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Business Standard
14 hours ago
- Health
- Business Standard
Worried about mercury in vaccines? Here's the science behind 'thimerosal'
Ever heard of a mercury-based compound in your vaccine? It's called 'thimerosal' — a preservative that keeps multi-dose vials free from bacterial or fungal contamination. Introduced in the 1930s, it contains a form of mercury called 'ethylmercury', which is different from 'methylmercury' which is the toxic type found in certain fish and industrial waste. The two are often confused by people, although they behave very differently in the body. While thimerosal was once common in childhood vaccines globally, many countries, including the US, began phasing it out around the early 2000s due to rising public concern over mercury exposure, despite no strong evidence of harm. However, certain India's vaccines, especially multi-dose ones, are believed to contain thimerosal. Why is thimerosal in the news? The debate over thimerosal surfaced after some public figures made controversial claims linking mercury in vaccines to autism. At the first meeting of US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr's special committee on vaccines, the panel voted to stop recommending flu vaccines that contain thimerosal. Public health experts warn that this action could undermine trust and spread confusion about vaccine safety. Moreover, several studies that once claimed a link between thimerosal and autism have since been retracted or discredited. Does Thimerosal cause autism? According to a large body of international research, there is no credible evidence that thimerosal causes autism. In 2004, the US Institute of Medicine reviewed over 200 scientific studies and found no link between thimerosal in vaccines and autism. Later reviews by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and FDA (Food and Drug Administration) also found no evidence that thimerosal causes autism or developmental delays. 'Thimerosal, an ethyl mercury compound, preserves multi-dose vaccines by inhibiting microbial growth after repeated vial entry. Clinically, it reduces contamination risk in mass immunisation. Decades of surveillance and evidence show no link to autism or serious toxicity at approved doses. In fact, autism rates did not decrease after thimerosal was removed from vaccines, which supports that the vaccines do not increase the risk of autism,' said Dr Deepak Ugra, paediatrician at Lilavati Hospital, Mumbai. Is thimerosal still used in Indian vaccines? Many of India's vaccines, particularly those supplied in multi-dose formats, are believed to contain thimerosal. Dr Ugra explained, 'Thimerosal remains in use within India's routine immunisation programme, especially in multi-dose vials of vaccines like DTP and Hepatitis B. It serves as an antimicrobial preservative. While single-dose, thimerosal-free alternatives are available, their broader rollout is constrained by cost, infrastructure, and supply-chain limitations in public health settings. However, in the private sector only single-dose, preservative-free vaccines are used.' Is thimerosal safe for children? Thimerosal breaks down into ethylmercury, which is eliminated from the body quickly and does not accumulate in the body. This sets it apart from methylmercury, which can be toxic in high amounts. 'Parents should not be concerned about mercury in vaccines. Ethyl mercury, one of the metabolites of thimerosal, is excreted quickly and does not have the neurotoxic properties of methylmercury. While mild reactions at the injection site such as redness, swelling, or tenderness, and rarely, contact hypersensitivity may be seen, serious adverse events are extremely rare,' said Dr Ugra. While thimerosal remains a topic of public interest, current scientific evidence does not support claims linking it to autism. For parents in India, the key lies in staying informed through verified medical sources and consulting paediatricians for vaccine safety.
RTHK
18-07-2025
- Health
- RTHK
Trump pulls US from World Health pandemic reforms
Trump pulls US from World Health pandemic reforms US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy is a long-time critic of vaccines. Photo: Reuters US President Donald Trump's administration said on Friday the United States was rejecting changes agreed last year for the World Health Organization on its pandemic response, saying they violated US sovereignty. Trump, on returning to office on January 20, immediately began the withdrawal of the United States from the UN body, but the State Department said the language from last year would still have been binding on the United States. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy, who is a longtime critic of vaccines, said that the changes "risk unwarranted interference with our national sovereign right to make health policy." "We will put Americans first in all our actions, and we will not tolerate international policies that infringe on Americans' speech, privacy or personal liberties," they said in a joint statement. Rubio and Kennedy disassociated the United States from a series of amendments to the International Health Regulations, which provide a legal framework for combating diseases, agreed last year at the World Health Assembly in Geneva. The amendments included a stated "commitment to solidarity and equity" in which a new group would study the needs of developing countries in future emergencies. Countries have until Saturday to lodge reservations about the amendments. Conservative activists and vaccine sceptics in Britain and Australia, which both have left-leaning governments, have waged public campaigns against the changes. The amendments came about when the Assembly failed at a more ambitious goal of sealing a new global agreement on pandemics. Most of the world finally sealed a treaty this May, but the United States did not participate as it was in the process of withdrawing from the World Health Organization. The United States, then under President Joe Biden, took part in the May-June 2024 negotiations, but said it could not support consensus as it demanded protections for US intellectual property rights on vaccine development. Rubio's predecessor, Antony Blinken, had welcomed the amendments as progress. (AFP)
RTHK
18-07-2025
- Health
- RTHK
Trump pulls US from World Health pandemic reforms
