Public Health Wars: Measles Strikes Back

On this week's episode of the pod, we are revisiting a topic that we had hoped we could leave in the past: MEASLES. We set the stage by discussing the recent outbreaks of measles cropping up across the US, the UK, and Europe. We talk about the epidemiology of measles, its contagiousness, and the implications of outbreaks for public health. We discuss the highly effective MMR vaccine and the population thresholds needed (aka herd immunity) to prevent outbreaks. We explain that measles is far more than a rash and detail potentially serious long-term effects of the virus. We answer commonly asked questions about the MMR vaccine and debunk myths and misconceptions. For the sake of public health, you don't want to miss this!

All our sources from this episode are available at: https://www.unbiasedscipod.com/episodes/measles-strikes-back

(00:00) Music and Intros

(01:21) The seriousness of measles

(02:18) Recent outbreaks

(06:03) Misunderstanding the impact of measles

(08:47) Measles outbreaks in the UK and Europe

(13:52) The contagiousness of measles

(17:40) Debunking the vaccine-autism link

(24:04) Presumptive evidence of immunity

(28:43) The effectiveness of the MMR vaccine

(35:47) The importance of herd immunity

(39:42) Vaccination for adults

(45:45) The need for measles protection

(46:19) Conclusion and call to action

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