Immunity - Immunisation is a quick, simple and safe way to protect an individual from infection.

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Immunity

Immunisation is a quick, simple and safe way to protect an individual from infection. The more people immunised in childhood, the more rare diseases become. Immunisation therefore protects not just your child but babies, adults and other children too.

Artificial immunisation is a way of creating immunity to certain infections using relatively harmless antigens that come from, or are similar to, the micro organism that cause infection. Microorganisms can be viruses, such as measles, or bacteria such as Diphtheria.

An antibody is an immunoglobulin (protein molecule produced to combat microbial infection and provide immunity) produced because of an antigen introduced to the body. An antigen is a substance that stimulates an immune response (triggered when the body detects the presence of foreign material, this substance is an antigen) e.g. can be pathogens, vaccines, pollen, and even some food. Each antigen stimulates the production of a specific antibody itself. The antibody helps the body to fight against infection. Antibody production is a major function of the immune system and is carried out by B-lymphocytes; these are a type of white blood cells.

Cells called T-lymphocytes "regulate the immune response by