Scientists Find Higher Mercury Dose In Vaccines

[frank8943]

Scientists find higher mercury dose in vaccines
Mercury-laced preservative is already being phased out in U.S.
By Douglas Fischer

A mercury-laced preservative once widely added to pediatric vaccines exposes infants' brains to twice the neurotoxin previously suspected, offering evidence that health guidelines may underestimate the risk newborns face, researchers say in a report being published today.

The additive, thimerosal, has been used in vaccines since the 1930s and is almost 50 percent mercury by weight. Since 2001, manufacturers have gradually phased it out of almost all domestic pediatric vaccines, though it remains in use overseas in cheaper "multidose" vaccines.

The study, being published today in Environmental Health Perspectives, a peer-reviewed publication of the National Institutes of Health, also chides health officials for abandoning an earlier recommendation that the preservative be completely phased out and further studies conducted.

And it fuels the debate over the federal government's aggressive vaccination plan that subjects infants to a battery of shots — some of which contain aluminum and other potentially harmful compounds — in their first weeks of life.

"We're talking about a low-level delivery of a toxin given to a baby on the first day of its life," said mercury expert Boyd Haley, chairman of the chemistry department at the University of Kentucky, who was not involved in the study.

"What's needed is a total study of the sensibility of the vaccine program. Why would you want to vaccinate a baby on the first day of its life?"

The report is one of the first to look beyond mercury blood levels resulting from vaccines. Instead it examines both the amount and type of mercury reaching the brain. It suggests health officials examined the wrong compound and failed to look far enough when assessing the danger of mercury in thimerosal.

This is largely a past concern for the United States, given the predominance today of thimerosal-free vaccines. Both the study's lead author and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday urged parents to have their children vaccinated.

"That's the first message," said Thomas Burbacher, lead author and associate professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences at the University of Washington's School of Public Health.

"The bottom line is that trying to assess the effects of acompound with very little or no data is not a good thing to do. ... Unfortunately, we started doing studies on this compound way too late. Basic information like this should've been available decades ago."

The problem is very much alive for developing nations, however, where the additive is common. The World Health Organization has expressed interest

[kumiblanco]

I recently took my son to the pediatrician for immunizations and found that they do not contain mercury anymore, although the flu shot still has mercury in it.

[Health Dr. 1]

There have been many reports that the mercury–containing Thimerosal is being removed from domestic pediatric vaccinations. This, of course, is excellent news for those of us that live in the US. However, for those abroad, it may not mean any changes in the near future. Another major issue with vaccines is the use of foreign proteins and genetic material. Many different vaccines contain material from monkey, calf, chick, and possibly others. This is a cause of concern because it enters directly into bloodstream and can potentially trigger allergic reactions including anaphylactic shock and auto-immune disorders among others.