How a Vaccine Is Like a Banana — and Why That’s Good

For once, the antivaccine folks might be onto something. Want to see just a few of the chemicals that get pumped into the bodies of babies from the average vaccine? Try these: 2-methyl-butyraldehide, ethyl ethanoate, tocopherol, alpha-terpanine and a wicked slug of terpinyl-acetate. It’s a wonder our kids ever make it out of babyhood. Oh wait, my bad! Those aren’t the ingredients in a vaccine. Those are the ingredients in a blueberry. And the same is true for bananas and eggs too. One of the greatest misconceptions of the antivaxxers — and plenty of others — is that there’s some binary divide between anything that is chemical (and thus very bad) and natural (and thus very good). But nature is chemistry down to its last electron. For that matter, you’re nothing but chemistry, and while most of your body might be made of carbon, oxygen and hydrogen, there’s a nice helping of such nasties as lithium, strontium, aluminum, silicon, lead, vanadium and arsenic sprinkled in. That doesn’t stop the antivax crowd from howling about the ostensible toxins in vaccines and daring nonbelievers to try — just try — to read the package inserts and not come away terrified. O.K., so let’s do that. Package inserts are all available through the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. While any concerned parent is free to read them all (and then talk to a doctor for perspective on what they learn), let’s focus on just t...
Source: TIME.com: Top Science and Health Stories - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized aluminum anti-vaccine anti-vaxxers Autism Conspiracy Theories health ingredients inserts magnesium Thimerosal vaccines Source Type: news