Immune Overload
Anti-vaccine activists have used scare tactics to get parents on board with their movement. As a result, many parents have started to fear that their child’s immune system cannot handle all of the vaccines that they are being given. By age 6 children receive multiple doses of vaccinations that protect against 14 different diseases.2 Immune overload is a myth that can be rejected with basic knowledge of the immune system and the science behind vaccines.2 Vaccines use weakened forms of an antigen, or disease-causing agent, in order to cause the immune system to act. After an initial exposure to this part of the antigen, the immune system creates a memory of the disease. Upon subsequent exposure the immune system is better able to recognize the antigen and defend the body against it.2 Each day we come in contact with millions of antigens in the air we breathe, food we eat, and on the surfaces we touch.4 The immune system can effectively fight a majority of them off; therefore weakened forms of antigens are not a problem.
Anti-vaccine activists have used scare tactics to get parents on board with their movement. As a result, many parents have started to fear that their child’s immune system cannot handle all of the vaccines that they are being given. By age 6 children receive multiple doses of vaccinations that protect against 14 different diseases.2 Immune overload is a myth that can be rejected with basic knowledge of the immune system and the science behind vaccines.2 Vaccines use weakened forms of an antigen, or disease-causing agent, in order to cause the immune system to act. After an initial exposure to this part of the antigen, the immune system creates a memory of the disease. Upon subsequent exposure the immune system is better able to recognize the antigen and defend the body against it.2 Each day we come in contact with millions of antigens in the air we breathe, food we eat, and on the surfaces we touch.4 The immune system can effectively fight a majority of them off; therefore weakened forms of antigens are not a problem.
Parents generally fear immune
overload due to the fact that children are given more injections than in the
past. This may be true, however, the antigen in the vaccines have become more
specific. Each vaccine contains fewer proteins than vaccines did in the past.1
In fact, all of the current vaccines combined contain fewer proteins than the
whole cell pertussis vaccine of the past. The immune system, even at very young
ages, can handle coming into contact with millions of antigens each day. In
fact, a child’s immune system could hypothetically handle receiving 10,000
vaccines at one time.1
Mercury and Autism
This
particular myth has two parts that need to be debunked. It is useful to explain
to parents why the mercury was in the vaccines in the first place. Mercury is a
preservative that is used to prevent any bacterial growth in vaccines.2
Thimerosal is the mercury derivative that stirred up a bit of controversy.
Thimerosal is no longer present in most childhood vaccines after being removed
in 2001.3
The second
portion of this myth involves how it started in the first place. In 1998 Andrew
Wakefield, a British physician published an article in The Lancet that he claimed found a link between the measles portion
of the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine and autism.4 Wakefield
suggested administering the vaccines individually, rather than as a combination
MMR vaccine.4 Separate vaccines were not available; however,
Wakefield had just patented a new measles vaccine.2 This was part of
his motivation for finding a link between MMR and autism. Furthermore,
Wakefield was being paid off by personal injury lawyers to find a link between
MMR and autism in order to win lawsuits.4
Wakefield’s
study was not only unethical, contained falsified data, and did not actually
find a link between MMR and autism, but it was also retracted by The Lancet.2 Numerous
scientific studies have found no causal link between MMR and autism.3
The repercussions of Wakefield’s study, even though his medical license was
revoked in Great Britain and the study was disproven, are still with us.
Measles vaccination rates are lower than they need to be to achieve herd
immunity.2,4 As such, there are resurgences of not only measles, but
other vaccine preventable diseases. The entire scandal sparked a fear in
parents that scientists and healthcare workers need to work to abate.3
Why Infants Receive
the Hepatitis B vaccine
Hepatitis B is a viral infection
that is associated with risky behaviors including sex and IV drug use. This
raises the question for many parents of why their baby should be receiving a
vaccine to protect against it before discharge from the hospital after being
born. The reason for this is that a child under the age of 5 that becomes
infected with hepatitis B virus is at a higher risk for the associated
complications.5
Hepatitis B
can either be an acute or chronic infection.5 Many adults who come
in contact with HBV get acute hepatitis B infection and the virus can pass.
Children under 5, however, are more likely to develop the chronic infection.
This form is potentially fatal and carries many more associated risks such as
liver cancer and cirrhosis.5
Though the
most common ways to come in contact with HBV are sexual contact, drug use, or
passing it from mother to newborn through the birth canal, there is data that
now shows that the virus can be transmitted through casual contact.3
An infected childcare center employee may carry the virus without showing
symptoms and pass it to the child if he or she is not protected by the vaccine.3
Healthcare workers are not insinuating that children are engaging in risky
behaviors; rather it is just a precaution to prevent a possible chronic
Hepatitis B infection in a small child.5
Why are Fetal Cells
being used in Vaccines?
