You're Never Too Old to Get Vaccinated

Did you know that vaccinations aren't just for kids? Adults need vaccines too! Take this quiz to find out which vaccines you may need. Vaccines recommendations are based on age, health conditions, job, travel, and more.

Immunization

Also called: Vaccination

MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA

Other Languages

Find health information in languages other than English on Immunization

NIH MedlinePlus Magazine

Disclaimers

MedlinePlus links to health information from the National Institutes of Health and other federal government agencies. MedlinePlus also links to health information from non-government Web sites. See our disclaimer about external links and our quality guidelines.

Summary

Shots may hurt a little, but the diseases they can prevent are a lot worse. Some are even life-threatening. Immunization shots, or vaccinations, are essential. They protect against things like measles, mumps, rubella, hepatitis B, polio, tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (whooping cough). Immunizations are important for adults as well as children.

Your immune system helps your body fight germs by producing substances to combat them. Once it does, the immune system "remembers" the germ and can fight it again. Vaccines contain germs that have been killed or weakened. When given to a healthy person, the vaccine triggers the immune system to respond and thus build immunity.

Before vaccines, people became immune only by actually getting a disease and surviving it. Immunizations are an easier and less risky way to become immune.

NIH: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Start Here

Get Important Shots (Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion)
Immunization Schedules for Adults (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Vaccines for Adults: Which Do You Need? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Vaccines.gov (Department of Health and Human Services)Also in Spanish
What Is a Vaccine? (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)

Diagnosis and Tests

Screening Checklist for Contraindications to Vaccines for Adults (Immunization Action Coalition) - PDFAlso in Spanish

Related Issues

10 Reasons to Get Vaccinated (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)Also in Spanish
Community Immunity: How Vaccines Protect Us All (National Institutes of Health)
Current Vaccine Shortages and Delays (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Fainting (Syncope) (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Finding Your Adult Vaccination Record (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Heart Disease, Stroke, or Other Cardiovascular Disease and Adult Vaccination(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)Also in Spanish
HIV Infection and Adult Vaccination (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Ingredients of Vaccines (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Liver Disease and Adult Vaccination (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Possible Side-Effects from Vaccines (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
School Starts Soon - Is Your Child Fully Vaccinated? (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Understanding Thimerosal, Mercury, and Vaccine Safety(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF
Vaccinations for Adults with Diabetes (Immunization Action Coalition) - PDF
Vaccine Adverse Events (Food and Drug Administration)
Vaccines and Thimerosal (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Weakened Immune System and Adult Vaccination (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
What Would Happen If We Stopped Vaccinations? (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)Also in Spanish
Who Should Not Get Vaccinated with These Vaccines? (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Images

Vaccine-Preventable Disease Photos (Immunization Action Coalition)

Health Check Tools

What Vaccines Do You Need? (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)Also in Spanish

Videos and Tutorials

Vaccines (Medical Encyclopedia)Also in Spanish

Statistics and Research

Safeguarding Our Health: Vaccines Protect Us All (National Institutes of Health)
VaxView: Vaccination Coverage [data] in the U.S. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Vaccine Adverse Reactions (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Vaccines (National Institutes of Health)

Journal ArticlesReferences and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Reference Desk

Overview of the Immune System (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)

Find an Expert

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Also in Spanish
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Travelers' Health: Destinations (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Vaccine Finder (Department of Health and Human Services)

Children

Childhood Immunization: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish

Women

Immunization and Pregnancy (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF
Immunization for Women (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists)
Vaccines and Pregnancy (Organization of Teratology Information Specialists)Also in Spanish