FDA Says A-OK: Vaccine Ingredients from A to Z
By Kent Heckenlively, Esq.
The late, great Senator from New York, Daniel Patrick Moynihan once said, "Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts."
In that spirit I offer the following list of ingredients used in vaccines approved for use as compiled by the United States government and which can be found HERE.
My own opinion will follow the list, but for now I present the list with what I hope will be perceived as a few simple, objective observations and explanations.
Albumin from eggs, humans, and cows are used as a growth medium. Albumin refers generally to proteins with water solubility, normally found in blood or serum.
Aluminum hydroxide, aluminum phosphate, and aluminum potassium sulfate are all used as adjuvants to stimulate the immune system. Aluminum products found in commercial antiperspirants have been linked with breast cancer. A recent article published in the Journal of Inorganic Chemistry based on research from Keele University in England was trying to explain the “known, but unaccounted for, higher incidence of tumors in the upper outer quadrant of the breast.” They found that aluminum content was higher in the outer regions where there would be the highest density of antiperspirant. In discussing aluminum’s potential danger the report stated, “Aluminum is a metalloestrogen, it is genotoxic, is bound by DNA and has been shown to be carcinogenic. It is also a pro-oxidant and this unusual property might provide a mechanistic basis for any putative carcinogenicity. The confirmed presence of aluminum in breast tissue biopsies highlights its potential as a possible factor in the etiology of breast cancer.”
Amino acids are used as components of growth mediums.
Ammonium sulfate is used for protein fractionation. When not used in vaccines, it is commonly utilized as an agricultural fertilizer.
Amphotericin B is used as an antibacterial. This drug is often used intravenously for system-wide fungal infections.
Ascorbic acid (vitamin C) is used as an antioxidant. You can also get it in your morning orange juice.
Bacto-peptone is used as a component of a growth medium. It is derived from a papaic digest (enzymatic activity) of gelatin.
Beta-propiolactone is used as a viral inactivator. It is listed as an air contaminant under the Occupational and Safety Health Act, an extremely hazardous substance under the Superfund, and a hazardous air pollutant under the Clean Air Act.
Benzethonium chloride is used as a preservative. It is also used as a topical antimicrobial agent in cosmetics and personal care products like anti-itch ointments and anti-bacterial moist towelettes. It is toxic orally because it may cause failure in neuromuscular transmission as a result of pathological disturbances at the myoneural junction.
Bovine (cow) protein is used as a vaccine culture media.
Brilliant green is a dye used in vaccines. In addition to being used to dye silk and wood, it’s also effective against gram-positive microorganisms.
Calf skin is used as a vaccine culture media.
Chick kidney cells are used as a vaccine culture media.
Chicken embryos from fertilized eggs are used as a vaccine culture media.
Cohen-Wheeler, modified pertussis components are used as a vaccine culture media.
DNA is a manufacturing residue found in the vaccines.
Ethylenediamine-tetraacetic acid sodium (EDTA) is used as a preservative. Hey, isn’t that the chelating agent that when we use it is supposed to be so dangerous?
Egg protein is found as a manufacturing residue. (Aren’t some people allergic to eggs?)
Formaldehyde is used as an anti-microbial and preservative. I’m sure we all remember that wonderful chemical smell from biology when we did dissections.
Gelatin is used as a stabilizer in freeze-drying and as a solvent.
Gentamicin is used as an anti-bacterial. It works by binding the 30s subunit of the bacterial ribosome, interrupting protein synthesis.
Glutaraldehyde is used as a toxin detoxifier. It’s used for industrial water treatment and as a chemical preservative. However, it can be toxic, having the ability to cause severe eye, nose, throat and lung irritation, along with headaches, drowsiness and dizziness.
Glycerin is used as a solvent.
Glycine is used as a protein stabilizer.
Human diploid tissue culture, specifically WI-38, is used as a vaccine culture media. This cell line was developed in 1962 by the Wistar Institute in Sweden from the lung cells of an aborted female fetus. The parents were reported to be healthy.
