Becoming parents and bringing a little one also brings responsibility. It requires effort to protect and safeguard your baby from diseases and ailments, attentively. To serve the purpose of protection, vaccinations or immunization of your infants are extremely important. As a parent, it can be difficult for you to see your baby getting vaccinated but these are crucial to safeguard your baby from numerous hazardous diseases.

With vaccines, your child is less prone to diseases such as hepatitis, tetanus, diarrhea, measles, pneumococcal disease or polio. When we talk about India, there are many programs and initiatives that have been launched to create awareness among people about the vaccination of babies. Even then, the count of children without vaccination is quite high. As per the report from WHO, there are over 22 million children who are not receiving proper vaccinations and the count is still going on and on.

If we look at the numbers in India, more than 1 million children die before turning five due to the diseases and lack of complete immunization. The reason can be many but the most common reason is the lack of awareness and knowledge about the essential vaccinations required for the baby. Therefore, it is completely the responsibility of parents to do the baby care properly and make sure that their children get vaccination on time.

Vaccination Chart For Babies in India

When a baby gets his/her vaccine shots, it boosts immunity and eliminates the harmful things by recognizing them. By this method, a human body fights pathogens (infection-causing microorganisms) when attacked and the child is immunized from ailments.

If you are new parents or expecting ones and are not aware of the vaccinations, Mums Mall has come up with a vaccination chart. Below is the immunization chart for babies in India given by IAP.

Reference: IAP Immunization Timetable 2018-2021

*Fourth Dose of Hepatitis B permissible for combinations vaccine only

**In case IPV is not available or feasible, the child should be offered bOPV (3 doses). In such case give two fractional doses of IPV at 6 wk and 14 wk

***b-OPV, if IPV booster (standalone or combination) not feasible

****Third dose is not required for RV 1. Catch up to 1 year of age in the UIP schedule.

*****Live attenuated Hepatitis A vaccine: Single done only

******Begin the influenza vaccine after 6 months of age, about 2-4 weeks before the season, give 2 doses at the interval of 4 weeks during the first year and then a single dose yearly till 5 years of age.

Things to Keep in Mind During Vaccination

Vaccination of the children can also depend upon the geographical location. There can be other vaccinations as well such as for cholera, Meningococcal (MCV) or Japanese Encephalitis (JE) if the children are going through severe health issues. In any circumstances, you should consult your paediatrician before vaccination. And you also need to keep some things in mind when your child is getting vaccinated.

1. Adhere to the vaccination schedule of your children. Do not miss any vaccine.
2. Skip the vaccination or consult with your paediatrician if your child has some health concerns before vaccination such as fever.
3. Do not go for any advanced immunization else the results can be dangerous
4. It is common that a child gets a fever post-vaccination. Don’t get tense about it. You can use a sponge bath to make the temperature back to normal. If the fever perseveres for more than 2 days, you can visit the doctor.
5. Check with your doctor regarding the feed before the vaccination of your baby.
6. Do not go for painless immunization. Choose painful vaccines to protect your child from any long term side-effects.
7. Do not get nervous in front of your child during vaccination. It may disturb him and make him frightened.
8. Consult with a doctor before travelling with your child.
9. Distract and comfort your child with his favourite things and take a person along with you when going for your baby immunization.

Vaccination for any child is important. If not done, your child’s health may lead to an outbreak of preventable diseases and become disastrous for your children's health. For healthy living and protecting your babies from health problems, start the immunization of your children on time with your doctor’s consultation. And eliminate the harmful effects of any epidemic or ailments.