Vaccinations have been so successful that Americans are becoming complacent and forget and or are unaware of the consequences of the diseases they actually protect against and prevent. Due to the adverse effects that vaccinations such as the MMR vaccine are associated with, parents are deciding that vaccinations are not necessary and too risky when it comes to triggering disorders such as autism. What parents need to be told, and what has been concluded by both science and the medical community is that opting out of vaccinations such as the MMR vaccine is more risky than the chances of developing autism from these childhood vaccines. Below is a chart that illustrates the seriousness of a measles outbreak and the number of cases that were documented in the United States before the measles vaccine was introduced in 1963.

The decrease in measles cases is a direct result of the vaccine, and it is up to parents to protect their children from a disease that the MMR vaccine can and has prevented. A disease like the measles is not as acceptable as a childhood illness such as chicken pox. Many parents with vaccine aged children today are unaware of the complications measles can causes because they were very plausibly vaccinated against the disease themselves and have never been concerned with it. Below is another chart that shows the number of deaths in the United States directly related to measles from 1950 to 2004. It is important to note the data only documents deaths and that many other permanent complications can possibly arise from contracting the disease.