Cells are
used to grow viruses because viruses cannot live without cells as hosts. Human
cells are the preferred cells because many of the vaccine preventable diseases,
with the exception of something like influenza, infect only humans.3
If human cells are the only receptacle for a particular virus, it cannot grow
in anything else.3 In order to create vaccines scientists need to
grow the virus so that they can take only the parts that are needed for the
vaccine in order to cause the immune system to recognize the entire virus.3
The concern
surrounding the fetal cells is how they are collected. The fetal cells that are
used to grow viruses came from two elected abortions in the 1960’s. No new
cells have had to be collected since then, nor will they ever be.3
Fetal cells are long-lived and reproduce quickly, therefore we do not need to
collect new fetal cells for vaccines.3
Natural Immunity
versus Vaccine Acquired Immunity
The
adaptive immune system works by recognizing a foreign invader and creating a
response appropriate to that particular pathogen, or disease causing agent. If
the same pathogen enters the body again, the immune system has a memory
response that can fight it off more quickly and efficiently.2 The
immune system undergoes the same response whether the pathogen is presented
naturally or in the form of a vaccine, the only difference is with the vaccine
the patient does not need to become ill first.3
Vaccines
use only the portion of a pathogen that will initiate an appropriate immune
response in order to create the memory response that will be ready to fight off
the invader if it enters the body naturally.1 Vaccine acquired
immunity is actually better because the patient does not show the signs of
having the infection after getting the injection. This also means that the
patient is not at risk for any of the complications of the disease.2
Vaccines and Religion
Vaccines
are recognized as one of the greatest medical advancements of all time.
Diseases that once destroyed communities are now capable of being eradicated in
the same manner that smallpox was. All of the major religions support the use
of vaccinations due to their life-saving abilities. None of the ingredients in
vaccines, such as gelatin, are concerning to religions due to the fact that the
mode of entering the body is not oral. Religious leaders from all of the major
sects support immunization; therefore there should be no religious exemptions
of vaccines.3
Exemptions
As
mentioned in the “Vaccines and Religion” Section, none of the major religions
of the world are anti-vaccine or advise worshipers against immunization. In
fact, due to the life saving-ability of vaccines, religious leaders support
vaccine efforts to reduce the prevalence of vaccine preventable diseases. Even
with this being the case, 48 of the 50 states allow for religious exemptions.3
Philosophical
exemptions are available in 20 US states and do not require anything more than
a signature in order to exempt a child from a vaccine.3 This subset
of exemptions feeds into the growing number of unvaccinated children. These
children are putting the rest of the population at risk, specifically the
immunocompromised or those who a particular vaccine does not work for. Parents
usually chose to exempt out of fear due to the misinformation provided about
vaccines.3
The last
sub-category of exemptions is medical. Medical exemptions are meant for those
who cannot receive vaccines because they are immunocompromised, allergic to
vaccine ingredients, or had an adverse reaction to prior doses of a specific
vaccine. All fifty states allow for medical exemptions.3 Some
doctors are signing exemption requests for parents in states that do not allow
philosophical exemptions, increasing the likelihood of resurgences of vaccine
preventable diseases.3 In many cases, parents will chose to vaccinate a child
with a medical exemption once they realize that their child cannot enter school
without being immunized.3
Pharmaceutical
Companies and Vaccines
American vaccines are produced by three major companies today, as opposed to the twenty-six companies that produced them in 1967.2 The main reason for this decline and that is that vaccines are not that profitable. Big pharmaceutical companies create drugs that are far more profitable, such as Lipitor which must be taken daily.2 In the case of vaccines there are only a couple of doses given, with the exception of the annual seasonal influenza vaccine.3 This, along with the hassle and cost to develop vaccines, makes vaccine production undesirable for companies that are looking to make money.2 It is also interesting to note that it would actually be far more profitable for pharmaceutical companies to treat these diseases rather than to prevent them.2 Some countries, such as Denmark, have decided that private industry should no longer be left to manufacture vaccines due to the important role they play in public health. For this reason, the Danish government decided it best to control the manufacture of vaccines themselves.2
American vaccines are produced by three major companies today, as opposed to the twenty-six companies that produced them in 1967.2 The main reason for this decline and that is that vaccines are not that profitable. Big pharmaceutical companies create drugs that are far more profitable, such as Lipitor which must be taken daily.2 In the case of vaccines there are only a couple of doses given, with the exception of the annual seasonal influenza vaccine.3 This, along with the hassle and cost to develop vaccines, makes vaccine production undesirable for companies that are looking to make money.2 It is also interesting to note that it would actually be far more profitable for pharmaceutical companies to treat these diseases rather than to prevent them.2 Some countries, such as Denmark, have decided that private industry should no longer be left to manufacture vaccines due to the important role they play in public health. For this reason, the Danish government decided it best to control the manufacture of vaccines themselves.2
Allergies and
Vaccines
Allergies may be of concern when choosing to vaccinate using a specific vaccine. There are two main allergies that are worth considering in regards to vaccines.
