How Vaccines Strengthen Your Baby’s Immune System

How Vaccines Strengthen Your Baby’s Immune System (Text Version)

[Picture of a baby boy flexing his arm muscles]

Your child is exposed to thousands of germs every day in his environment.

This happens through the food he eats, air he breathes and things he puts in his mouth.

[Image of baby holding up a barbell]

Babies are born with immune systems that can fight most germs, but there are some deadly diseases they can’t handle.

That’s why they need vaccines to strengthen their immune system.

[Image of a droplet containing germs]

Vaccines use very small amounts of antigens to help your child’s immune system recognize and learn to fight serious diseases.

Antigens are parts of germs that cause the body’s immune system to go to work.

[Image of viruses and bacteria]

30 YEARS AGO vaccines used 3,000 antigens to protect against 8 diseases by age two

TODAY vaccines use antigens 305 to protect against 14 diseases by age two

[Image of a vaccine vial]

Thanks to scientific advances, today’s vaccines can protect children from more diseases using fewer antigens.

Vaccines contain only a tiny fraction of the antigens that babies encounter in their environment every day.

Vaccines help strengthen your baby’s immune system and keep him safe from vaccine-preventable diseases.

IMMUNIZATION. POWER TO PROTECT.

[logo] U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
NCIRDig603 | 07/10/2017

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