Alabama urges parents to update children’s measles vaccinations as cases climb – AL.com
Amidst an ongoing measles outbreak in Texas, the Alabama Department of Public Health is urging parents to make sure their children are up to date with their vaccinations.Several groups across the U.S. have expressed concern about decreased vaccination rates and the spread of disease following the recent confirmation of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has made multiple comments in the past casting doubt on the safety of vaccines.“The risk of MMR vaccine causing serious harm or death is extremely small,” reads the ADPH release. “Getting the MMR vaccine is much safer than getting the measles disease.”Measles is a serious viral respiratory illness that lives in the nose and throat mucus of infected people. It spreads when people breathe in or have contact with virus-infected fluid and can pass through droplets sprayed into the air when someone with measles sneezes or coughs. Symptoms usually appear 7-14 days later, according to the CDC.If exposed, unvaccinated people have a 90 percent chance of becoming infected, and infected people can spread the disease for up to three weeks.“One of the main messages we want to emphasize is that measles follows a pattern in which the child first develops fever, cough, runny nose, and watery/red eyes, then a rash develops,” said ADPH Chief Medical Officer Dr. Karen Landers in the release.“Persons can start spreading the virus up to four days before symptoms appear, and those with weak immune systems can spread the measles virus longer.”No specific antiviral drug is available to treat measles, according to the release. To help manage the symptoms the ADPH said parents can ensure the child gets plenty of fluid and rest and give a non-aspirin fever medicine such as acetaminophen and ibuprofen. In some cases, measles can lead to other problems, such as ear infections, pneumonia, or encephalitis.For most children, measles protection is part of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine (MMR), or measles-mumps-rubella-varicella vaccine, given when children are 12 to 15 months old and again when they are 4 to 6 years old, the release says. The first vaccine can be given to babies as young as 6 months of age if they will be traveling internationally. Vaccines are available at pediatricians’ offices or county health departments. Parents should call a doctor immediately if they believe their child has measles or if their child has been around someone who has measles, especially if their child is an infant, is taking medication that suppresses the immune system, has tuberculosis, cancer or a disease that affects the immune system or has not received two doses of the measles vaccine, according to the ADPH.To learn more about the measles vaccines, visit https://www.alabamapublichealth.gov/immunization/measles.html If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, (updated 8/1/2024) and acknowledgement of our Privacy Policy, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (updated 1/1/2025).© 2025 Advance Local Media LLC. All rights reserved (About Us). The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local.Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site.YouTube’s privacy policy is available here and YouTube’s terms of service is available here.Ad Choices