The first allergy is to yeast. Common baker’s yeast is used in hepatitis B-containing vaccines. The Merck and Co. version of the vaccine, known as Recombivax HB, contains only 1 mg per mL of yeast proteins. Other variations of the hepatitis B vaccine including Engerix-B (GlaxoSmithKline), Pediarix (protects against hepatitis B, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, and polio), and Twinrix (adult vaccine that contains both hepatitis A and hepatits B vaccines) each only contain 5 mg per mL of yeast proteins.3 When considering whether or not to receive the hepatitis B vaccine, it is important to remember that it is recommended for use even for those with allergies to yeast.5 Only about 1 in 600,000 cases of hepatitis B vaccine have been accompanied by allergic reaction and there is reason to believe that the reaction was not due to the yeast component of the vaccine.
A second allergy of concern when talking about vaccines is the allergy to eggs. Egg allergies are a bit more common in the pediatric population, but still only affect about 1 in every 500 infants. The severity of the allergy can range from mild to life-threatening.3 Two vaccines contain egg proteins, while only the seasonal influenza vaccine is on the recommended childhood immunization schedule.3,6 Though the yellow fever vaccine contains enough egg protein to induce an allergic reaction, amounts of egg protein in the influenza vaccine are very minimal.3 Patients with allergies to eggs may still receive the seasonal influenza vaccine, however should remain in the pediatrician’s office for about thirty minutes following administration of the vaccine.3
Allergies may be of concern when choosing to vaccinate using a specific vaccine. There are two main allergies that are worth considering in regards to vaccines.
The first allergy is to yeast. Common baker’s yeast is used in hepatitis B-containing vaccines. The Merck and Co. version of the vaccine, known as Recombivax HB, contains only 1 mg per mL of yeast proteins. Other variations of the hepatitis B vaccine including Engerix-B (GlaxoSmithKline), Pediarix (protects against hepatitis B, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, and polio), and Twinrix (adult vaccine that contains both hepatitis A and hepatits B vaccines) each only contain 5 mg per mL of yeast proteins.3 When considering whether or not to receive the hepatitis B vaccine, it is important to remember that it is recommended for use even for those with allergies to yeast.5 Only about 1 in 600,000 cases of hepatitis B vaccine have been accompanied by allergic reaction and there is reason to believe that the reaction was not due to the yeast component of the vaccine.
A second allergy of concern when talking about vaccines is the allergy to eggs. Egg allergies are a bit more common in the pediatric population, but still only affect about 1 in every 500 infants. The severity of the allergy can range from mild to life-threatening.3 Two vaccines contain egg proteins, while only the seasonal influenza vaccine is on the recommended childhood immunization schedule.3,6 Though the yellow fever vaccine contains enough egg protein to induce an allergic reaction, amounts of egg protein in the influenza vaccine are very minimal.3 Patients with allergies to eggs may still receive the seasonal influenza vaccine, however should remain in the pediatrician’s office for about thirty minutes following administration of the vaccine.3
Recommended Vaccine
Schedule (Birth-15 months)6
Figure Taken from: Centers for Disease Control “Recommended
Immunizations for Babies.”
Why is it important
to follow this schedule?
The number one reason to follow the
recommended schedule is because “If a baby is not too young to get the disease,
she is not too young to get the vaccine.”3 The schedule is created
in such a way that it provides protection for children against diseases at a
time that the immune system can create an adequate response so as to avoid any
repercussions of the disease.3 The schedule recommends vaccinating
children against diseases when they are most likely to contract the disease, or
at the biggest risk of suffering from complications of the disease. The reason
that infants are vaccinated so young is that the antibodies passed from mother
to child decrease over time. When this happens, it is important to provide the infant
with protection in the form of an immunization so that he or she can make his
own immune response.3
References
1. Offit, P.A., Quarles, J., Gerber, M.A., Hackett, C.J., et al. (2002) “Addressing Parents’
Concerns: Do Multiple Vaccines
Overwhelm or Weaken the Infants’ Immune System.” Pediatrics.
109(1):123-29.
2. Herlihy, Stacy Mintzer, and E. Allison. Hagood. Your
Baby's Best Shot: Why
Vaccines Are Safe and Save Lives.
Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2012.
3. "The Vaccine Education Center." The Children's
Hospital of Philadelphia. Ed. Paul A.
Offit. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec.
2012.
education-center/>.
4. Offit, Paul A. Deadly Choices: How the
Anti-Vaccine Movement Threatens Us All.
New
York: Basic, 2011. Print.
5. CDC Pinkbook Chapter 9, pgs 115-138.
6. "Recommended Immunizations for Babies." Centers
for Disease Control and
Prevention. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, 08 Mar. 2012. Web. 05 Dec. 2012. <
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/parents/rec-iz-babies.html>
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