The more I watch the Daily Show, a supposedly satirical parody of “real” news, the more I realize how far “real” news, especially the cable-variety, has fallen.
[Apologies to those who live outside the US]
Monday, October 26, 2009
The Swine Flu Vaccine Swindle
The opponents of vaccines are out if full force campaigning against the H1N1 vaccine, and like usual, their scare tactics consist primarily of patently erroneous claims, combined with absurd hyperbole and twisted “reasoning.”
One popular claim is that the vaccines have not been adequately tested; they have not gone through the normal FDA review process. A bit of research shows this to be a false claim. The seasonal flu vaccine is already approved and extensively tested, as per FDA requirements. When the FDA approved the seasonal flu vaccine, they also approved a method for changing the particular strains of influenza virus annually, without having to go through the approval process required for a new drug; in fact, without this sort of approval, the influenza vaccine would be useless, because the strains need to be changed every year, but it takes a number of years to get FDA approval for a new drug.
The FDA reviewed the H1N1 vaccine, and found that the vaccine itself was already approved under the original seasonal flu shot approval, as it consisted of a simple strain-change. Despite claims by anti-vaccine scaremongers, the distinction between the seasonal flu shot and the H1N1 vaccine is no different than the distinction between the 2009 seasonal flu shot and the 2008 seasonal flu shot. These are just different strains, and the H1N1 vaccine, in addition to all the tests required for FDA approval that were already conducted to approve the seasonal influenza vaccine, has, and is continuing to undergo safety tests.
What does make H1N1 different than the seasonal flu is that this is an apparently novel mutation that developed in a species other than humans, thus there is less immunity developed, and therefore it tends to be more virulent than other influenza strains. This seems especially true among younger people who contract the virus, while healthy older people seem to be fairly immune.
Another point of contention is the use of adjuvants. Adjuvants are chemicals that stimulate an immune response, which improves the efficacy of a vaccine, requiring a smaller dose. Adjuvants have widely been used in vaccines in the European Union for years, and there is no scientifically-supported reason to believe that they are unsafe; however, they have been the focus of a number of anti-vaccine diatribes. On the internet, it is common to find claims that the H1N1 vaccine contains the adjuvant squalene, which is dangerous. This claim is untrue on both counts. Squalene has been approved for use in Europe for years, and the FDA-approved version of the H1N1 vaccine for mass distribution does not contain squalene.
A final claim is that the H1N1 vaccine contains the preservative thimerosal, which has been linked to autism and other claimed medical maladies. Large scale studies have repeatedly disproved the hypothesis that thimerosal is correlated with autism; however celebrities (rarely with any medical credentials) like Jenny McCarthy keep popularizing this false claim. Thimerosal, at the tiny level used in vaccines, is safe. Furthermore, only the multi-dose versions of the H1N1 vaccine contains thimerosal. Americans can obtain a thimerosal-free vaccine by using the per-packaged syringe or nasal mist form, although they should not have to worry about doing so.
The media is also responsible for conflagrating fear, both about the H1N1 virus and the H1N1 vaccine, because fear sells. The bottom line is that the H1N1 is likely to sicken an individual, probably worse than the regular flu, but not likely to kill them. Nonetheless, indicators seem to show that H1N1 is an unusually virulent strain, especially among certain high-risk groups such as the young and pregnant women. As of this writing, the pediatric death toll is around the triple digit mark.
The risk of dying from H1N1 is small but real; the risk of being sickened is extremely high, and the risk from the vaccine is negligible. Everyone who cares about the health and well-being of themselves, their friends, and their family, should be vaccinated, and encourage the same of their loved-ones. Just keep in mind that with the shortage of supplies, those who are in lower-risk groups should wait until there are enough supplies of the vaccine for those at greatest risk.
REFERENCES (FURTHER READING):
[1]http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/vaccination/vaccine_safety_qa.htm
[2]http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/vaccination/thimerosal_qa.htm
[3]http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/vaccination/public/vaccination_qa_pub.htm
[4]http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=boosting-vaccine-power
[5]http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=pandemic-payoff
[6]http://washingtontimes.com/news/2009/oct/25/h1n1-a-national-emergency/
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