Human diploid tissue culture, specifically MRC-5, is used as a vaccine culture media. This cell line was developed by the Medical Research Council of England from the lung tissue of a fourteen-week old male fetus, removed for psychiatric reasons from the mother in 1970.
Hydrochloric acid is used to adjust pH.
Lactose is used as a stabilied as a solvent. Many autistic and even otherwise healthy children have trouble with milk products.
Lathman medium derive from bovine casein (cow’s milk) is used as a vaccine culture media.
Linggoud-Fenton media containing bovine extract (cow parts) is used as a vaccine culture media.
Glycine is used as a protein stabilizer.
Hydrochloric acid is used to adjust pH.
Magnesium stearate is used as a lubricant for capsule filling.
Monkey kidney tissue culture, specifically from Vervet or African green monkeys, is used as a vaccine culture media.
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is used as a stabilizer. Many Chinese restaurants advertise that their food is MSG-free. I wonder if that means it’s healthier?
Mouse brain is used as a vaccine culture media. I’ll bet you’d never have guessed that one.
Mouse serum protein is found as a manufacturing residue.
Mueller-Miller media is used as a vaccine culture media.
MRC-5 cellular protein is also found as a manufacturing residue. This protein is derived from the lung tissue of a male fetus which was aborted in England in 1970.
Neomycin is used as an anti-bacterial. It is also nephrotoxic and can cause kidney damage.
Phenol is used as a preservative and antibacterial. Phenols refer to any compound which contains a six-membered aromatic ring, bonded directly to a hydroxyl group.
Phenol red, or phenolsulfonphthalein, is used as a dye and pH indicator. It is also a weak estrogen mimic and can enhance the growth in culture of cells that express the estrogen receptor.
2-Phenoxyethanol is used as a preservative. It has the ability to inhibit phagocyte activity, meaning it is toxic to all cells. It can cause systemic poisoning, headaches, shock, weakness, convulsions, kidney damage, cardiac failure, and death.
Phosphate buffers such as disodium, monosodium, potassium sodium, and sodium dihydrogen phosphate are used to adjust pH.
Polydimethylsilozone is used as an anti-foaming agent.
Polyethylene glycol p-isooctylphenyl ether (Triton X-100) is used for viral inactivation. (I wonder what else it might inactivate?)
Polymyxin B is used as an anti-bacterial. It binds to the cell membrane and alters its structure, making it more permeable. The resulting water uptake leads to cell death. Side effects include neurotoxicity and acute renal tubular necrosis.
Polyoxyethylene 9-10 nonyl phenol (Triton N-101, octoxynol 9) is used for viral inactivation.
Polysorbate 20 is used as a surfactant. It is used as a wetting ingredient in flavored mouth drops helping to provide the spreading feeling of the other ingredients like SD alcohol and mint flavor. The World Health Organization has suggested acceptable daily intake limits of 0-25 mg of polyoxyethylene sorbitan esters per kg body weight
Polyscorbate 80 is used as a surfactant. This chemical is often used in ice cream to prevent milk proteins from completely coating the fat droplets. This allows them to join together in chains and nets, to hold air in the mixture, and provide a firmer texture, holding its shape as the ice cream melts.
Potassium glutamate is used as a stabilizer.
Rhesus monkey fetal lung tissue culture is used as a vaccine culture media. At least we’re more closely related to monkeys than mice!
Sodium acetate is used to adjust pH. Sodium acetate is the chemical that gives salt and vinegar chips their flavor.
Sodium borate is used to adjust pH. This substance is toxic to all cells, and has a slow excretion rate through the kidneys. Kidney toxicity is the greatest, with liver fatty degeneration, cerebral edema, and gastroenteritis. Boric acid solutions used as an eye wash or on abraded skin are known to be especially toxic to infants, especially after repeated use because of its slow elimination rate. Sodium borate is banned in the United States in food products.
Sodium chloride is used to adjust tonicity. Also known as common table salt.
