism and the MMR vaccine are proven to be categorically false, based on a flawed study,” say Health experts. “It’s important to be clear that there is no science behind anti-vaxxers ideas and myths.”
