I remember getting the polio vaccine at school. We got the oral version, which they called "sugar water." Of course no one minded swallowing that as opposed to yet another shot.
Posted by CJ at 3:51 pm (PDT) on Fri July 17, 2015
A little known fact...It only took Jonas Salk a short time after a family member of his contracted polio to develop the cure. He got into BIG trouble for it because a lot of companies lost money (makers of Iron Lungs and other devices). Can anyone think of ANY major disease that has been cured/eradicated since Polio? The power of profits trumps human life!
The quite understandable fear of polio is one of my most vivid memories of the 1950s. We weren't allowed to go swimming in the town pond at one point because my parents had heard that polio was transmitted through the water in such places. (A not unreasonable fear, as one of the ways polio is transmitted is, in fact, through contaminated water.)
Then, in 1955, came the Salk vaccine, which my classmates and I had by injection -- the oral vaccine developed by Dr. Sabin came along three or so years later. We later got booster shots. And all of a sudden, this terrible childhood fear was lifted from my family and millions of others. It truly was a medical miracle.
In 1954, before the Salk vaccine came out, my classmates and I were given little buttons reading, "Polio Pioneer." Apparently -- unbeknown to us -- we were part of a control group that received no vaccine when the Salk formula was being tested. Well, every experiment needs a control!
All I can say is -- thank God for Salk, Sabin, and the others who finally eradicated this terrible menace.
Registered users can log in to post comments or submit items for the galleries.
Registered users can log in to post comments or submit items for the galleries.
There are 4 comments for this item.
Can anyone think of ANY major disease that has been cured/eradicated since Polio?
The power of profits trumps human life!
Then, in 1955, came the Salk vaccine, which my classmates and I had by injection -- the oral vaccine developed by Dr. Sabin came along three or so years later. We later got booster shots. And all of a sudden, this terrible childhood fear was lifted from my family and millions of others. It truly was a medical miracle.
In 1954, before the Salk vaccine came out, my classmates and I were given little buttons reading, "Polio Pioneer." Apparently -- unbeknown to us -- we were part of a control group that received no vaccine when the Salk formula was being tested. Well, every experiment needs a control!
All I can say is -- thank God for Salk, Sabin, and the others who finally eradicated this terrible menace.
Registered users can log in to post comments or submit items for the galleries.