The article proposes to abandon the virtual world of elementary particles, which prevails today in the concepts of quantum electrodynamics, as applied to polarization of vacuum, and an attempt is made to substantiate the reality of particles produced in a vacuum as a result of its excitation by an external field. Particles are real because they have a real impact, participate in real interactions and are described by real physical quantities. The idea of the "virtuality" of particles stems from the inability of modern science to clearly explain the phenomenon of vacuum polarization.