Overview of SafeMinds Swine Flu Concerns

From our sponsor SafeMinds..

In light of the many unknowns concerning the possible Swine Flu Pandemic, SafeMinds is providing the following updates for informational purposes and to raise awareness regarding possible vaccine safety issues, policy decisions and facts regarding the production and possible use of the novel H1N1 vaccine currently being developed.

Our primary goal in raising these concerns it is to promote the production of the safest vaccine possible as our nation develops its strategy with regard to a possible pandemic.  Given past safety failures and vaccine injuries resulting from the 1976 Swine Flu Immunization Program, we believe that lessons from those failures, as documented by Institute of Medicine President Harvey Fineberg, MD, PhD, as well as the draft recommendations made by the National Vaccine Advisory Committee, H1N1 Vaccine Safety Subgroup, must be integrated into the current effort to improve protection for all individuals.  Life is precious and safety a priority in assuring the health of every man, woman and child.  Please visit often for updates and subscribe to our newsletter for current information.

Swine Flu Update - July 23rd

During the FDA's Vaccine and Related Biologic Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) meeting of July 23rd convened to address the possible swine flu pandemic, it was revealed that some of the novel (pandemic) H1N1 inactivated vaccine would contain thimerosal (a vaccine preservative containing mercury) – ten years after the vaccine industry was asked by public health agencies and organizations to remove it (see statement at end of page). It was also reported that most manufacturers were having difficulty growing the novel H1N1 virus, suggesting that an adjuvant may be needed to “spare antigen” and to increase vaccine production.  Additionally, the CDC’s ferret studies suggest that the novel H1N1 virus is not as contagious as has been reported. 

Notably, the committee was not furnished with any preclinical trial data, or FDA safety analyses, for the novel H1N1 vaccine, or the proposed adjuvants. Of concern is that the proposed adjuvants (AS03 & MF59) are squalene (oil) based and studies suggest that exposure to squalene is associated with production of auto-antibodies and auto-immune disease. Nor were safety analyses on administration the novel H1N1 vaccine with other vaccines, or with mercury-containing vaccines, provided for the committee's review.

The disconnect between CDC media announcements and advisory meeting comments suggest a campaign of “fear mongering” reminiscent of the 1976 swine flu vaccine fiasco.

To date, the H1N1 pandemic appears to be mild and there’s no evidence of increased virulence. As such, it seems highly irresponsible to recommend use of potentially dangerous vaccines - especially those with adjuvants combined with thimerosal - which have not been shown to be safe, or effective, by the FDA. 

Information provided by manufacturers during the FDA VRBPAC meeting indicate that In order to get this vaccine to market by the fall, none of the safety studies will be completed. It also appears that pregnant women and young children will be among the first to receive the experimental novel H1N1 vaccine - the same population most vulnerable to vaccine side effects and injury.

Given these concerns, SafeMinds will raise the following questions during the upcoming July 29th meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP):

• Should squalene-based adjuvants be used, what studies demonstrate that it’s safe to combine thimerosal (mercury) with squalene?

• Both CSL and Sanofi-Pasteur have indicated they can make pandemic mercury-free vaccine. Will ACIP state a preference for mercury-free vaccine for pregnant women, young children and vulnerable and special populations such as premies and immunocompromised children?

• How much mercury will be in multi-dose vials and what dose of mercury will be given to premies, infants, pregnant women and adults?

• Given that the National Vaccine Advisory Committee identified a gap in data demonstrating the safety of simultaneous administration of multiple vaccines during a given office visit, will ACIP recommend administration of H1N1 vaccine separately as a precaution and to permit identifying, tracking and analyzing and if necessary, removing a vaccine from the market as was the case in 1976? 

In 2000 “The AAFP (American Academy of Family Physicians), AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics), and the PHS (U.S. Public Health Service) in consultation with the ACIP (Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices) reaffirmed the goal set in July 1999 to remove or greatly reduce thimerosal from vaccines as soon as possible for the following reasons:

1. the removal or substantial reduction of thimerosal from vaccines is feasible,

2. the progress in removal which has been made to date is substantial,

3. the discussions between the Food and Drug Administration and the vaccine manufacturers in removing thimerosal are ongoing, and

4. the public concern about the use of mercury of any sort remains high.”
   
