Prevention
A vaccine that protects against measles is available. It is usually given in the form of the MMR vaccine, which also contains vaccines against mumps and rubella (German measles), when a child is approximately fifteen months old. An additional dose is recommended either before a child enters school or when she is between the ages of eleven and thirteen. (See IMMUNIZATION-RELATED PROBLEMS>.)

A child who has recently been exposed to measles and may be incubating the disease should not be given the measles vaccine at that time. It may suppress the rash at the time, but it could leave her vulnerable to developing a more serious case of the illness in adolescence.

As much as possible, try to keep your child from contact with contagious children, particularly if she is not (or is not yet) immunized against the disease.

From Smart Medicine for a Healthier Child by Janet Zand, N.D., L.Ac., Robert Rountree, MD, Rachel Walton, RN, ©1994. Published by Avery Publishing, New York. For personal use only; neither the digital nor printed copy may be copied or sold. Reproduced by permission.