Hpv Shot For Your Teen Or Pre-teen?

[Fractal]

I read an article bemoaning the fact that not enough young teens and pre-teens are getting the HPV vaccine that protects them against cancers caused by the sexually transmitted virus.

 

According to a survey done by CDC, in 2013, only 57% of girls and 36% of boys ages 13 - 17 had received one or more doses of the vaccine (three doses are recommended).

 

Supposedly, with girls in particular, if they get one or more doses by their 13th birthday, 91% of them would be (somewhat) protected from cancers caused by this virus. Apparently the biggest obstacles to getting the kids vaccinated is that pediatricians aren't pushing the vaccines and / or parents are objecting that their children are not sexually active.

 

My kids are grown, so I don't personally have to wrestle with this dilemma, but it's a big one...

 

While I'm not totally anti-vaccination, I think I'd need a little more convincing on this one.

 

 

[Noire]

We didn't vaccinate our daughter when it came around. This was the first time it was offered and I didn't know enough about the effects of the vaccine and what it actually did protect them from.  Looking into it I found it only protected them from certain forms of HPV. and  our age group of girls would be the "trials" so to speak.  I seriously don't know how so many of us survived all these years without half the vaccines they get now.  Now that she is older she has the choice of getting the vaccine or not.

[arissa]

We have not reached that age just yet but it is something to consider. I still have the half fear that we push out more vaccines than our bodies really need. I am going to need to read up a bit on this one, but thankfully we have a few years before this becomes a huge issue for us.