   The 2006 url where this statement appeared is no longer active for reasons unknown www.cdc.gov/nip/vacsafe/concerns/thimerosal/joint_statement.00.htm  

Comments

[Terri Lewis]

I wrote a letter to our primary school principal, stating concerns and questions regarding the "mass vaccination" swine flu "clinic" they are planning to have at school.

My kids will *not* be getting anywhere near this shot. . .but I hope it raises some questions for other parents, too.

I hate to see this happening to kids because their parents just don't know any better.

Maybe I can convince them to at least require a doctor's approval, as they do before distributing Tylenol or vitamins at school.

[PHIL]

The Ah1n1 virus has been confirmed as being man made...1 part avian, 2 parts swine, and 2 parts human RNA...from separate parts of the world! Create a man made biological agent, release it on the world, create it's cure that has worse side effects than the agent, and then manufacture the drugs that people will be taking for the rest of their lives because of the side effects,all caused by the cure. What a better way to get some of the 7 billion dollars allocated by our government to fight the disease. The dollar amount is just in this country (U.S.A.)...this event is world wide event,and 100's of billions of dollars are a stake for BIG PHARM....one of the largest if not the largest lobbing bodies in Washington. BIG PHARM has manufacturing plants all over the world.....and our worlds peoples are getting sicker and sicker. An old sixties saying was "if your not part of the solution....your part of the problem". Thanks for considering my input...PHIL

[PHIL]

I subscribe to Dr. Mercola and concur with his points of view, and it makes me feel good to see his statements on your web site...keep up the great work!! A friend of mine asked me the difference between the Obama administration and the Bush jr. administration...I said that Obama knew the meaning of and could spell "STATUS QUO"!!! Thank you... PHIL

[teddy bear]

How about the lobby...
Top All-Time Donors 1989-2008

58 Pfizer Inc $13,201,017
67 GlaxoSmithKline $10,892,244
84 Eli Lilly & Co $8,979,924
96 Bristol-Myers Squibb $7,282,437

All these companies donating money to the congress? And you call people lunatics for distrusting CDC because 2003 study has been dismissed and flawed, and other studies since been labeled biased due to conflict of interest? I wonder who is paying who to sit here and discredit descent people with one serious question - why is it still in the vaccines?

2004 study:

Conflicts of interest in new CDC Thimerosal study of 2004:

Dr. Thompson - former employee of Merck;

Dr. Marcy, receiving consulting fees from Merck, Sanofi Pasteur, GlaxoSmithKline, and MedImmune;

Dr. Jackson, receiving grant support from Wyeth, Sanofi Pasteur, GlaxoSmithKline, and Novartis, lecture fees from Sanofi Pasteur, and consulting fees from Wyeth and Abbott and serving as a consultant to the FDA Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee;

Dr. Lieu, serving as a consultant to the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices;

Dr. Black, receiving consulting fees from MedImmune, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis, and Merck and grant support from MedImmune, GlaxoSmithKline, Aventis, Merck, and Novartis;

and Dr. Davis receiving consulting fees from Merck and grant support from Merck and GlaxoSmithKline.

[Online Activist]

An earlier comment proposed starting an Autism-related petition. If you are going to start an online petition, the place to do it is the PetitionSite (http://www.thepetitionsite.com) which part of Care2, the 11 million-member social network for people seeking to "make a difference." Care2 has been around for many years and has an army of do-gooders (including me) participating in lots of great causes.

Of course, you can also start the same petition on the other site that was proposed - Change.org. But that site just started last year, I think, and their own site says they have only about 400K members so far, so the petition won't reach as many people.

[Autism Grandma]

Everyone is at risk of serious damages from these flu shots, especially this multiple swine flu which contains strains from H1N1 and bird flu in addition to the swine flu. [Sounds like the triple dose MMR version of the flu vaccine] Obviously our autistic children are in the greatest risk category, especially considering the possibility of mandated vaccines with no exemptions considered. They have also increased the dose from one to two now (so they can make twice as much $$$$) There has NEVER been a flu shot with 3 multiple strains like this one, and there has never been a regular flu vaccine that required TWO doses. They are also "recommending" two doses of the regular flu vaccines now, so the uneducated public is going to be blindly marching their children into the flu shot lines for FOUR vaccines, with the multiple potential for severe health damages being monumental.

