“I mean, I’m not the….wait, actually I am the expert. And even more than me, the researchers at the CDC and the infectious disease physicians are the experts. You really have to be careful about researching vaccine integrity and safety on Google, where anyone can be an expert.” She was offended, and possibly to a greater extent, unconvinced. Her fear of the inactive ingredients in vaccines – the trace aluminum mainly, prompted her to refuse the booster vaccines recommended for her daughter. What made this case so strange was that I have known and cared for this family for years. This relationship had depth, but the clear distrust of the allopathic medical community had taken root as well. I have no issue with wanting to discuss medical recommendations, but I do have an issue with assuming that knowledge obtained from non-expert, non-scientific sources carries equal weight in an argument about scientific fact. The truth is science is a vast ocean of knowledge. It is anything but black and white, but the arguments around the inactive ingredients in vaccines demonstrate a void in scientific understanding, and even more importantly, an inappropriately weighted fear of trace ingredients in vaccines relative to the risk of contracting an illness comprised of virulent bacteria or viral pathogens.
The following is taken directly from the CDC- link as follows:
What’s in Vaccines?
Each ingredient in a vaccine serves a specific purpose:
- provide immunity (protection)
- keep the vaccine safe and long lasting
- for the production of the vaccine
|
Type of Ingredient |
Example(s) | Purpose | Most common source found… |
|
Preservatives |
Thimerosal (only in multi-dose vials of flu vaccine)* | To prevent contamination |
From eating foods such as certain kinds of fish |
|
Adjuvants |
Aluminum salts | To help boost the body’s response to the vaccine |
From drinking water, infant formula, or use of health products such as antacids, buffered aspirin, and antiperspirants |
|
Stabilizers |
Sugars, gelatin | To keep the vaccine effective after manufactured. |
From eating food such as Jell-O® and resides in body naturally |
|
Residual cell culture materials |
Egg protein^ | To grow enough of the virus or bacteria to make the vaccine |
From eating foods containing eggs |
|
Residual inactivating ingredients |
Formaldehyde† | To kill viruses or inactivate toxins during the manufacturing process |
Resides in body naturally (more in body than vaccines). Also found automobile exhaust, and household furnishing such as carpets and upholstery. |
| Residual antibiotics | Neomycin | To prevent contamination by bacteria during the vaccine manufacturing process |
Antibiotics that people are most likely to be allergic to — like penicillin — aren’t used in vaccines |
* Thimerosal has a different form of mercury (ethylmercury) than the kind that causes mercury poisoning (methylmercury). It’s safe to use ethylmercury in vaccines because it’s processed differently in the body and it’s less likely to build up in the body — and because it’s used in tiny amounts. Even so, most vaccines do not have any thimerosal in them. Learn more about thimerosal, mercury, and vaccine safety.
^ Because influenza and yellow fever vaccines are both made in eggs, egg proteins are present in the final products. However, there are two new flu vaccines now available for people with egg allergies. People who have severe egg allergies should be vaccinated in a medical setting and be supervised by a health care professional who can recognize and manage severe allergic conditions.
†Formaldehyde is diluted during the vaccine manufacturing process, but residual quantities of formaldehyde may be found in some current vaccines. The amount of formaldehyde present in some vaccines is so small compared to the concentration that occurs naturally in the body that it does not pose a safety concern.
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vac-gen/additives.htm
The above information is transparent and explains why certain ingredients are present… to make the vaccine safe and competent – to kill toxins and bacteria, to boost effective immunity. These ingredients are not there because the creators don’t care about your health. In fact, the developers are scientists yes, but they are also loved ones. They have families too, just like the physicians recommending these vaccines. We have seen the baby with meningitis or invasive pneumonia, and never want to witness a heartbreaking, preventable event in our patient population.
