Most of the students at one North Carolina private school in the US didn’t get the chickenpox vaccine. Now that school is the epicentre of the largest chickenpox outbreak in 20 years.

By breaking the chain of a disease's transmission, herd immunity protects the most vulnerable among us, including newborns and sick people who can't receive vaccines. But in order for it to work, a certain percentage of people in a community must be vaccinated.

In the era of 'fake news' and 'anti-vaxxers', being able to detect the difference between Good Science and Bad Science is critical to see through the nonsense. This 12 point guide is an excellent overview of how you can spot any untruths that you might see floating around your social media pages, you know, like how injecting bicarb soda cures cancer (it doesn't).

It's women who get pap smears on the regular, and girls who are more likely to be up-to-date on their human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines -- but a new study confirms that the virus puts men at risk, too. Men were six times more likely than women to have a high-risk type of HPV in their mouth or throat, where it can cause oropharyngeal cancer.

Dogs are fluffy, slobbering, pooping creatures that don't hesitate to sniff (and maybe taste) any unknown object they see on the ground. So, if we're trying to protect our health, is it OK that we let them share our home, sleep in our beds, and lick our faces?

Vaccines for dogs are a good thing. Nobody wants Mister Floofles to die of Canine Hepatitis, Canine Distemper, Canine Parainfluenza or Canine Parvovirus. But it's easy to get spooked by rumours of the side effects of vaccines, and some people are turning down shots for their pets.

Welcome back to Dose of Reality, where we see whether the week's health news is really worth worrying -- or celebrating -- about. Today we're facing down death and disease, and the news is actually mostly good!

Flu shots work, and are a smart way to reduce the chances that you'll end up sick this winter. But that's not the impression you might get if you listen to the rumour mill. Flu shot myths abound, and it's time to put the biggest ones to rest.

There's a new flu shot every year, to match the particular flu strains floating around. Some years the shot isn't a good match. Even so, the flu shot is still a good bet.

Children get a lot of vaccines these days, which is a good thing: it means they're protected against a lot of diseases. But some parents wonder if kids are getting too many shots all at once.

It's hard to watch your kid endure pain, so doctor visits with shots can be a stressful time for both parent and child. Fortunately, a Canadian public health group has combined some of the best pain-reducing advice into two handy pocket guides, one for babies and one for older kids.

Many of us think that vaccines are something you get when you're young and never again, but part of staying healthy as an adult is making sure you're up to date, or get any boosters you and your doctor decide you need. The CDC's vaccine quiz gives you a list to start with.