Conversation Starters
Get helpful tips on how to communicate timely and accurate information to your friends, family, and community members with the talking points below.
Conversation Starters
Last Updated:
February 18, 2025
How do routine vaccines keep my child safe?
All children need specific vaccines at certain ages so they can have protection when they need it most.
- Vaccines teach children’s immune systems how to fight off dangerous diseases before they’re exposed to germs.
- The recommended vaccine schedule ensures that children receive vaccines when their immune systems are mature enough to respond adequately and when they’re most at risk of getting very sick.
- The vaccine schedule is set by doctors to confirm that vaccines are safe and provide kids with the most benefit.
- Children who receive vaccines at recommended times have protection against 16 diseases, including some that can cause paralysis, brain damage, and even death.
- Over the past 30 years, it’s estimated that recommended childhood vaccines have prevented 32 million hospitalizations and saved 1.1 million lives in the United States alone.
Children who don’t follow the vaccine schedule are at risk of catching diseases like measles and whooping cough, which are especially dangerous for babies and kids.
- Childhood vaccination rates are declining, with many parents citing unfounded safety concerns. However, vaccines are rigorously tested before they’re approved, and severe side effects are extremely rare.
- When kids aren’t vaccinated, disease outbreaks occur, which affects the whole community.
- Plus, unvaccinated kids can put vulnerable family members at risk, like newborns who are too young to get vaccinated and older adults.
If your children aren’t up to date on vaccines, it’s not too late to get back on track.
- Learn when children should receive recommended vaccines and how many doses they need from the CDC. Your child’s pediatrician can provide more information about getting up to date on vaccines.
- Children can get this season’s flu vaccine and the updated COVID-19 vaccine now. If children were recently infected by COVID-19, they can wait three months since their last COVID-19 infection. Older kids can get vaccinated at most pharmacies, while young children and babies may need to get vaccinated by their pediatrician.
- Routine vaccines are covered by most insurance plans. Children who are uninsured, Medicaid-eligible, American Indian, or Alaska Natives can get vaccinated for free through the CDC’s Vaccines for Children Program.
Last Updated:
January 30, 2025
How can I protect my family from norovirus?
Norovirus is a very contagious infection that causes vomiting and diarrhea.
- Symptoms typically appear 12 to 48 hours after exposure. Additional symptoms may include stomach pain, body aches, headaches, and a fever.
- Norovirus may cause dehydration, or a dangerous loss of fluids, especially in young children and older adults.
- See a health care provider if you or someone in your household shows signs of dehydration, which may include decreased urination, dizziness, a dry mouth and throat, sleepiness, and crying without tears.
- People who are sick with norovirus typically recover within one to three days. See a health care provider if symptoms last longer.
- After symptoms resolve, people who are infected with norovirus may still be contagious for up to two days
The best way to help protect against norovirus is to wash your hands often with soap and warm water, since hand sanitizer may not be effective at killing the virus.
- You can get norovirus if you have close contact with someone who is infected, touch a contaminated surface and then touch your mouth or nose, or consume contaminated food or beverages.
- Other ways to help prevent norovirus may include cooking food thoroughly and washing fruits and vegetables before eating them.
- You can still get sick with norovirus even if you’ve had it before, since there are many different strains.
- Unfortunately, there are currently no vaccines that protect against norovirus (although there are some in development), so that’s why good hygiene is so important. However, there are vaccines for other diseases that are currently making people sick, like COVID-19, RSV, and the flu. It’s not too late to get vaccinated against these viruses.
If someone in your household has symptoms of norovirus, isolate them away from others, watch for signs of dehydration, and take steps to help prevent it from spreading.
- Wear rubber, latex, or nitrile gloves if you are cleaning up after someone who has norovirus. Then wash your hands thoroughly.
- Clean surfaces using a solution containing five to 25 tablespoons of bleach (that’s 12.5 fluid ounces, or just over ¾ cup), per gallon of water. Leave the bleach-water mix on surfaces for at least five minutes before wiping it off.
- Wash the clothes and bedding of people who are sick with norovirus in hot water, and keep them separate from other items.
- If you are sick with norovirus, do not prepare food for others in your household and use a separate bathroom, if possible.
