Vaccinations, Part II

In my first post about vaccines, I talked about how important it is for parents to do the research and educate themselves about each vaccine that their child receives.

So what exactly is in these vaccines? Well, while the ingredients differ for each one, the basic ingredients for the most readily given vaccines are:
DPT — diptheria bacterium, pertussis organisms, tetanus toxoid, sodium chloride, sodium hydroxide, formaldehyde, hydrochloric acid, aluminium and mercury.
HiB — Hib saccarides cultured on cow's brains, crm protein, sodium chloride, aluminium hydroxide, mercury.
POLIO — 3 types of live polio virus, magnesium chloride, amino acid, polysorbate 80, purified water, neomycin, sulphate, streptomycin, penicillin and monkey kidney cell cultures.
MENINGITIS C — meningococcal group C oligosaccharide and corynebacterium, diphteriae crm protein (fails to disclose what vaccine is cultured on), aluminium phosphate, sodium chloride and water.
MMR — live measles virus, live mumps virus, live rubella virus, chick embryo, human foetal cells, neomycin, sorbitol, gelatine.
HEPATITIS B — Hepatitis B virus gene, aluminium hydroxide, mercury, formaldehyde. For the genetically engineered vaccine: aluminium hydrochloride, sodium chloride and mercury.
INFLUENZA — Influenza virus, haemaglutinin and neuraminidase antigens A and B strains, gelatine, mercury, formaldehyde, sodium chloride, mashed chick embryos, neomycin.

A lot of people tell me that vaccines no longer contain mercury and are therefore safe. However, vaccines do contain Thimerosal, a mercury compound. Even if the levels of Thimerosal in a single vaccine is low, children are now being exposed to higher levels through combination vaccines. For example:
The FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation & Research (CBER) began by adding up the total amount of mercury given to children through vaccines in the U.S. immunization schedule. Thimerosal was present in over 30 licensed vaccines in the U.S. in concentrations of 0.003% to 0.01%. According to the agency's calculations, an infant six months old, receiving all vaccine doses on schedule, would receive:
75 micrograms of mercury from three doses of DTP,75 micrograms from three doses of Hib, and37.5 micrograms from three doses of hepatitis B vaccine;
for a total of 187.5 micrograms of mercury.

The presence of mercury in vaccines and the other foreign agents that are also introduced into the body through vaccines have been linked to autism and other autoimmune diseases.

If you decide that your child will still benefit from vaccines, then there are actions you can take to lessen the risks associated with these shots. These actions include:
- Giving your child certain vitamins the day before, day of, and day after the vaccine. (100mg. vitamin C, 500 mg calcium and 50 mg vitamin B6). - Giving your child only one vaccine per visit. If your child is to receive a combination vaccine, such as MMR, request that the single vaccines are given instead of the combination.
- Ask to see the insert label of each vaccine. Check for yourself to make sure that your child is not receiving a vaccine that is high in mercury.
- Give your child only the vaccines that are most necessary and omit the unnecessary and potentially dangerous ones.
- Continue to educate and research more on vaccinations and if they are right for your child.

Some great resources for research are:
Dispelling Vaccination Myths
Vaccination Liberation Site
Well Being Journal
Vaccination Classes
Yahoo Group on Vaccines
Should I Vaccinate My Child?
And finally, a funny video on ingredients in vaccines:



And no, I haven't forgotten about the connection between AIDS and the polio vaccine. Stay tuned for Vaccinations, Part III in which I will talk about this connection.

Vaccinations, Part II