Updated as of January 6, 2025
Vaccines are used to prevent many serious diseases throughout our lifespans and are an important way to promote family and public health. Vaccines teach your body to fight against disease by introducing your body to a “weakened, killed, or sub-part of a germ.”
It’s normal to have questions about the safety of vaccines or about which vaccines you and your family should get and when. This blog is intended to provide helpful information about vaccines, including how they’re developed, what resources are available, and how women play a role in vaccine uptake.
Vaccine Development
There are many steps and tests in each vaccine’s development pipeline—starting long before vaccines go to clinical trials and lasting even after vaccines come to market.
Vaccine creation and safety is taken very seriously in the U.S health care ecosystem. Vaccines are among the most tested and safest medical products available for protecting people against various serious and often life-threatening diseases. Testing vaccine safety includes several phases: preclinical research (including animal model research) that occurs before vaccines are tested in humans; clinical trials, which involves three phases of human testing to determine vaccine safety and effectiveness; regulatory approval from agencies like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA); and ongoing surveillance at the state and federal public health level, which involves continuous monitoring for any other side effects.
Vaccines Across the Lifespan
Infant Vaccines: Vaccines help prevent infectious diseases that can kill or seriously harm many inants and children, including measles, mumps, whooping cough and influenza (flu), due to the fact that infants have developing immune systems. Evidence-based vaccine schedules, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) child and adolescent immunization schedule are tools to understand when children should be vaccinated, based on when they are most vulnerable to diseases and when the vaccines will produce the strongest response from the child’s immune system. Suggested vaccines for infants (under 1 year) include DTap (diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis) and inactivated poliovirus, among others; suggested vaccines for babies one year and older include MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) and varicella, among others (based on the AAP schedule). If you have questions about the vaccines your child should receive, consider bringing an evidence-based schedule to your pediatrician’s office and having a conversation about your child’s risks and needs.
Adolescent and Teen Vaccines: It is important to continue conversations with your child’s health care provider about the vaccines they may be eligible for as they reach their preteen and teen years. These may be vaccines they are getting for the first time, like human papillomavirus (HPV) and meningococcal B, or they may be reoccurring or booster shots for vaccines they have already received, such as flu.
The HPV vaccine is suggested for children (boys and girls) nine and older because the vaccine must be taken before an individual is exposed to the virus to maximize its effectiveness. The HPV vaccine is highly effective in preventing many HPV-related cancers and reducing the overall spread of the virus. According to the CDC, 85% of people in the United States will get an HPV infection in their lifetime. While some infections may clear naturally, persistent infections caused by certain types of HPV can lead to diseases such as cervical cancer, vaginal cancer, and vulvar cancer. Health care providers and parents and guardians play an important role in ensuring the children they care for are protected from HPV. Watch the #SWHRtalksHPV Video Series to get answers to your HPV vaccine questions.
Adult Vaccines: By getting vaccinated as an adult and staying up to date on your vaccines, you lower your chances of getting sick from vaccine-preventable diseases and can help lower the risk of spreading diseases to those around you. Adult vaccines may be specific for adult populations (i.e., pneumococcal, shingles) or may be recommended if an individual did not receive certain vaccines as a child (i.e., HPV, MMR). One of the most common vaccines adults get is the flu vaccine. While the impact of flu is underestimated by many, it can result in severe illness to some individuals, including children younger than five, adults older than 65, pregnant women, and individuals with certain chronic health conditions. The flu vaccine is widely available and is an easy way to protect yourself and your family. During the 2019-2020 flu season, the CDC estimated that flu vaccination prevented an estimated 7.5 million illnesses and 6,300 deaths. Take the steps to fight flu today. Check our more adult vaccine information from Vaccinate Your Family here.
Vaccines During Pregnancy: There are vaccines that are safe to receive during pregnancy, including flu. Catching the flu while pregnant can increase your risk of pre-term labor and fetal death. The Flu Vaccines & Pregnancy Fact Sheet explains how the flu vaccine protects pregnant individuals and what types of flu vaccines are appropriate to receive during pregnancy.
Other vaccines, such as hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and pneumococcal might also be recommended during pregnancy based on your risk level and exposure. Explore the Maternal Immunization: Quick Guide to learn more and always talk to your health care provider about the best vaccines options for you and your baby.
For more information about vaccine clinical trials in pregnant populations, including how vaccine and medication clinical trials are tested for safety and efficacy in these populations, visit the Coalition to Advance Maternal Therapeutics.
Women as Vaccines Educators
Women have a significant role to play in vaccine education, as women make up to 80% of the health care decisions in the family. Women can help ensure their family members receive the most appropriate vaccines to protect their family’s health. The SWHR resource, Crucial Vaccination Conversations: A Roadmap to Engage Women and Their Communities, was specifically created to help women have conversations about vaccine health with their communities and families.
It is important to seek out scientifically-backed information about vaccines when questions arise. Consider speaking with trusted health care providers or exploring the vaccine information available from nationally recognized health organizations like the American Academy of Family Physicians, American Academy of Pediatrics, Immunize.org, Institute for Vaccine Safety, National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, and Vaccinate Your Family.
Keeping up with vaccine schedules and recommendations for yourself and loved ones can be time-consuming – but it is important. By seeking out science-based evidence and information about vaccines, you can support a healthier future for your family. SWHR remains committed to promoting science-based references and information for women’s health and their families.