GettyFive regions of the UK have now been hit by an outbreak of measles, infecting 122 confirmed cases.
West Yorkshire has been hit the hardest with 34 people struck by the infection, West Midlands has seen 32 cases, 29 in Liverpool and Cheshire, 20 in Surrey and Sussex, and Greater Manchester seven.
To prevent a nationwide outbreak it is recommended that 95 per cent of the population is immunised against the infection.
The number of children vaccinated against measles has been in decline over recent years according to NHS statistics. Between 2015-16 91.9 per cent were vaccinated, compared to 94.2 per cent in 2014-15 and 94.3 per cent in 2013-14.
Dr Will Welfare, Consultant in Health Protection with Public Health England (PHE), told the Manchester Evening News:
Measles is a very infectious virus and can spread rapidly among communities, such as schools, if people have not been fully immunised.
While most people who catch measles will recover completely within a couple of weeks, it’s important to remember measles can be a very serious illness that can leave permanent disability, and occasionally even kill.
I would appeal to any parents who have not yet had their children vaccinated to get them protected as soon as possible through their GP.
The Daily Mail reports Dr Mary Ramsey, head of immunisation at Public Health England, believes the measles outbreak in England is due to Europe as people travel to regions experiencing epidemics, such as Italy, Germany and Romania. Bloody Europe.
She adds that in order to avoid an epidemic in the UK, parents should vaccinate their children against measles, mumps and rubella (MMR).
The World Health Organization claims people’s fears of vaccines and their complacency is leaving children unprotected.
This could be linked to the controversial and now widely discredited claims of disgraced gastroenterologist Andrew Wakefield whose theory in 1995 linked the MMR vaccine to autism and bowel cancer.
Tim Horner is a sub-editor at UNILAD. He graduated with a BA Journalism from University College Falmouth before most his colleagues were born. A previous editor of adult mags, he now enjoys bringing the tone down in the viral news sector.