Vaccines have saved at least 154 million lives worldwide since 1974, the equivalent of six lives per minute, shows a study by the World Health Organization (WHO) released this Wednesday (24).
In a statement, the WHO says that the study focuses on vaccination against 14 diseases, including diphtheria, hepatitis B, measles, tetanus, yellow fever, rubella, tuberculosis, meningitis A and whooping cough.
According to the research, published in the British medical journal The Lancet, vaccination saved 101 million babies out of an estimated 154 million lives.
The work highlights that immunization against the 14 diseases analyzed directly contributed to reducing 40% of global child mortality and 52% in Africa.
Measles vaccination alone reduced child mortality worldwide by 60%.
The WHO also highlights that more than 20 million people can now walk thanks to immunization against polio.
“Vaccines are among the most powerful inventions in history, preventing previously feared diseases,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, quoted in the statement.
The data was published at a time of decline in vaccination, mainly caused by the reduction in immunization programs due to the covid-19 pandemic.
The WHO recalls that 67 million children did not receive all the vaccines they needed between 2020 and 2022, which contributed to an 84% increase in global measles cases between 2022 and 2023.
The study was released during World Vaccination Week 2024, which began today and ends Tuesday (30).
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