Active immunization is the induction of immunity after exposure to an antigen. Antibodies are created by the recipient and may be stored permanently. Active immunization can occur naturally when a microbe or other antigen is received by a person who has not yet come into contact with the microbe and has no pre-made antibodies for defense. The immune system will eventually create antibodies for the microbe, but this is a slow process and, if the microbe is deadly, there may not be enough time for the antibodies to be used. Artificial active immunization is where the microbe is injected into the person before they are able to take it in naturally. The microbe is treated, so that it will not harm the infected person. Depending on the type of disease, this technique also works with dead microbes, parts of the microbe, or treated toxins from the microbe. A common example of this form of active immunization is vaccinations, which have led to several controversies in the past and even present regarding their safety. Some of the main concerns over the years regarding immunization and vaccination as a whole throughout the West has been its rumored association with the onset of autism. Yet, this rumor which began in 1998 after the publication of an infamous and inaccurate medical paper which has since been dubbed as the Lancet MMR autism fraud. The subsequent massive panic that it has triggered has been categorized as likely the most damaging medical hoax of the last century as it has caused concerned parents to avoid the MMR vaccine altogether, therefore putting more lives in danger. Throughout the twentieth century and thus far throughout the beginning of the 21st century, the effective active immunization associated with the Polio vaccination has contributed to the disease almost being eradicated worldwide. Yet to date, areas of Nigeria continue to be notorious zones of infection for Polio even with the increased vaccination efforts of the World Health Organization, the United Nations, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. A lot of the concern and pushback which has prevented the effective distribution of the Polio active immunization throughout parts of Nigeria and elsewhere have not only been terrorist activity and the killing of aid workers, but also false and rumored sterilization initiatives from Western physicians.