Here are some excerpts from an excellent article by Dr. Mercola.
Read the entire article here: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/07/28/What-are-the-Dangers-of-Mandatory-Swine-Flu-Vaccination.aspx

Do Drug Companies Secretly Favor a World Flu Pandemic?

By Dr. Mercola

Where is the Logic in Mass-Vaccinating Kids?
Never mind the serious health risks of flu vaccines, which I’ll get to shortly. What happened to common sense?

Why are your school-age children being targeted by the Department of Health and Human Services as the “first priority” for novel H1N1 vaccinations that have not undergone adequate safety testing?

Per WHO, most cases of severe and fatal swine flu infections have occurred in people aged 30 to 50. Many of those cases were seen in people who were already ill with disorders like asthma, heart disease, diabetes, autoimmune diseases and obesity.

Additionally, the swine flu virus presents much less threat of death to Americans than all other strains of influenza combined![5]

Why is your healthy youngster, who is highly unlikely to contract a severe case of swine flu, about to go to the front of the line to receive two doses of a rushed-to-market flu vaccine?

Worse yet, if you have a child with an established health condition, do you really want him or her injected with an experimental vaccine?

Children with underlying health problems will likely be the first to receive the vaccine, since they will be considered the most probable group to develop severe cases of the H1N1 virus. Unfortunately, these children are also the ones most vulnerable to serious side effects from the vaccine.

Your Child May Be Pushed to Get FOUR Flu Shots This Fall

On July 15th, Dr. Pascale Wortley, the U.S. CDC’s pandemic vaccine coordinator, announced,

"This vaccine campaign will unfold quite differently than seasonal flu. This is a huge endeavor we''re gearing up for."

According to the latest CDC recommendations, school children who have never had a flu shot may need four flu shots this fall. Two doses of the seasonal flu vaccine, and another two against the swine flu. Most everyone else should expect three shots.

Looking on the bright side, there are still two slivers of relief in this madness.

It appears the pandemic flu shots (like the seasonal flu vaccine) are still voluntary, although most evidence strongly suggest that compulsory vaccinations is a HIGH probability.
About 20 percent of the vaccines created will be preservative-free, and made available to children and pregnant women who want them
Adults, however, will receive shots from multi-dose vials that WILL contain thimerosal.

That said, please read on to find out why opting for a preservative-free vaccine is likely not enough if you want to protect the health of your child, and why you and your family may be FAR better off avoiding both the seasonal- and pandemic flu vaccines.

Flu Shots Simply Don’t Work

Because addressing the potential side effects of these untested swine flu vaccines is not the only problem here. Numerous studies have shown that flu shots simply do not work. Why would this case be any different?

For example:

According to the 2006 Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 51 separate studies concluded the flu vaccine worked no better than a placebo in 260,000 children ranging in age from six months to 23 months.

A study published in the October 2008 Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine found flu vaccines in young children have made no difference in the number of flu-related doctor and hospital visits.

As reported in a 2004 publication of the Archives of Disease in Childhood, a study of 800 children with asthma concluded those receiving a flu vaccine had a significantly increased risk of asthma-related doctor and emergency room visits.[6]

A more recent study released at the 2009 American Thoracic Society International Conference showed children with asthma who received FluMist had a 3-fold increased risk for hospitalization.[7]

And not only are vaccines ineffective in preventing flu in your children, they are equally useless for adults, including the elderly.

According to the 2007 Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, studies of over 65,000 healthy adults concluded vaccinations reduced the risk of flu by only six percent, and reduced missed work days by less than a single day. Vaccinations did not reduce the number of people who sought medical help or took time off from work.[8]

The 2006 Cochrane Database also includes a review of 64 vaccination studies of the elderly across nearly 100 flu seasons. The studies showed flu vaccines were ineffective in preventing the flu in either nursing home patients or elderly living in the community.[9]

A study published in the Lancet last year found that influenza vaccination was NOT associated with a reduced risk of pneumonia in older people. This supports a study done five years ago, published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Research published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine also confirms that there has been no decrease in deaths from influenza and pneumonia, despite the fact that vaccination coverage among the elderly has increased from 15 percent in 1980 to 65 percent now.

Last year, researchers with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and the National Institutes of Health published this conclusion in the Lancet Infectious Diseases:

“We conclude that frailty selection bias and use of non-specific endpoints such as all-cause mortality have led cohort studies to greatly exaggerate vaccine benefits.”

