Disclaimer: This is not medical advice; this is an awareness piece. Please contact your doctor to learn more about these vaccines.)

In the past year, vaccines have truly infiltrated all our conversations. We are either talking about them or desperately trying to book a slot for one online. However, vaccinations have played one of the most vital roles in the health care system across the world. Since the invention of the first vaccine to eradicate smallpox in 1976, many dangerous and contagious diseases have largely been prevented from spreading. Vaccines, in general, are potentially life-saving for both men and women. Unfortunately, women are not always aware of ways to protect themselves from potential diseases. This could be owed to the apathetic approach towards women health care and the lack of awareness campaigns regarding women health in school and popular media.

Here are five important vaccines that every woman should be aware of-

1. HUMAN PAPILLOMAVIRUS (HPV) VACCINE

What are HPV vaccines?

HPV vaccines are vaccines that protect against infection with human papillomaviruses (HPV). HPV is a group of more than 200 related viruses, of which more than 40 are spread through direct sexual contact. Among these, two HPV types cause genital warts, and about a dozen HPV types can cause certain types of cancer—cervical, anal, oropharyngeal, penile, vulvar, and vaginal.

Who should be getting this Vaccine?

It is recommended for teens and people through age 26

Please read more about this here.

2. INFLUENZA VACCINE

What is influenza?

Influenza is an acute respiratory illness that affects the upper and/or lower respiratory tract and is caused by the influenza virus, usually of type A or B. Influenza circulates continuously, causing seasonal epidemics in temperate regions and year-round epidemics in some tropical regions. Influenza viruses are continuously changing, necessitating an annual change in vaccine strains to better match with currently circulating influenza strains globally.

Who Should be getting this Vaccine?

1)    Women who plan pregnancy during flu season should be vaccinated.

2)    Women at high risk for flu-related complications should be vaccinated before flu season.

3)    Healthy adults aged 49 and under.

Read more about this here.

3. VARICELLA

What is it?

Many women of childbearing age have either had chickenpox (varicella) or received the vaccine during childhood. Because chickenpox can harm a pregnant woman and her fetus, assessing your immunity to chickenpox is a good idea before conceiving. If you’re not immune, this is a good time to have the vaccine. Similar to the MMR booster, the VZV vaccine is a live-attenuated virus vaccine. A woman should have this vaccine at least four weeks before attempting to conceive, due to the theoretical concern for fetal exposure.

Who should get the vaccine?

1)    If you’ve never had varicella, or you have received only one of the two doses of varicella vaccine, ask your doctor whether you need to be vaccinated again.

2)    This vaccine is especially recommended for adults ages 50 and above.

Read more about it here.

4. MEASLES, MUMPS, RUBELLA (MMR)

What is it?

Measles causes fever, rash, cough, runny nose, and red, watery eyes. Complications can include ear infection, diarrhoea, pneumonia, brain damage, and death.

Mumps causes fever, headache, muscle aches, tiredness, loss of appetite, and swollen salivary glands. Complications can include swelling of the testicles or ovaries, deafness, inflammation of the brain and/or tissue covering the brain and spinal cord (encephalitis/meningitis) and, rarely, death.

Rubella, causes fever, sore throat, rash, headache, and red, itchy eyes. If a woman gets rubella while she is pregnant, she could have a miscarriage or her baby could be born with serious birth defects.

You can protect against these diseases with safe, effective vaccination.

Who Should Get the Vaccine?

1)    Health care workers and international travellers may require a second dose of MMR vaccine.

2)    The rubella portion of the MMR vaccine protects against congenital rubella syndrome. Women of childbearing age should receive screening for immunity to rubella.

3)    Women who are not immune, have not been vaccinated, and are not pregnant should receive the MMR vaccination.

4)    After receiving the MMR vaccine, women should wait for at least 3 months before becoming pregnant.

5)    This vaccine is recommended for adults age 50 and above.

Read more about it here.

5. TETANUS, DIPHTHERIA, PERTUSSIS (TD/TDAP)

What is it?

DTaP vaccine can prevent diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis-

Diphtheria and pertussis spread from person to person. Tetanus enters the body through cuts or wounds.

DIPHTHERIA (D) can lead to difficulty breathing, heart failure, paralysis, or death.

TETANUS (T) causes a painful stiffening of the muscles. Tetanus can lead to serious health problems, including being unable to open the mouth, having trouble swallowing and breathing, or death.

PERTUSSIS (aP), also known as “whooping cough,” can cause uncontrollable, violent coughing which makes it hard to breathe, eat, or drink. Pertussis can be extremely serious in babies and young children, causing pneumonia, convulsions, brain damage, or death. In teens and adults, it can cause weight loss, loss of bladder control, passing out, and rib fractures from severe coughing.

Who should be getting it?

1)    Adults under age 65, healthcare providers, and anyone in contact with infants should receive these vaccines, with booster shots every decade.

2)    Women of childbearing age should keep their vaccines current.

3)    Pregnant women who have not received these vaccines within the last decade might need a vaccination during pregnancy.

4)    Grandparents should receive the vaccination, as Pertussis-related infant deaths have increased since 2000.

Read more about this here.

Until we find a vaccine for the misogyny instilled in our policies and their implementations, the onus of taking care of our bodies and protecting ourselves from harmful diseases is on us. We must reiterate that this is just an awareness piece, all the important resource have been added in this article. Please contact a medical professional to learn more about these vaccines.

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