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IMMUNIZATIONS

How Social Media Fuels Anti

Vaccination Sentiment By Isabela Baker

Since their development, vaccines have proven themselves valu-
able by successfully treating preventable deaths since the early
19th century. Vaccines are used worldwide to combat infectious
diseases like the flu, polio, and measles . In recent years, misin-
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formation has kept immunizations from achieving their fullest
“If other moms say potential. Preventable diseases have had outbreaks in countries
where they were previously eradicated, according to the Centers
vaccines are for Disease Control (CDC), then returned along with a rise in

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dangerous...” popular non-medical beliefs .
Misinformation that leads to disease outbreaks is spread by
groups who oppose immunization practices and who question
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the effectiveness of vaccines . In the United States, 45% of
adults report that they do not believe that the general public
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receives enough vaccine education from doctors . This may be
causal to the 71% of U.S. adults (without chronic health con-
ditions) who reported using the internet for health-related
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searches . Adults who opt out of traditional medical care and
rely on virtual, often non-medical resources, are largely respon-
sible for the contraction and spread of vaccine-preventable
diseases .
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The Role of Social Media
Social media sites are especially popular forums where users
are likely to encounter anti-vaccination sentiment and frequent
persuasion tactics . Because of this, social outlets including Face-
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book, YouTube, and Instagram have taken steps to prevent dan-
gerous anti-vaccination myths and misinformation from being
promoted via hashtags and search inquiries . Social media gives
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users the power to create, modify, and share whatever messages
they please . Internet users who do not seek reliable sources are
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subject to health misinformation that is potentially dangerous
when disseminated quickly .
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Government and organized efforts have been developed to en-
courage regular vaccination practices in the name of public health
and safety. These public health care campaigns aim to combat
nonprofessional interpretations of published literature correlating
vaccinations to the contraction of autism or cancer. In order to
generate the most effective messages that alleviate vaccine hesi-
tancy, studies have tested the persuasive strength of vaccine op-
position websites on adult attitudes .
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24 San Antonio Medicine • November 2019