Flu Vaccines Pose Significant Health Risks to Your Children

Most flu vaccines contain dangerous levels of mercury in the form of thimerosal, a deadly preservative that is 50 times more toxic than regular mercury.[10] If taken in high enough doses, it can result in long-term immune, sensory, neurological, motor, and behavioral dysfunctions.

Disorders associated with mercury poisoning include autism, attention deficit disorder, multiple sclerosis, and speech and language deficiencies.

The Institute of Medicine has warned that infants, children, and pregnant women should not be injected with thimerosal, and yet the majority of flu shots contain 25 micrograms of it.

It has been calculated that, by age two, American children have received 237 micrograms of mercury from vaccines alone, which far exceeds the current EPA “safe” level of 0.1 mcg/kg per day.

CAN SOMEONE START A PETITION AT CHANGE.ORG REGARDING "STOP MANDATED VACCINES"???!!! Go Here: http://www.change.org/start_a_petition There doesn't appear to be a specific petition regarding this in searching under "Mandated Vaccines Petition".

I can't manage another project right now or I would do this myself (if I was not on the verge of a nervous breakdown already)

[jennifer]

our newspaper had an article today (Calgary Herald) about how Ignatieff is accusing Harper of "dragging his heels" on a swine flu policy. I wrote a letter saying, yeah, because it's so smart to rush right into these things and not worry about safety regarding squaline, mercury etc. when you look at the vaccine injuries after the /76 swine flu.
I noticed that at least on the "National" news last night that they included an interview with a few University students who said that there was a lot of fear-mongering going on and that a friend who had swine flu was not very ill at all. Let's hope that some healthy questioning will prevail.

[Bruce Vanicek]

SWINE FLU VACCINE?.......

WHEN PIGS FLY!!!

[julie]

Squalene plus mercury this is going to be a disaster.

[curt linderman sr]

sounds a bit too PC for me. there's no such thing as a safe vaccine the way these idiots know how to manufacture them. Squalene isn't "suggested" to be harmful or cause huge anti-body response" it's been proven, just like Thimerosal has been PROVEN to kill cells! The problem is: squalene make thimerosal look like purified water! what's gonna happen when the CDC tells pregnant women and children"don't worry...this is a mercury free vaccine" but they have no clue that there's squalene in it!
I personally am sick and tired of political correctness when poeple are gonna end seriously injured or dead from these idiots.

[Milco]

Written below is a THE headline on Swedish best Newspaper on the internet www.dn.se
It opens with:

Vaccinering föder konspirationsteorier
Flammande appeller på nätet. Men konspirationsteorierna är inte allenarådande – det finns också seriöst oroliga som undrar över biverkningar av vaccinet.

Translation in English roughly:
Vaccination feeds conspiracytheories.
Heavy discussions about that on the internet.
But conspiracies are not the only thing....
there is serious unrest about possible side effects of the vaccine.

I just want to inform you how breaking and hot news this is in Sweden and they start vaccinating soon

[Mike]

For #4 above, I guess they removed it because they changed their opinion. CDC's site now states that "CDC shares with parents and many others great concern about the number of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD)." http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/updates/thimerosal.htm

It goes on to state that "evidence from several studies examining trends in vaccine use and changes in autism frequency does not support" an association of increased exposure to thimerosal. "Furthermore, a scientific review by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) concluded that 'the evidence favors rejection of a causal relationship between thimerosal-containing vaccines and autism.' CDC the IOM conclusion."

The IOM is a component of the National Academy of Sciences. their "final report" is here: http://www.iom.edu/CMS/3793/4705/20155.aspx

If we want to benefit from community-based immunization programs, we must assure that they are as effective and safe as possible, and indeed that the puublic trusts them. even

[Teresa Conrick]

Way to go! Great facts and excellent questions. This is the main point and one in which I would like to see answered by FDA, CDC, or any organization/person who is part of the Swine Flu vaccination push:

"To date, the H1N1 pandemic appears to be mild and there’s no evidence of increased virulence. As such, it seems highly irresponsible to recommend use of potentially dangerous vaccines - especially those with adjuvants combined with thimerosal - which have not been shown to be safe, or effective, by the FDA."

btw - I'm wearing my SafeMinds "Mercury Rising, Not Cool" shirt right now...then sleeping in my A0A shirt.