How does an infectious disease spread?

You can get an infectious disease:

• from contaminated food or drink;
• by inhaling germs (airborne pathogens);
• through contact with someone who is infected;
• from an infected wound.

Young children and older people are especially vulnerable to infectious diseases. They have the highest risk of serious consequences and could even die as a result. Vaccination lowers the risk of severe illness and complications, and ensures that fewer people catch dangerous infectious diseases.

Why are infectious diseases dangerous?

Many pathogens are harmless, but a few are dangerous to your health. They can make you ill and spread easily from person to person. It is a good thing that our body has an immune system to protect us, destroying these bacteria or viruses if we are infected. You often do not even notice that you were exposed, or only have a mild illness.

Read more about the immune system on the page about How does vaccination work?.  

Sometimes our immune system is not able to block the pathogen well enough. If that happens, the pathogen can replicate and cause damage, making you seriously ill. A more serious illness, like meningitis or blood poisoning, can cause permanent harm. Children may sometimes even die as a result. Infectious diseases can also be very dangerous to adults whose immune system does not work well, even if they have been vaccinated.

Other consequences of infectious diseases

If many people are infected at the same time, it can cause other problems. For example, it puts pressure on the healthcare system. This makes it harder for people to get other treatments or have operations.

What can you do to prevent infectious diseases?

If you get an infectious disease, there is often not much you can do except rest and recover. You will usually get better on your own after a few days. If any treatment is available, it is often hard on your body. For that reason, it is best to ensure that you do not become ill. You can do that by getting vaccinated.

Read more on the page about How does vaccination work?.  

Infectious diseases are affected by herd immunity. This means that when many children are vaccinated against a specific infectious disease, that disease becomes less common. Children who are not vaccinated have a lower risk of getting that infectious disease. The group of vaccinated children acts as a buffer to protect them. If nearly all children are vaccinated, a disease may even disappear completely.

You can take precautions too, by washing hands or distancing when you are ill. You can also keep your distance from others who are ill. This makes it less likely that you will become ill too, but avoiding the risk completely is not usually possible.

Which diseases are covered by the  vaccinations? 

See an overview of all the infectious diseases covered by the National Immunisation Programme on the page about infectious diseases.