Vaccine safety
Looking for more information about vaccine safety?
Are the risks of the vaccine worse than the risk of disease?
NO, it’s not even close. Vaccine preventable diseases can kill you
Severe adverse events from vaccines are extremely rare and are closely monitored and tracked nationwide. Eg: risk of anaphylactic reaction are literally 1 in a million doses of vaccine given
Do you know? Vaccines are one of the most monitored and studied things in medicine because they are given to healthy children.
It’s just like…Worrying about the risks of the vaccine rather than the disease it prevents is a bit like being outside and constantly looking skyward because you are afraid you may get hit by an aircraft. As a result, you get hit by a car. Try not to focus on the wrong risk!
What about vaccine components?
Vaccines are made with ingredients that make them safe and effective. Components in vaccines are used in very small amounts and their use has not been linked to disease or illness.
Did you know? Thimerosal is no longer present in childhood vaccines, with the exception of influenza. It was removed because of public perception that it was problematic, not because of safety concerns.
Vaccines are made up of many components:
Formaldehyde - is naturally produced by the human body because it is required for the body to make DNA and proteins. There is approximately 10 times the amount of formaldehyde in a baby’s body at any time than there is in a vaccine. Humans break down formaldehyde quickly, so it does not build up in the body.
Aluminum - has been present in vaccines for over 70 years with no reported serious adverse reactions. Aluminum salts are added to vaccines to help them work faster, better and longer. Because we add aluminum to vaccines, significantly fewer antigens (pieces of the germ that the immune system recognizes) are needed to produce a good immune response. We are constantly in contact with aluminum. It is the most abundant element in the earth's crust and is found in air, food and water. Aluminum is present in the infant's body from birth, and in breast milk and in infant formula. For example, in the first 6 months of life, infants are exposed to approximately 4mg of aluminum in vaccines. In this same time period, they are exposed to approximately 10mg of aluminum in breastmilk, 40mg in infant formula, and 120mg in soy formula.
Although aluminum from food is absorbed into the blood much less easily than aluminum from vaccines, aluminum from any source is rapidly removed from the body. Aluminum is picked up in the blood and taken to the kidneys quickly - 50% of aluminum from any source is removed from the body by the kidneys in less than 24hrs, 85%, in less than 2 weeks, and 96%, in less than 3 years.
In order for aluminum to be harmful, three things have to happen. First, the kidneys must not be working well, or at all, and second, the amount of aluminum entering the body must be very large (hundreds or thousands of times larger than vaccines) and third, it must be constantly given over long periods of time (months or years) so that the body does not have a chance to clear it.
Gelatin is contained in some vaccines, but is prepared from cows known to be free of mad cow disease.
Abortions are not performed to make vaccines. Some vaccines are made from cells that came from an aborted fetus in the 1960s. The fetus was not aborted to make the vaccine, but had been aborted for a medical reason. The cell line is replicating but the original cells have not been used ever since.
Is there a connection between thimerosal in childhood vaccines and autism?
NO, studies have shown that there is no link between thimerosal and autism.
Much of the increase in autism is due to a broader definition and inclusion of behaviours and learning disorders that previously had no specific diagnosis that now fall under what is known as autistic spectrum disorders.
Thimerosal is a safe and effective preservative that has been used in some vaccines since the 1930s. There has never been any scientific evidence that it is harmful in the extremely small amounts used to preserve vaccines.
With the exception of influenza vaccine, thimerosol has been removed from all routine childhood vaccines.
Did you know?
Thimerosal is no longer used in childhood vaccines, with the exception of influenza. It wasn't removed because of safety concerns, but as a result of public perception.
Does MMR vaccine cause autism?
NO, there is no increased risk of autism with MMR vaccine.
Because children with autism are often diagnosed at around the same time as they get their shots, people sometimes think that it’s related to the shots themselves. Just because some things happen close together doesn’t mean that they are related.
It’s just like ... eating a ham sandwich and going out and getting hit by a car. The ham sandwich did not cause the car to hit you.
There are lots of studies that show that MMR does not cause autism. A study of 500,000 children in Denmark showed that the likelihood of autism was the same in kids who were immunized as those who weren’t.
The consequence: After the MMR/autism scare in the late 1990’s, the number of children immunized with MMR in the UK fell significantly.
The result was 1600 cases of measles, 350 children hospitalized and three previously healthy children died.
NO. Studies have shown there is no link between thimerosal and autism.
Thimerosal is a safe and effective preservative that has been used in some vaccines since the 1930s. There has never been any scientific evidence that it is harmful in the extremely small amounts used to preserve vaccines.
Did you know? Thimerosal is no longer present in childhood vaccines, with the exception of influenza. It was not removed because of safety concerns, but as a result of public perception.
