The enduring appeal of conspiracy theories-2

Less than a decade earlier, measles had been largely eliminated in the US. The gradual resurgence can, researchers say, be directly attributed to people who were not vaccinated.

Before measles vaccinations were introduced in 1963, the illness could be deadly. In the 1960s, there were several million cases, thousands of hospitalisations and 500 deaths per year. Meanwhile in Australia, a 2016 report concluded that 23 deaths from a host of diseases could have been prevented by vaccination between 2005 and 2014. And what’s more, such vaccinations were readily available.

约10年前，美国已经大规模消灭了麻疹，研究人员认为，这种疾病逐步复苏的直接原因是没有接种的人群。

在相关疫苗被发明之前，麻疹是致命的。在二十世纪六十年代，每年有几百万病例，数千人入院治疗，五百多人死亡。2016年澳大利亚一份报道指出，从2005年到2014年，麻疹导致23人死亡，而这些病亡本来可以通过接种疫苗避免。更重要的是，这些疫苗越来越容易获得。