Sodium hydroxide is used to adjust pH. Solid sodium hydroxide or solutions containing high concentrations of sodium hydroxide may cause chemical burns, permanent injury or scarring, and blindness.
Sorbitol is used as a stabilizer and solvent. Ingesting large amounts of sorbitol can lead to some abdominal pain, gas, and mild to severe diarrhea. Sorbitol can also aggravate irritable bowel syndrome. Even in the absence of dietary sorbitol, cells also produce sorbitol naturally. When too much sorbitol is produced inside cells, it can cause damage. Diabetic retinopathy and neuropathy may be related to excess sorbitol in the cells of the eyes and nerves. The source of this sorbitol in diabetics is excess glucose, which goes through the polyol pathway.
Soy peptone broth is used as a vaccine culture media.
Stainer-Scholte is used as a vaccine culture media.
Streptomycin is used as an anti-bacterial. Streptomycin stops bacterial growth by damaging cell membranes and inhibiting protein synthesis. Specifically, it binds to the 16S rRNA of the bacterial ribosome, interfering with the binding of formyl-methionyl-tRNA to the 30S subunit. This prevents initiation of protein synthesis. Humans have structurally different ribosomes from bacteria, thereby allowing the selectivity of this antibiotic for bacteria. Streptomycin cannot be given orally, but must be administered by regular intramuscular injection. An adverse effect of this medicine is oto-toxicity. It can result in permanent hearing loss.
Sucrose is used as a stabilizer. Over-consumption of sucrose has been linked with some adverse health effects. The most common is dental caries or tooth decay, in which oral bacteria convert sugars (including sucrose) from food into acids that attack tooth enamel. When a large amount of foods that contain a high percentage of sucrose is consumed, beneficial nutrients can be displaced from the diet, which can contribute to an increased risk for chronic disease. It has been suggested that sucrose-containing drinks may be linked to the development of obesity and insulin resistance.
Thimerosal (mercury) is used as a preservative. We know the controversy this chemical has caused.
Unspecified vitamins are used as a component of a growth medium for the vaccines.
Yeast proteins are used as a component of growth mediums.
Okay, there’s no Z, but the list above contains just abut every other letter in the alphabet. Personally, I was exhausted by the time I got to thimerosal. But now you have a little more complete information about what’s in commercial vaccines, aside from the mercury and viruses.
I found forty-two different ingredients in the vaccines which cause me concern, especially when one is listed as an air contaminant under the Occupational and Safety Health Act (beta-propiolactone), causes “pathological disturbances at the myoneural junction (benzethonium chloride), or in the case of streptomycin which can cause hearing loss, cannot be administered orally.
In deference to Senator Moynihan I understand this is my opinion. What’s yours?
Kent Heckenlively has worked as an attorney, television producer, and is now a beloved science teacher.
I belong to The Canary Group that put together this video. It is worth watching if you are concerned about vaccines.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5m_1X_iLVGA&feature=youtu.be
Posted by: Athais | July 13, 2011 at 05:04 PM
You have to read up on these things to really understand the pros and cons of vaccines. What many people don't know is that the amount of thimerosal has been reduced due to the outpouring of concern that thimerosal causes autism. Prior to reducing the amount of thimerasol found in vaccines, the amount that children were receiving was tremendous for their little bodies.
Many European countries will not allow children less than 2 years of age to be vaccinated because of concerns about the ability of the liver to handle the toxins that are present in vaccines. Why don't we do that in the U.S.? What drives pharmaceuticals to push, push, push their vaccines?
There are many things that people don't know about vaccines. I would suggest that people read the book The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. This is a woman who had cervical cancer. The doctor that removed the cancer also removed some of her normal cells to be sent to a colleague's laboratory. This colleague was attempting to grow human cells in a culture medium, a feat that was only done with mouse cells. Up to this point, he was not successful. He attempted to grow Henrietta's normal cells, but was unsuccessful. He was very successful with her cancerous cells. He was so successful that researchers making vaccines were interested in acquiring these cells for making vaccines. Polio is one of those vaccines. Through the use of these virulent cancer cells in making vaccines, it is possible that cancer was spread to hundreds, possibly thousands, of people. Remarkably, Henrietta's cells are still used today.