No. There is no evidence that vaccines cause or are linked to any chronic illnesses, including MS, diabetes and asthma.
No. It's not even close. Vaccine preventable diseases can kill you. Serious complications from vaccines, on the other hand, are extremely rare.
Here's just one example: one in every 1,000 people who contract measles will go on to develop encephalitis. The odds of getting encephalitis from a measles vaccine? One in one million.
The idea is to focus on the right risk, with the more dangerous consequences.
It's just like: Walking across the street and looking skyward because you are worried about getting hit by a plane, instead of watching for the real danger: an oncoming car. Don't get hit by a vaccine-preventable disease!
Did you know? Vaccines are one of the most monitored and studied topics in medicine, because they are given to healthy children and adults — and health professionals don't want to do anything that would make a healthy person sick.
Yes. We take special care to ensure the amounts of every component of each vaccine are safe for you and your child.
Vaccines are made with ingredients that make them safe and effective. Vaccine components are used in very small amounts, and repeated studies show there is no link between their use in vaccines and disease or illness.
Here are some of the key ingredients:
Gelatin – Gelatin is contained in some vaccines. It comes only from cows known to be free of mad cow disease.
Human cell lines – Vaccines do not contain human cells or tissue. Human cultures may be used in the process of making certain vaccines but all cells are removed during the purification process.
Animal cell lines – Vaccines do not contain animal cells or tissue. During purification of the vaccine, all cells are removed. Trace amounts of some proteins from the cells may remain in the vaccine.
Formaldehyde – Formaldehyde is naturally occuring in the human body and helps with metabolism.
Did you know? There is approximately ten times the amount of formaldehyde in a baby's body at any time than there is in a vaccine.
Aluminium – Aluminium is the most abundant element in the earth's crust and is found in air, food and water. Aluminium salts in vaccines help vaccines work faster, better and longer.
Did you know? Aluminium is present in breast milk and in infant formula in similar amounts as in vaccines. This amount is very small and extremely safe for infants.
Preservatives – Preservatives prevent vaccines from contamination with bacteria or fungi, particularly when the vial contains more than one dose.
Did you know? The preservative thimerosal is no longer used in vaccines (except for influenza vaccines). It was discontinued because of public perception, not safety; there is no scientific evidence suggesting any harm from the amounts used in vaccines.
No. Study after study shows no increased risk of autism with the Mumps, Measles and Rubella (MMR) vaccine. The diseases, on the other hand, are very dangerous.
Mumps, measles and rubella can lead to potentially deadly complications like pneumonia and encephalitis.
But scientific research shows that MMR does not cause autism. For example, a study of more than half a million children in Denmark showed that the likelihood of autism was the same in kids who weren't immunized as those who were.
So why do some people think there's a link? Partly it's because children with autism are often diagnosed around the same time as they get their shots. Some people assume those events are related — but just because things happen close together doesn't mean they're connected.
It's just like: If you eat a ham sandwich and then get hit by a car. The ham sandwich did not cause the car to hit you.
Another reason is a now-discredited 1998 study that claimed to show a link between MMR and autism. It was led by a doctor who was also receiving consulting fees from lawyers planning to sue vaccine makers. Most of the study's authors have now disavowed its findings. And after a comprehensive review, the British Medical Journal concluded the study was "an elaborate fraud", involving falsified data and misrepresentations to the families involved.
The tragedy is that the myth of a connection with autism has caused real, devastating damage. In 2000, the autism scare caused MMR immunization rates in Ireland to drop to 76 per cent. Measles cases immediately soared to 1,200 infections, compared to 148 the year before — and several children died as a result.
Canada’s 8-step vaccine safety system is responsible for strictly regulating and monitoring all aspects of vaccine development and safety in Canada.
Components of Canada’s vaccine safety system include:
- Pre-licensure review and approval: Data on vaccine efficacy, stability, teratogenicity, toxicity and safety data are thoroughly reviewed by the government regulatory body.
- Good manufacturing practices: Vaccine manufacturers must follow internationally-recognized good manufacturing practices, and government inspectors may randomly inspect their facilities.
- Lot assessment before release: Every vaccine lot must be tested for potency, safety and purity before release, including possible testing by government inspectors.
- Review of national vaccine recommendations: Vaccine safety and efficacy data are reviewed by a committee of independent experts, and recommendations for use are published.
- Post-marketing surveillance: All healthcare providers and vaccine manufacturers must report adverse events, and the data is analyzed and published.
- Response to concerns: The vaccine is immediately recalled if there is any concern about its safety.
- Assessment of serious adverse events: Serious adverse events (e.g., deaths, hospitalizations) are rigorously scrutinized by a group of independent experts to determine the cause.
- International collaboration: Data on adverse events and other concerns are sent to the WHO, from where it is shared with all countries.
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