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| 1950s: A child in an Iron Lung, a device to save the lives of those whose lungs were paralyzed by polio. His face is reflected in a mirror to enable him to interact with people around him. (source) |
“For polio specifically, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have reported steep declines in case counts and deaths since the first vaccine was licensed in 1955. Around 1952, about 16,000 cases and 1,879 deaths were reported each year. That fell to fewer than 1,000 cases by 1962 and then lower, to 100 cases per year, according to the C.D.C. report.” (source)
I was in elementary school when the first polio vaccine was released. We viewed it as a miracle of medical science, and were in awe of Salk and Sabin and their colleagues who had created the vaccine. (See my previous post on this here: https://maefood.blogspot.com/2025/12/the-polio-vacccine.html)
Before that, the children with whom I went to school and all of our parents were in terror of polio. Each morning in class we would hear announcements first from the Principal and then from a child representative of each class. One news item from each class might be the name of a classmate who was absent because he or she had contracted polio. The designated announcer would express the hope from the class that the victim would recover. Some did recover. Some came back with a crippled arm or leg which over time would not grow, so that the victim would have a severe limp or inability to play ball or other disabilities. Some never came back and we never were specifically told why.
Don’t ever let anyone convince you that the polio vaccine is worse than the disease. Not for society. Not for individuals. You never want to get polio. You never want your child to get polio. Forgetting (or encouraging people to forget) the horrors of the disease seems to me to be a crime. I’m looking at Robert Kennedy.
News this week of the death of one of the last survivors who used an iron lung reminded me of these long-ago experiences. Simultaneously there is front-page news of the current administration’s war on vaccines. See https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/11/health/kennedy-vaccine-safety.html and also this article from the NY Times:
Lawyer, Author and TikTok Star Spent 72 Years in an Iron Lung
Paul Alexander, who died at 78, was paralyzed with polio at age 6 and relied on the machine to breathe.
10 comments:
When I was a child, the teacher lined us up during class and we had a polio shot. No one notified our parents. We had no choice. Today that would be illegal, but I'm just glad I got the shot because I met a lady who got polio as a child. She had one leg shorter than the other and walked with a distinct limp. It must have been a nightmare for those who had polio. Thanks for sharing this.
I was in elementary school when I go the polio vaccine too.
The school made sure we were up to date with our vaccines.
Take care, enjoy your day and the new week ahead.
I remember those early vaccines. I also remember my next door neighbor, four years old, who died from polio. And two friends from church who were disfigured because of polio. And so many who did not and have not had polio because, like me, they had the vaccine in grade school. I'm grateful.
I think people get very comfortable in 2026 and the years just before this one because they don't really know what diseases do. Plus they read silly non-scientific information on the internet and think it is true. You are right. Don't let anyone talk you out of giving your children the polio vaccine, or other vaccines too. Thanks for posting this Mae. hugs-Erika
Thank you so much for sharing truth about the wonder that was the polio vaccine. My uncle got polio when he was a little boy and he lost one of his eyes and always had hearing loss. Our friend Gary had polio as a child and he always had to walk with braces. Yes, RFK Jr., it's a crime to doom people to pain and suffering because of lies.
Me too. I assume we all had the polio vaccine in primary school in the 1950s because it was free, it was compulsory and it was scientifically sound.
Children with infectious diseases had to stay home until they no longer endangered other children in their school.
I too was in elementary school. I remember several classmates getting polio. They never returned. Many decades later, while living in N. ID, I met a man who walked with a heavy limp and most of the time with a cane. After knowing him awhile he told us of his experience in an iron lung and how polio changed not only his life but the lives of his entire family. I don't know what is wrong with rfk and the rest of these anti vaxers.
Great post--thank you! My father's youngest sister contracted polio back in the day, and it changed the course of her life. I, too, remember lining up with my classmates in school to receive a polio vaccine (and a TB vaccine; another important one).
The vaccine deniers just drive me absolutely bonkers. We don't have these diseases because we have vaccines, not because the diseases are not a problem. Good post and reminder!
I can’t imagine spending 72 years in an iron lung. It sounds like he made the best of it. I remember a boy in elementary school who had a limp from having had polio. We did not mind getting vaccinated.
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