Trump pulls US from World Health pandemic reforms US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy is a long-time critic of vaccines. Photo: Reuters US President Donald Trump's administration said on Friday the United States was rejecting changes agreed last year for the World Health Organization on its pandemic response, saying they violated US sovereignty. Trump, on returning to office on January 20, immediately began the withdrawal of the United States from the UN body, but the State Department said the language from last year would still have been binding on the United States. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy, who is a longtime critic of vaccines, said that the changes "risk unwarranted interference with our national sovereign right to make health policy." "We will put Americans first in all our actions, and we will not tolerate international policies that infringe on Americans' speech, privacy or personal liberties," they said in a joint statement. Rubio and Kennedy disassociated the United States from a series of amendments to the International Health Regulations, which provide a legal framework for combating diseases, agreed last year at the World Health Assembly in Geneva. The amendments included a stated "commitment to solidarity and equity" in which a new group would study the needs of developing countries in future emergencies. Countries have until Saturday to lodge reservations about the amendments. Conservative activists and vaccine sceptics in Britain and Australia, which both have left-leaning governments, have waged public campaigns against the changes. The amendments came about when the Assembly failed at a more ambitious goal of sealing a new global agreement on pandemics. Most of the world finally sealed a treaty this May, but the United States did not participate as it was in the process of withdrawing from the World Health Organization. The United States, then under President Joe Biden, took part in the May-June 2024 negotiations, but said it could not support consensus as it demanded protections for US intellectual property rights on vaccine development. Rubio's predecessor, Antony Blinken, had welcomed the amendments as progress. (AFP)
CNN
16-07-2025
- Health
- CNN
RFK Jr. fires top aides in HHS shakeup
Federal agenciesFacebookTweetLink Follow US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has fired two of his top aides in an abrupt shakeup of the leadership at the nation's sprawling health department, two people familiar with the matter told CNN. Kennedy this week ousted chief of staff Heather Flick Melanson and deputy chief of staff for policy Hannah Anderson, dismissing them after only a handful of months on the job. The decision came after Kennedy lost confidence in them as part of his leadership team, one of the people familiar with the matter said, although it was unclear whether there was a single triggering event that prompted the firings. In a statement, an HHS spokesman confirmed the moves and said the department's White House liaison, Matt Buckham, would serve as acting chief of staff. 'He brings valuable experience in personnel strategy and organizational management to this new role,' the spokesman said. 'Secretary Kennedy thanks the outgoing leadership for their service and looks forward to working closely with Mr. Buckham as the Department continues advancing its mission to Make America Healthy Again.' Kennedy has not yet decided on permanent replacements for Flick and Anderson, the people familiar said. The move leaves Kennedy needing to fill key senior positions at HHS just months into his tenure, and at a moment when the department has come under growing scrutiny over its efforts to overhaul the nation's vaccine policies and advance a range of major health and food priorities. Flick was among Kennedy's most experienced Washington hands, having served at HHS during President Donald Trump's first term, first as its acting general counsel and then as acting secretary for administration and a senior adviser to then-HHS Secretary Alex Azar. Anderson joined HHS after stints on Capitol Hill as a GOP staffer, including as health policy adviser to Republicans on the Senate's main health committee. She had most recently headed up health care issues at the Trump-aligned America First Policy Institute think tank.
CNN
16-07-2025
- Health
- CNN
RFK Jr. fires top aides in HHS shakeup
Federal agencies FacebookTweetLink US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has fired two of his top aides in an abrupt shakeup of the leadership at the nation's sprawling health department, two people familiar with the matter told CNN. Kennedy this week ousted chief of staff Heather Flick Melanson and deputy chief of staff for policy Hannah Anderson, dismissing them after only a handful of months on the job. The decision came after Kennedy lost confidence in them as part of his leadership team, one of the people familiar with the matter said, although it was unclear whether there was a single triggering event that prompted the firings. In a statement, an HHS spokesman confirmed the moves and said the department's White House liaison, Matt Buckham, would serve as acting chief of staff. 'He brings valuable experience in personnel strategy and organizational management to this new role,' the spokesman said. 'Secretary Kennedy thanks the outgoing leadership for their service and looks forward to working closely with Mr. Buckham as the Department continues advancing its mission to Make America Healthy Again.' Kennedy has not yet decided on permanent replacements for Flick and Anderson, the people familiar said. The move leaves Kennedy needing to fill key senior positions at HHS just months into his tenure, and at a moment when the department has come under growing scrutiny over its efforts to overhaul the nation's vaccine policies and advance a range of major health and food priorities. Flick was among Kennedy's most experienced Washington hands, having served at HHS during President Donald Trump's first term, first as its acting general counsel and then as acting secretary for administration and a senior adviser to then-HHS Secretary Alex Azar. Anderson joined HHS after stints on Capitol Hill as a GOP staffer, including as health policy adviser to Republicans on the Senate's main health committee. She had most recently headed up health care issues at the Trump-aligned America First Policy Institute think tank.