Last Updated:
January 21, 2025
How can the RSV vaccine protect my baby?
RSV is a respiratory virus that is especially dangerous for babies and young children.
- Symptoms in young children may include a runny nose, decreased eating and drinking, and coughing, which may lead to wheezing and difficulty breathing.
- Infants with RSV may show symptoms like irritability, decreased activity and appetite, and life-threatening pauses in breathing (apnea) that last for more than 10 seconds. Most infants with RSV will not develop a fever.
- Babies who are born prematurely, have weakened immune systems, or have chronic lung disease are more likely to become very sick.
- RSV symptoms may be similar to symptoms of the common cold, the flu, and COVID-19. Get your child tested by a health care provider to confirm their diagnosis.
There are two ways to help protect babies from RSV: vaccination during pregnancy and giving babies nirsevimab, an RSV antibody shot.
- Pregnant people who receive an RSV vaccine pass protective proteins to the developing fetus. This helps protect babies from severe RSV during their first six months of life.
- The CDC recommends that babies younger than 8 months whose gestational parent did not receive an RSV vaccine during pregnancy receive nirsevimab between October and March, when RSV typically peaks. This antibody shot delivers proteins that can help protect them against RSV.
- Nirsevimab is also recommended for children between 8 and 19 months who are at increased risk of severe RSV, including children who are born prematurely, have chronic lung disease or severe cystic fibrosis, are immunocompromised, or are American Indians or Alaska Natives.
- Pregnant people can receive an RSV vaccine at most pharmacies or from a health care provider. It’s covered by most insurance plans. Those who are un or underinsured or whose insurance plans do not cover RSV vaccination can explore coverage through state and local health departments, public insurance programs like Medicaid and CHIP, or pharmacy programs like GoodRx.
- Nirsevimab is typically covered by insurance. Children who do not have access to immunizations through family insurance can receive nirsevimab at no cost through the Vaccines for Children Program.
If someone in your household has RSV, watch for signs of severe illness and take steps to help prevent it from spreading.
- Children and adults who are sick with RSV are recommended to stay home and away from others.
- If your infant or child has difficulty breathing or develops blue or gray skin, take them to an emergency room right away.
- People who are infected with RSV can spread the disease when they cough or sneeze; have close contact with others; or touch, cough, or sneeze on shared surfaces.
- Help protect your family from catching and spreading RSV at home and in public places by ensuring that everyone covers their mouths during coughing and sneezing, washes their hands often, and wears a high-quality, well-fitting mask.
Last Updated:
January 08, 2025
How do we know there’s no link between vaccines and autism?
Any connection between vaccines and autism has been repeatedly debunked.
- The mistaken belief that vaccines cause autism in children was popularized by a 1998 study that was later retracted due to fraudulent data.
- Since then, decades of credible studies have consistently shown that vaccines are not associated with autism.
- Researchers attribute rising autism rates to increased screening and changes to diagnostic criteria, which allow for better access to appropriate interventions and support services.
- Vaccines are rigorously tested before they’re approved and have been shown to be safe across age groups.
There is no single cause for autism, and most risk factors exist before birth.
- Research shows that genetics and birth complications likely contribute to autism, which is typically diagnosed in children older than 3 (although adult diagnoses are increasingly common).
- Vaccines do not alter genes, and receiving recommended vaccines during pregnancy is safe for pregnant people and their babies.
- In fact, vaccination during pregnancy can help reduce the risk of complications that dangerous diseases cause, and it passes protective antibodies to the developing fetus.
Unvaccinated children are at risk of catching preventable diseases that can make them very sick and cause long-term complications, including death.
- Vaccines also help prevent children from spreading dangerous illnesses to vulnerable family members, including newborns, older adults, and immunocompromised loved ones.
- The benefits of vaccination outweigh any potential risks, and severe side effects are extremely rare. Most children will only experience mild pain and, possibly, some swelling at the injection site.
- Learn when children should receive recommended vaccines and how many doses they’ll need from the CDC.
- Children can get vaccines—including an updated COVID-19 vaccine and this season’s flu vaccine—at their pediatrician’s office and at pharmacies. Find pharmacies near you at Vaccines.gov.
Last Updated:
December 18, 2024
Should pregnant people get the RSV vaccine?
