Question:
Do vaccines contain aluminum?
Answer:
Yes, many vaccines contain aluminum. Aluminum is used in vaccines as an adjuvant.
- Adjuvants enhance the immune response (help the vaccine work better) so that fewer amounts of active ingredients and fewer doses of vaccine are needed.
- The amount of aluminum in vaccines is extremely small and does not pose a health risk.
- Aluminum-containing adjuvants have been used safely in vaccines since the 1930s.
- Because large quantities of aluminum can cause serious neurologic effects in humans, Health Canada regulates the amount of aluminum that can be in vaccines. Health Canada follows standards set by the World Health Organization and allows for no more than 1.25 mg/dose as a safe level in vaccines.
- Aluminum is one of the most plentiful elements and is in the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat, and many health products.
- Infants receive more aluminum from their diet in the first six months of life than from vaccines. Infants quickly remove aluminum from their bodies without harmful effects. The ability of the body to remove aluminum accounts for its excellent record of safety. About half of the aluminum from vaccines is eliminated from the body in less than 24 hours, and more than three-quarters is eliminated within two weeks.
- For aluminum to be harmful, people must have kidneys that don’t work well or at all, and they must receive large amounts of aluminum for months or years.
Date last reviewed:
Monday, Jan 31, 2022