Sweeping changes to baby vaccines

[Guest guest]

Sweeping changes to baby vaccines

By Celia Hall, Medical Editor

(Filed: 07/08/2004)

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Babies will no longer be given vaccine that contains the neurotoxin

mercury when they are eight weeks old.

The new injection will inoculate against diphtheria, tetanus,

whooping cough, hib and polio

The move follows pressure from parents and fears of a link between

the metal and the development of autism.

Doctors across the country are being sent letters telling them of

changes to the infant vaccine programme, which introduce a new five-

in-one jab at two months of age.

They are also being told to switch from live polio vaccine, given by

mouth, to an injection of a " killed " vaccine which avoids the rare

cases of polio contamination.

Campaigners welcomed the removal of mercury from children's vaccines

but were worried about giving babies five vaccines at once.

Jacquie Fletcher, founder of the parent support group Jabs (Justice,

Awareness and Basic Support), said yesterday: " Giving five vaccines

increases the risk of an adverse event as well as making it more

difficult to find out which element is the cause if something goes

wrong.

" I would also like to know why they have now decided to take mercury

out of the vaccine. We have major concerns about mercury.

" We need to be assured that the new vaccine is safe. I want to know

what safety and efficacy trials they have run which are large enough

to show up what may be rare events. "

The changes are expected to take place next month when sufficient

stocks of the new five-in-one vaccine have been amassed.

The new injection, the first a baby is given, will inoculate against

diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, hib and polio. The whooping

cough element is the part of the vaccine that has, until now,

contained mercury in a form called thiomersal.

Thiomersal is used in a range of household products and medicines as

an anti-fungal and antibacterial agent.

Much concern has been raised about the triple jab for measles, mumps

and rubella, and its links with autism, which have been strenuously

denied. There is a separate concern over links between mercury in

vaccines and autism.

The Department of Health has always said that there is no evidence

of such a link.

Dr English, consultant in communicable diseases at the Health

Protection Agency, says in the circular letter to GPs that there are

three reasons for the change. " The primary objectives are: to do

away with whole cell pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine; to do away

with live, oral polio vaccine and to do away with thiomersal

vaccines. "

Dr English asks doctors and other health professionals to treat the

information " sensitively and keep it within the circle of health

professionals " until the formal announcement, which will be made by

the chief medical officer, Prof Sir Liam son, on Monday.

There is to be no change to the meningitis C vaccine programme or to

the existing measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, which does not

contain mercury.

Prof Oxford, professor of virology at Barts and The London,

Queen 's School of Medicine and Dentistry, commenting on the

decision, said that if there was " any doubt whatsoever " about the

safety of mercury in vaccines then it should be removed.

He said there were no grounds for concern in giving five vaccines at

once: " I don't think anyone has shown a shred of evidence that

multiple vaccines can overwhelm the immune system.

" Every day our immune systems are exposed to much more than that. "

Publishers wishing to reproduce photographs on this page should

phone 44 (0) 207 538 7505 or e-mail syndication@...

[Guest guest]

Sweeping changes to baby vaccines

By Celia Hall, Medical Editor

(Filed: 07/08/2004)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;sessionid=3VU144TH3XSLXQFI

QMGSM5WAVCBQWJVC?

xml=/news/2004/08/07/nbaby07.xml & sSheet=/portal/2004/08/07/ixportalto

p.html & secureRefresh=true & _requestid=70007

Babies will no longer be given vaccine that contains the neurotoxin

mercury when they are eight weeks old.

The new injection will inoculate against diphtheria, tetanus,

whooping cough, hib and polio

The move follows pressure from parents and fears of a link between

the metal and the development of autism.

Doctors across the country are being sent letters telling them of

changes to the infant vaccine programme, which introduce a new five-

in-one jab at two months of age.

They are also being told to switch from live polio vaccine, given by

mouth, to an injection of a " killed " vaccine which avoids the rare

cases of polio contamination.

Campaigners welcomed the removal of mercury from children's vaccines

but were worried about giving babies five vaccines at once.

Jacquie Fletcher, founder of the parent support group Jabs (Justice,

Awareness and Basic Support), said yesterday: " Giving five vaccines

increases the risk of an adverse event as well as making it more

difficult to find out which element is the cause if something goes

wrong.

" I would also like to know why they have now decided to take mercury

out of the vaccine. We have major concerns about mercury.

" We need to be assured that the new vaccine is safe. I want to know

what safety and efficacy trials they have run which are large enough

to show up what may be rare events. "

The changes are expected to take place next month when sufficient

stocks of the new five-in-one vaccine have been amassed.

The new injection, the first a baby is given, will inoculate against

diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, hib and polio. The whooping

cough element is the part of the vaccine that has, until now,

contained mercury in a form called thiomersal.

Thiomersal is used in a range of household products and medicines as

an anti-fungal and antibacterial agent.

Much concern has been raised about the triple jab for measles, mumps

and rubella, and its links with autism, which have been strenuously

denied. There is a separate concern over links between mercury in

vaccines and autism.

The Department of Health has always said that there is no evidence

of such a link.

Dr English, consultant in communicable diseases at the Health

Protection Agency, says in the circular letter to GPs that there are

three reasons for the change. " The primary objectives are: to do

away with whole cell pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine; to do away

with live, oral polio vaccine and to do away with thiomersal

vaccines. "

Dr English asks doctors and other health professionals to treat the

information " sensitively and keep it within the circle of health

professionals " until the formal announcement, which will be made by

the chief medical officer, Prof Sir Liam son, on Monday.

There is to be no change to the meningitis C vaccine programme or to

the existing measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, which does not

contain mercury.

Prof Oxford, professor of virology at Barts and The London,

Queen 's School of Medicine and Dentistry, commenting on the

decision, said that if there was " any doubt whatsoever " about the

safety of mercury in vaccines then it should be removed.

He said there were no grounds for concern in giving five vaccines at

once: " I don't think anyone has shown a shred of evidence that

multiple vaccines can overwhelm the immune system.

" Every day our immune systems are exposed to much more than that. "

Publishers wishing to reproduce photographs on this page should

phone 44 (0) 207 538 7505 or e-mail syndication@...