Vaccines contain diseases that have been safely weakened. This does not cause the disease, but actually helps your body learn to fight it. There are several different types, and each is developed to fight differently against the disease it targets.
Vaccines can be grouped in the following categories:10
Swipe/Scroll Left or Right to view more | Type of vaccine | How it’s made | What it means for you | Example |
|---|
| Live (attenuated) vaccines | These contain a safely weakened version of the living bacteria or virus so it can’t cause disease. | Because a live vaccine is the closest thing to a natural infection, your immune system reacts strongly. This means you can often get lifelong protection with only one or two doses. | Measles, Mumps Rubella (MMR) and Influenza live vaccine (intranasal) |
| Inactivated vaccines | The bacteria or virus is killed with chemical heat or radiation. | Your immune systems reacts less strongly to these (compared to live vaccines), so you’d likely need additional doses or booster shots. | Influenza inactivated vaccine (injectable) |
| Polysaccharide vaccines | Developed to recognize the sugar coating that surrounds many bacteria, these vaccines come in two forms; Plain or Conjugated | Plain (or non-conjugated) vaccines provide protection for a limited time only.
Conjugated vaccines are more likely to provide a steady level of protection. They teach your body to remember the infection so it can more readily fight against it in the future.
| Plain (non-conjugated):
Pneumococcal vaccines Pnemo 23® and Pneumovax 23®
Conjugated:
The new pneumococcal vaccine Prevnar 13® |