This is true to some extent. In the early PART of the 20th century better hygiene and sanitation, clean water and better food all contributed to better health. Smaller families and less crowded living conditions meant that DISEASES were not passed on so easily. Medicine and supportive care were both improving, so that people who caught a disease were less likely to DIE, and those who ended up with serious disabilities could be kept alive.

However, without vaccination it would have been impossible to reduce the levels of infectious diseases like measles to almost zero.

For example, before the Hib vaccine was INTRODUCED in 1992, there were thousands of cases of Hib disease every year in the UK. Now there are almost none. Living conditions have not really changed since 1992, so the decline in Hib disease can only be down to the vaccine. Improved living conditions have also made almost no impact on chickenpox. This disease is just as common now as it ever was, with an estimated 600,000 cases a year in the UK.

This is true to some extent. In the early part of the 20th century better hygiene and sanitation, clean water and better food all contributed to better health. Smaller families and less crowded living conditions meant that diseases were not passed on so easily. Medicine and supportive care were both improving, so that people who caught a disease were less likely to die, and those who ended up with serious disabilities could be kept alive.

However, without vaccination it would have been impossible to reduce the levels of infectious diseases like measles to almost zero.

For example, before the Hib vaccine was introduced in 1992, there were thousands of cases of Hib disease every year in the UK. Now there are almost none. Living conditions have not really changed since 1992, so the decline in Hib disease can only be down to the vaccine. Improved living conditions have also made almost no impact on chickenpox. This disease is just as common now as it ever was, with an estimated 600,000 cases a year in the UK.