Skepticism and misinformation relating to vaccines is not new. The benefits of all our present routinely used vaccines outweigh any risks. In relatively recent times there has been a 'war on science' and relating to this, is the present antivaccine movement. Today, social media is a major contributor to vaccine misinformation. A recent Gallup poll noted that public support for vaccines today is significantly lower than it was in 2001. Social scientists have presented the problem of the antivaccine movement quite well; but mechanisms for addressing it are far from clear. We suggest that physicians and other health care workers should not use social media for vaccine messages. A long-term approach would be to introduce science/epidemiological education in grade school and high school as well as in college.
Keywords: antivaccine; immunization; social media; vaccine misinformation; vaccines.
© 2020 The Author(s). Published by Portland Press Limited on behalf of the Biochemical Society and the Royal Society of Biology.