I would also suggest reading The Cause of Cancer Revealed: The Vaccination Connection. This follows along the line of the previous book. It also talks about how vaccines are harming the immune system, causing the immune system to be less effective, thus not able to fight off cancer.
It is very possible that HIV in humans was started through a vaccination program in Nigeria and later in New York City. The vaccines were made from the cells of a monkey that carried the monkey form of HIV. When they finally realized that the cells were contaminated, it was too late. The damage had already been done and the pharmaceuticals didn't want to admit that they had caused the infection for fear of being sued.
Another great book is Vaccination, Social Violence, and Criminality: The Medical Assault on the American Brain. Basically, the book discusses the fact that vaccines can do harm to the brain that will cause psychotic and antisocial disorders.
Another book that is excellent is A Shot in the Dark: Why the P in the DPT vaccination may be hazardous to your child's health. The title says it all.
I always have to question the use of vaccines. There is herd immunity, whereby if 80% of the population is vaccination, the remaining unvaccinated 20% is protected from getting the disease. If this is so, why have they had outbreaks of pertussis (whooping cough) and measles in Pennsylvania? Additionally, exactly how affective are vaccinations when people who were vaccinated and up-to-date on their booster shots come down with the disease when it is introduced into their area?
It is said that the chickenpox vaccination saves 500 children's lives in the United States every year. The problem is that, prior to the vaccination, when children came down with chickenpox, they were exposing the adults to it, creating, essentially, a booster shot that prevented adults that had had chickenpox as children and now had the virus lying dormant from having an outbreak of shingles. So now we are seeing people in their 20s and 30s coming down with shingles. Where few adults died from shingles, we now have 500 adults dying every year from shingles. Either way, there are 500 lives lost. The question is, are children's lives more important than adult lives? That is a hard question to answer.
Yes, there is the zostavac that prevents shingles or, at least, reduces the severity of them. It doesn't come without risks, as it increases the person's chance of getting neuralgia. Is that a fair trade-off?
Then we have to wonder what all these vaccinations are doing to the child's immune system. A child can receive a large number of vaccinations in one visit. The number is limited by the number of injection areas available. If the child is a toddler, you can put maybe two or three shots in each vastus lateralis muscle (thigh). That's six shots!! If the child is over 3 years of age, they can do six shots in the thighs and another two shots in each deltoid muscle. That is 10 shots in one visit!!!
How does that affect the immune system? I got one shot, the tDap vaccination, and was sick for days and ended up with cellulitis that required hospitalization and IV antibiotic therapy. What risks are we putting children under when we give them 6 - 10 different vaccinations at one time?
I think that it is time that parents start getting educated about vaccinations and questioning the need for them. If a vaccination needs to be boostered over and over again, isn't it better to let the child get the disease and be totally protected? If a vaccination can possibly fail due to not eliciting an antibody/antigen reaction in the child, what good is that vaccine? The problem is that we don't know if it fails unless a titer is run or until the vaccine actually does fail.
To me, it just seems more reasonable to have the child be exposed to the disease, develop active natural immunity, and be protected for life instead of taking the chance of exposing them to cancer, HIV, or other harmful substances that are considered occupational hazards by the EPA via vaccines.
All I can say is READ. Read as much and as varied material as you can get your hands on. Start with the material I just pointed out to you. Become educated so that you can make the right choice for your child. You don't have to immunize them. If you don't want to, then tell the doctor so. When they enter school, DEMAND a waiver. You have the right to not have your child vaccinated. Don't let them bully you into doing something that you don't want your child to have.
Posted by: Athais | July 12, 2011 at 10:26 PM
Recently I ran across an old myth, that America Indians put large amounts of honeysuckle vines in streams to stupifiy fish.
I was told that honeysuckle as a toxin in it all saponins in it.
