Much earlier this year, I read an article that surprised me. The article stated that, here in New Jersey, more children are unvaccinated now than ten years ago. COVID-19 started five years ago, so that added to my surprise: a decline that started pre-COVID. The article gave a county-by-county breakdown, with increases ranging from an 85% increase to a whopping 290% increase in unvaccinated children.
When you mention vaccines in this country, people's ears prick up. It is a rather contentious issue in this country (and around the world, for that matter). Most people think the controversy around vaccines is a new thing or has been going on for a while. Some would say it peaked in the 2020's because of COVID-19. Some would say it goes back further, to the 1990's with the Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR) vaccine. Still other might say it goes even further than that, to the 1970's with Diphtheria-Pertussis-Tetanus (DPT) vaccine.
Actually, the debate over, and outright fight against, vaccines goes all the way back to the 1700's and the original American colonies. (Yes, that far back.)
The big argument then surrounded the smallpox disease. An outbreak of smallpox in Boston even prompted a Puritan minister, the Rev. Cotton Mather, to support the vaccine's use. The controversy surrounded the vaccine containing a mild form of the disease (called variolation). The intent was to allow the body's own immune system to fight the disease in order to protect it from contracting a serious, and possibly lethal, case of smallpox. (Rev. Mather was even physically attacked for his stance.)
While the final smallpox vaccine wasn't discovered until near the end of the century, the widespread acceptance and use of the vaccine also caused a rise in opposition. The Anti-Vaccination Society of America, founded in 1879, was the first of many groups against the vaccine. The opposition was so great, it resulted in a landmark Supreme Court case in 1905, Jacobson v. Massachusetts, which decided that individual states had the right to require vaccinations for public health reasons. The plaintiff, Rev. Henning Jacobson, said the vaccine mandate violated his personal liberty and rights under the Fourteenth Amendment.
Sound familiar?
The DPT vaccine came under attack in the 1970's and 1980's, when people in America and the United Kingdom claimed the pertussis part of the vaccine was unsafe, allegedly causing neurological problems. While a whole-cell pertussis vaccine did cause rare side effects (e.g. seizures, persistent crying, hypotonic-hyporesponsive episodes [going limp and unresponsive]), further research led to an updated, even safer version of the vaccine.
The 1990's saw the use Thimerosol in certain childhood flu vaccines as a preservative causing elevated concern due to it containing mercury. While studies had concluded it was safe, and not causing brain damage, as was asserted, it was eventually decided just this year to remove it from any and all of the few remaining vaccines containing it.
The MMR vaccine didn't come out until 1971 -- I could have used that one, as I had a case of the mumps when I was young -- but attacks on it peaked in the late 1990's. Beginning in 1998, and continuing through the early 2000's, an English surgeon, Dr. Andrew Wakefield began to speak out against the vaccine, claiming it caused autism in children. Twelve of his colleagues joined him in publishing a case series in Lancet, a medical journal. It sparked a mass hysteria resulting in parents around the world wanting to avoid the MMR vaccine for their children.
Their conclusions were almost immediately refuted by other medical professionals, resulting in an initial retraction by ten of the twelve colleagues of Wakefield. Their entire work was eventually withdrawn by the Lancet, following the publication's discovery of Wakefield's anti-vaccine work being funded by lawyers representing parents who filed lawsuits against certain pharmaceutical companies that produced the vaccine. (Wakefield seemed to have, somehow, forgotten to mention that part.) Lancet also published a public apology, The British Medical Journal exposed the fraud engaged in by Wakefield and his colleagues for financial gain, and he was found guilty of serious professional misconduct, resulting in his being barred by the UK General Medical Council (GMC) from practicing medicine. The two colleagues who did not retract their stance also faced serious repercussions from the GMC.
Boy oh boy, the MMR vaccine's had quite the workout. Wait, there's more, and I'll get to that shortly.
Beginning in 2020, the COVID-19 vaccine was a prime target for the anti-vaccine movement, including the participation of some politicians (e.g. Donald Trump, former POT Florida Representative Dave Weldon, and current POT Florida Governor Ron De Santis). The result was, and still is, a misunderstanding and mistrust of the medical and governmental authorities overall, with Dr. Anthony Fauci and the Center for Disease Control (CDC) being two of the most notable targets.
Now, back to the MMR vaccine. The current Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., has spread many anti-vaccine conspiracy theories, including Andrew Wakefield's work. Citing Wakefield's discredited work has been a source of his restarting the "MMR vaccine causes autism" debate. (He has also recently cited Tylenol's use by pregnant women and circumcised males as causes of autism... which he has since retracted) Additionally, he has claimed the cancer-preventative HPV vaccine is unsafe, and that the COVID-19 vaccine is "the deadliest vaccine ever made". None of his claims have any proof to back them up.
Now, to be fair, there have, indeed, been some downsides to vaccines. Anyone who claims they are, overall, infallible is clearly not telling the truth. There have been some instances of problems with vaccines resulting in safer versions of those vaccines taking the place of previous versions, or the vaccine being removed altogether. Some examples:
Tetanus contamination: In 1901, nine children died in Camden, New Jersey, from a tetanus contamination in some batches of the smallpox vaccine. The 1902 Biologics Control Act -- the first act to control the manufacture and sale of biological products, like vaccines and serums -- was passed as a result.
Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV): The polio vaccine was discovered by Jonas Salk in the early 1950's, and an oral version of the vaccine (OPV) was later created by Albert Sabin. These vaccinations were known for being given as drops on a sugar cube. ("Just a spoonful of sugar," hmm?) In rare cases (cited as 1 out of in 2.4 million doses), vaccine-related paralysis occurred due to the rare mutation of the weakened, but live virus in the vaccination into a much more harmful virus. Eventually, the OPV was taken off the market.
The Cutter Incident: In 1955, contamination in the manufacture of some batches of Salk's polio vaccine, resulting in a live virus being included in the vaccine, resulted in some cases of paralysis and death. More stringent manufacturing protocols were instituted.
1976 Swine Flu vaccine: At Fort Dix in New Jersey (now Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst), there was an outbreak of the swine flu virus (A/H1N1), leaving one dead and thirteen hospitalized. The outbreak was so fast that the government decided on a swift national response. The vaccination program proceeded too quickly, however, and it caused an increase in reports of Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS), which can be fatal. It was determined that the response was much too rapid and overdone. (No doubt, this added to concerns over vaccines in general.)
Oral Typhoid Fever vaccine: An older version of an oral vaccine for typhoid fever, first used in America in the late 1980's, was also linked to GBS (mentioned above). Like other whole-cell vaccines that were discontinued, newer and safer versions of this vaccine were created and are still in use today.
It's understandable to be concerned about putting something into one's body. Is it safe? Is it not safe? One's own safety is a purely natural concern. Thus, anyone who has such concerns must not be seen in a negative light.
However, looking at the evidence, including the examples or problems I listed above, a sober examination of the evidence shows that science pursues a proper solution and, when problems arise, course corrects for future versions of relative vaccines. Even social and/or legal requirements may change accordingly. Granted, my words here may never convince those skeptics out there, but scientific pursuits in the form of vaccines is always in the direction of what is best for us.
Throughout the course of my life, I have had several vaccines. In my adult life, I continue to get necessary vaccines -- the COVID-19 vaccine being the latest series, not to mention the shingles vaccine in my stage of life -- because I believe in science.
Terry
