What Is a Top Threat to Global Healthy? Anti-Vaxxers

As you scroll through your Facebook newsfeed or Twitter feed, it is most likely that you will a few posts claiming that vaccinating your kids is a bad thing and that the practice of vaccines in general is antiquated. You may have seen the photo of the baby doll with a bunch of needles sticking in it to show how many vaccines children get. Perhaps you've seen someone claim that they got the flu from the flu shot. Now, experts are saying that these anti-vaxxers are a threat to global health.

This year's World Health Organization list of the top ten threats to global health has been released. This list consists of air pollution/climate change, global influenza pandemic, and vaccine hesitancy.

According to WHO, "...[T]he reluctance or refusal to vaccinate despite the availability of vaccines – threatens to reverse progress made in tackling vaccine-preventable diseases." They continue on to say, "[Vaccines] currently prevents 2-3 million deaths a year, and a further 1.5 million could be avoided if global coverage of vaccinations improved."

Measles have been in the headlines recently in multiple outbreaks throughout the country, including New Jersey. WHO states that measles have had a 30% increase on a global scale recently.

Diseases, including measles, that were close to being eradicated in some counties are seeing a resurgence due to anti-vaxxers. According to People Magazine, the World Health Organization stated, "[Anti-vaxxers threaten] to reverse progress made in tackling vaccine-preventable diseases."

Sources: People, World Health Organization