Looking up soponins, it is found in lots of plants. It is a secondary metabolite-that means it messes up the mitochondria but not in an out right kill like a primary metabolite, but rather as a prolong illness.
It lowers cholesterol too, which my husband and children since their reaction to a vaccine can not take cholesterol lowering drugs because it makes them extremely weak.
Cholesterol is important in making coQ10 which goes on to make acetyl coline and then the energy bond. Cholesterol is also important in making with the help of the sun vitamin D. Very important for the immune system.
Saponin is used as an adjuvant in vaccines???!!!!! I wonder what vaccines?
All or some?
Posted by: Benedetta | November 03, 2009 at 12:47 PM
Interesting that this thread gets bumped by two trolls in a short span of time.
Hey scientist and father,
Thanks for the chastisement. It's guys like you and "Dean" and "John Noble" who embolden me to continue to spread the message that medical science has been hijacked by corporate, unethethical interests and enabled by elitists and finger-waggers like you. So you're a father and a "scientist." Since when has science been a rank badge you wear on your shoulder?
Both you guys, if you really stand behind the opinion that vaccination is wholly safe for 99.99% of the pop. and herd immunity must be upheld at all and any cost, try this: go get the full round of shots that little Hannah Poling got which caused her "autism-like symptoms" and put your money where your mouth is. And the seasonal flu, and H1N1, and gardasil to boot. All in one day. Extra points if you get double or triple dose, cause after all, theoretically a child could get close to 100,000 vaccines, according to Offit.
Film it and youtube it. Only then can there be a fair and impartial dialogue.
"Failing in your responsibility to the public." My God, have you no shame or sense of irony?
Posted by: Josh | November 03, 2009 at 11:52 AM
Yes, the dose makes the poison. I'm a scientist and father of an autistic child and I agree with Mr Noble that you are failing in your responsibility to the public to get your facts straight. .
Posted by: Chris | November 03, 2009 at 11:20 AM
Dean, interesting comment. So out of the blue. And on a random post from ages ago. Huh. I have to wonder if your Google search went awry and you ended up at the website of John "the Buttman" Stagliano instead of Kim "the Autism Mom" Stagliano.
You want to talk immoral? Come to my girls' autism classrooms and take a look at what's happened to these kids.
Kim Stagliano
Posted by: Stagmom for Dean | August 24, 2008 at 08:04 AM
Your position and site are immoral.
Posted by: dean cameron | August 24, 2008 at 03:03 AM
A responsible blogger would compare the levels of these chemicals present in the vaccines with the levels required to produce the toxic effects you claim. Since there isn't any epidemiological evidence that vaccinations increase any of them, I'm guessing they're substantially lower.
With regard to your crack about EDTA: again, the dose makes the poison. Since chelating with EDTA has killed people and vaccines have never caused a chelation related death, I'm again guessing the issue would be the concentration of EDTA used in chelation "therapy".
Posted by: Jamie | June 23, 2008 at 05:15 AM
Hi John Noble,
Please offer the scientific studies on the safety of injected aluminum, of any variety. Thanks.
Posted by: MinorityView | June 10, 2008 at 10:22 AM
I read in a CRC book of abstracts called "The Neurotoxicity of Aluminium in Infants," In 1990 the French banned aluminium in vaccines because of it's toxicity.
Posted by: Holly H. | June 10, 2008 at 06:35 AM
Wow. Your comment that "Aluminum products found in commercial antiperspirants have been linked with breast cancer" actually - literally - stopped me mid-drink, such was its inanity.
Your inability to grasp the fundamentals of basic chemistry - the fact that the "aluminium products" in commercial antiperspirants are likely to be as far removed from any aluminium product in a vaccine as they are from the alloy used in aircraft shell construction - shows that you are not qualified to be writing this blog post.
You have a moral responsibility to the public to get your facts straight. You are not fulfilling this responsibility and are culpably responsible for the harm which will ensue.
Posted by: John Noble | June 10, 2008 at 03:17 AM