Do you have a preteen or teen? Protect their future with vaccines.

National Immunization Awareness Month is a reminder

 that we all need vaccines throughout our lives.

Taking them to their sports physical, making sure they eat healthy and get plenty of sleep … you know these are crucial to your adolescent’s health. But did you also you know your preteens and teens need vaccines to stay healthy and protected against serious diseases?

As they get older, preteens and teens are at increased risk for some infections. Plus the protection provided by some of the childhood vaccines begins to wear off, so preteens need a booster dose. You may have heard about whooping cough (pertussis) outbreaks recently. Vaccine-preventable diseases are still around and very real. The vaccines for preteens and teens can help protect your kids, as well as their friends, community, and other family members.

There are four vaccines recommended for all preteens at ages 11 to 12Teens may also need a booster dose of one of the shots or get any shots they may have missed. You can use any health care visit, including sports or camp physicals, checkups or some sick visits, to get the shots your kids need. The vaccines recommended for preteen and teen girls and boys are:

·         Quadrivalent meningococcal conjugate vaccine, which protects against four types of meningococcal disease. Meningococcal disease is caused by bacteria and is a leading cause of bacterial meningitis – a serious infection around the brain and spinal cord – in teens and young adults.

·         HPV vaccine, which protects against the types of HPV that most commonly cause cancer. HPV can cause future cancers of the cervix, vulva and vagina in women and cancers of the penis in men. In both women and men, HPV also causes mouth/throat (oropharyngeal) cancer, anal cancer and genital warts.

·         Tdap vaccine, which is a booster shot against tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis. Pertussis (whooping cough) can keep kids out of school and activities for weeks. It can also be spread to babies who are too young to be vaccinated, and this disease can be very dangerous and sometimes deadly for babies.

·         Influenza (flu) vaccine, because even healthy kids can get the flu, and it can be serious. All kids, including your preteens and teens, should get the flu vaccine every year. Parents should also get vaccinated to protect themselves and to help protect their children.

Talk with your child’s health care professional to find out which vaccines your preteens and teens need. Vaccines are a crucial step in keeping your kids healthy.

Want to learn more about the vaccines for preteens and teens? Check out www.cdc.gov/vaccines/teens or call 1-800-CDC-INFO.

Resources for Parents

 CDC: Preteens Need Vaccines Too
www.cdc.gov/Features/PreteenVaccines/ CDC: School Starts Soon – Is Your Child Fully Vaccinated?
www.cdc.gov/features/catchupimmunizations CDC: Preteen and Teen Vaccines
www.cdc.gov/vaccines/teens CDC: HPV Portal
www.cdc.gov/hpv  CDC: Easy-to-Read Immunization Schedule Age 7-18 – English & Spanish
www.cdc.gov/vaccines/schedules/easy-to-read/preteen-teen.html

A special thank you and acknowledgement to the National Public Health Information Coalition for providing the above information and resources.