hvparent.com
n
Hudson Valley Parent 15
"This may alleviate some of your
concerns and help to debunk some
of the myths going around about
vaccines," she says. "You can then
make a more informed decision
about your teen's vaccines."
For more information on teens
and vaccinations, log onto
cdc.
gov/vaccines/who/teens/in-
dex.html;
vaccineinformation.
org;
or click the immuniza-
tion tab at
healthychildren.org.
Lisa Iannucci is a freelance writer
who lives in Poughkeepsie and is a
regular contributor to Hudson Valley
Parent.
Recommended
for tweens & teens
According to the CDC, pre-
teens and teens need:
• Tdap
- One shot protects
against tetanus, diphtheria, and
pertussis (whooping cough).
• Meningococcal Vaccine
-
Two shots protect against diseas-
es like meningitis (an infection
of the fluid and lining around
the brain and spinal cord) and
septicemia (a bloodstream infec-
tion)
• HPV
- Three shots of the hu-
man papillomavirus vaccine help
protect against HPV infection
and cancers caused by certain
strains of HPV (cervical, vaginal,
and vulvar cancer in girls and
penile cancer in boys as well as
anal cancer, throat cancer and
genital warts in both sexes).
• Flu Shot
- The vaccine is
recommended yearly to protect
against seasonal influenza.
• Catch-up Vaccines
- Giv-
en to those who weren't fully
vaccinated as children, these
might include measles, mumps,
rubella (MMR), hep B, polio, and
chickenpox.
