Book 10, Question 103
Why Do Vaccines Train Your Immune System?
Vaccines train your immune system by showing it a safe practice version of a germ! Your body learns to recognize the germ without getting the full sickness. Doctors and nurses give vaccines, so ask them if you have questions.
More fun facts
- The part of a germ that makes your body produce antibodies is called an antigen.
- Vaccines contain weakened or inactive parts of a germ, or instructions for making them, which train the immune system without causing the disease.
- The first time your body meets an antigen, it takes time to make antibodies that fit it.
- Along with antibodies, the body makes memory cells that stay alive even after the germ is defeated.
- If the same germ shows up again, memory cells pump out antibodies much faster and more strongly than the first time.
- Scientists describe two walls of immune memory: long lived plasma cells that keep making antibodies, and memory B cells that wait in reserve.
- Some long lived plasma cells settle in the bone marrow and keep making antibodies for years, possibly a whole lifetime.
- Some vaccines need more than one dose to build long lasting antibodies and memory cells.
Sources: who.int, National Institutes of Health
Questions kids ask
Can a vaccine give me the disease it protects against?
No. The weakened or inactive germ parts in a vaccine cannot cause the disease, but they still teach your immune system to recognize it.