RSV is a common respiratory virus that can make some people—particularly babies, young children, and older adults—very sick.
- Symptoms typically appear four to six days after getting infected and may include a runny nose or congestion, coughing, sneezing, fever, decreased appetite, and wheezing.
- Infants with RSV may also show symptoms like irritability, decreased activity or appetite, and difficulty breathing.
- Every year, close to 60,000-80,000 U.S. children under 5 are hospitalized due to RSV. They may experience complications like pneumonia, bronchiolitis, or life-threatening pauses in breathing (called apnea).
- Babies who are born prematurely, have weakened immune systems, or have chronic lung disease are more likely to develop a severe infection.
Vaccines during pregnancy are a safe way to help protect infants from severe RSV.
- The CDC recommends one dose of Pfizer’s Abrysvo RSV vaccine for people who are between 32-36 weeks pregnant during September through January, when RSV is more likely to spread.
- New research suggests that getting vaccinated at 32 weeks of pregnancy may be best, since it gives the immune system more time to transfer antibodies to the developing fetus.
- Even though most adults are not at high risk for severe infection, pregnant people who receive an RSV vaccine pass protective antibodies to their developing fetus. That helps protect infants during the first six months of their life, when they are at the highest risk of a severe RSV infection.
- RSV vaccination during pregnancy has been shown to be safe, and side effects are typically mild.
- Babies younger than 8 months whose gestational parent did not receive an RSV vaccine during pregnancy should receive nirsevimab, an RSV antibody, between October and March to help protect against the virus. Nirsevimab is also recommended for some young children who are at increased risk of severe RSV.
Pregnant people can get an RSV vaccine at many pharmacies or from a health care provider, and it’s covered by most insurance plans.
- Those who are un- or underinsured or whose insurance plans do not cover RSV vaccination can explore coverage through state and local health departments, public insurance programs like Medicaid and CHIP, or pharmacy programs like GoodRx.
- It’s safe to get an RSV vaccine at the same time as other vaccines that are recommended during pregnancy.
- Those who received an RSV vaccine during a previous pregnancy do not need another one, but their babies should receive nirsevimab, which is typically covered by insurance. Children who do not have access to vaccines through family insurance can receive nirsevimab at no cost through the Vaccines for Children Program.
- Find pharmacies near you at Vaccines.gov.
Last Updated:
November 21, 2024
What should I know about whooping cough?
Whooping cough is a bacterial respiratory illness that can cause long-term symptoms and even death.
- Early symptoms typically appear five to 10 days after exposure and may include a runny or stuffy nose, a low fever, and a mild cough.
- One to two weeks after symptoms appear, some people may experience extreme coughing fits that can cause shortness of breath, trouble sleeping, vomiting, fatigue, and rib fractures. These fits usually last one to six weeks, but they can last up to 10 weeks after infection.
- About one in three babies under 1 year old who contract whooping cough require hospitalization. They may experience life-threatening pauses in breathing (called apnea), pneumonia, and other complications.
- Children and adults who have asthma or are immunocompromised are also more likely to develop severe symptoms.
Vaccines are the best way to protect against whooping cough.
- Two types of vaccines protect against whooping cough: The DTap vaccine is given to babies and children younger than 7 years old, while the Tdap vaccine is given to children 7 years and older and adults. Both vaccines protect against infections from diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (whooping cough).
- The CDC recommends that pregnant people receive a single dose of the Tdap vaccine between 27 and 36 weeks of pregnancy, as this lowers the risk of whooping cough in babies younger than 2 months old by 78 percent.
- Multiple doses are required for the best protection. Learn more about DTaP and Tdap vaccine schedules from the CDC, and talk to your health care provider about how many doses you and your children need.
If you or your child has symptoms of whooping cough, isolate them from vulnerable family members and seek treatment early to reduce the risk of serious illness.
- People with whooping cough can be contagious for weeks after infection.
- Health care providers typically prescribe antibiotics to those recovering from whooping cough at home.
- Over-the-counter cough and cold medicine is not recommended for children under 4 years old.
- Limiting smoke, dust, and chemical fumes at home and using a humidifier can reduce coughing.
- If you are caring for someone with whooping cough who exhibits pauses in breathing or develops gray or blue skin, call 911 immediately