While concerned parents have lobbied successfully to remove mercury (thimerosal) from routine childhood vaccinations, no one is mentioning that the widely-advised flu shot still contains thimerosal.
Mercury poisoning has been linked to harm in the nervous system, heart, lungs, kidneys, and immune system. It can cause mental dysfunction in growing children and dementia and malaise in adults. Some believe thimerosal in vaccines is linked to autism. No amount of mercury is considered safe.
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), thimerosal is not the only non-medicinal additive in our vaccines. Vaccines may contain any or all of the following:
| Type of Ingredient | Examples | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Preservatives | Thimerosal (only in multi-dose vials of flu vaccine) | To prevent contamination |
| Adjuvants | Aluminum salts | To help stimulate the body’s response to the antigens |
| Stabilizers | Sugars, gelatin | To keep the vaccine potent during transportation and storage |
| Residual cell culture materials | Egg protein | To grow enough of the virus or bacteria to make the vaccine |
| Residual inactivating ingredients | Formaldehyde | To kill viruses or inactivate toxins during the manufacturing process |
| Residual antibiotics | Penicillin, sulfa drugs | To prevent contamination by bacteria during the vaccine manufacturing process |
You can request a thimerosal-free version of the flu vaccine; it will come in a single-use rather than a multi-use vial.
Here is the CDC’s table of what exactly is in each version of the influenza vaccine, so that you can check to see if there are any ingredients you might already know you’re sensitive to, like polysorbate 80, a chemical surfectant an emulsifier that we test for with the MRT because it can trigger reactions in many people, before agreeing to be injected.
