Vaccines: Does Europe Do Them Better?
1/15/202634 min
The U.S. just made a big change to its vaccine recommendations, cutting back on the number of shots it will routinely recommend for kids. The government says it wants to "better align" with countries like Denmark. But is following Denmark’s lead a fairy tale come true — or a nightmare in slow motion? Plus, we find out what this new schedule could mean for kids’ vaccines in the U.S. We hear from Professor Jens Lundgren and pediatrician and researcher David Higgins. Find our transcript here: https://bit.ly/ScienceVsVaccineSchedules In this episode, we cover: (00:00) The growing turmoil around vaccines in the U.S. (02:20) Why did the CDC change its vaccine recommendations? (07:29) Vaccines, the Danish way (16:20) Should the U.S. copy Denmark’s vaccine schedule? (20:22) How bad is this? (22:03) RSV: A case study in confusion (28:27) What should parents do now? This episode was produced by Blythe Terrell and Meryl Horn with help from Rose Rimler, Michelle Dang and Ekedi Fausther-Keeys. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Additional research help from Erica Akiko Howard. Our executive producer is Wendy Zukerman. Mix and sound design by Bobby Lord. Music written by Emma Munger, So Wylie, Peter Leonard, Bumi Hidaka and Bobby Lord. Thanks very much to the Unbiased Science network, who connected us with David Higgins. They’ve been doing some amazing work on trying to explain what’s going on with the U.S. and vaccines. Unbiased Science — check out their podcast and their socials. Thanks very much to all the scientists we spoke to and emailed with about these changes. And special thanks to Bernadette Sciandra and Laurence Horn. Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Transcript preview
First 90 secondsMeryl Horn· Host0:00
Hi, this is Meryl Horn in for Wendy Zukerman, and you're listening to Science Versus. [upbeat music] This is the show that pits facts against filling up babies with shots. [upbeat music] Today on the show, vaccines. In the US, there's been a ton of turmoil around vaccines. The Department of Health and Human Services is being led by a longtime vaccine skeptic, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. He's been accused of firing the head of the CDC for not rubber-stamping his vaccine policy. He's also added a ton of vaccine skeptics to this big vaccine advisory committee, and President Trump has chimed in here, saying that we've been giving kids way too many shots.
Speaker 10:44
[upbeat music] They pump so much stuff into those beautiful little babies. It's a disgrace.
Meryl Horn· Host0:50
And last week, the CDC announced a big change, saying they've got new vaccine recommendations for kids. New guidance from the CDC, reducing the number of vaccines recommended for children.
Speaker 21:01
They have scaled back the number of vaccines, now only recommending 11 vaccines.
Meryl Horn· Host1:08
[upbeat music] The CDC is now saying that some shots that were given to kids routinely instead should be given on a case-by-case basis, like to, quote, "high-risk groups." And to back up these new recommendations, the government has pointed to what some other countries are doing. They say that when you look at the US versus similar countries, some of them don't