Vaccines help the body remember germs — Health, 4–6 years
A vaccine gives the body's defences safe practice before a dangerous germ arrives. It is one reason a nurse or doctor may offer a small injection, with an adult there to help.
What a vaccine does
Our bodies can learn to recognise some germs that make people ill. A vaccine shows the body's defences a safe clue about one of them. Later, if the real germ appears, the defences can respond more quickly.
Why people use vaccines
Illnesses caused by germs once harmed many people, especially babies and older people. Vaccines were developed to help the body prepare before illness, rather than waiting for the illness to arrive. When many people are protected, some germs also have fewer chances to spread.
At the doctor's visit
Leo has a vaccine appointment. First, the nurse checks his name and asks how he is feeling. Then she gives one quick injection in his upper arm, while his trusted adult stays beside him. His arm may feel sore later, so he tells the adult if anything worries him.
The reasonable worry
A child may think a vaccine causes the illness because the body is being shown something from a germ. That is an understandable guess, especially when there is a small injection. A vaccine is made to give safe practice, not the full illness; an adult or health professional can explain exactly what will happen.
Where this helps
Vaccines can help protect people from particular illnesses in nurseries, schools, homes and communities. They do not stop every illness, and they do not replace other care, such as telling an adult when you feel unwell. A doctor or nurse knows which vaccine is suitable and when it is needed.
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