As Canada struggles with a sudden sharp increase in the number of measles diagnoses, a University of Guelph historian says highlighting the societal benefits of vaccination could help discourage the anti-vaccination movement.
Dr. Catherine Carstairs is a professor who studies the history of health and medicine in the College of Art’s Department of History. She recently co-authored a paper in the Canadian Historical Review about the rise of the anti-vaccination movement in Canada from the 1980s to 2007, with master’s student Kathryn Hughes.
They write that a highly contagious disease like measles requires a high vaccination rate to prevent spread and infection in even those who are vaccinated, because while the vaccine is highly effective, it’s not perfect.
The number of new cases of measles in Canada has been rising in recent months, with infection numbers in the first two months of 2025 higher than in all of 2024.
Carstairs says while there are a likely several reasons for the recent surge in cases, a big factor is the growth of the anti-vaccination movement. To combat that sentiment, Carstairs says it’s important to take the concerns of people who choose not to vaccinate seriously and acknowledge that failures in the health care system have produced mistrust.
“We need to acknowledge the possible risks but also do a better job of conveying the tremendous benefits of vaccination,” Carstairs says.
“We also need to encourage people to think more broadly about the societal benefits of vaccination. You’re getting vaccinated not just to protect yourself, but also the people around you, including people who are medically vulnerable.”
Carstairs and Hughes argue in their paper that the anti-vaccination sentiment is driven by intensive parenting strategies that encourage parents to think about their own children over others. The internet and social media have further changed discourse and made anti-vaccination information more readily available.
“The rise of wellness culture online and its intersection with neoliberalism and modern capitalism has led many to different understandings of health and development of anti-vaccine attitudes,” Hughes says.
Carstairs notes the COVID-19 pandemic also resulted in new forms of anti-vaccine activism, adding that the pandemic in general disrupted routine vaccination efforts.
Carstairs is available for interviews.
Contact:
Dr. Catherine Carstairs
ccarstai@uoguelph.ca