Meningococcal Vaccine
Incoming college
students nationwide are
being told to take the
meningococcal vaccine or
else they may not be
admitted. But here is
what
schools and government
are not telling parents
and students. Less than
1 in
100,000 contract the
meningococcal
meningitis
disease annually in the
United States and 50% of
those cases are in
infants. Of those who do
contract the disease,
most recover fully and
fatalities are in less
than
10% of the case.
The disease is not
easily transmitted. The
primary method of
transmission
is by mixing saliva, as
in kissing the mouth of
an infected person. Even
then, most people have
already been exposed,
and are thereby immune,
to the
disease. Only 5-15
college students
nationwide die from this
disease and
contributing factors,
which is far less than
other risks faced by
college
students.
In September 2005, the
FDA announced
that five (5) recipients
of this
vaccine reported serious
symptoms of Guillain
Barre Syndrome (GBS)
soon
after receiving the
vaccine, a condition
having similarities with
Multiple
Sclerosis. They
were ages 17 and 18,
typical for the incoming
college
freshmen being urged to
have this vaccine.
(http://www.fda.
gov/bbs/topics/
NEWS/2005/ NEW01238.
html)
Other reports of adverse
reactions after the
vaccine are highly
disturbing.
41% the recipients
report having a headache
subsequent to receiving
this
vaccine. 35% report
fatigue after the
vaccine; 24% report
malaise; and 20%
report aches and pains
in their joints after
receiving the vaccine.
One can
only wonder what the
long-term harm is from
the vaccine. The vaccine
manufacturer does not
report in its package
insert any study of
long-term
harm beyond six months.
View the package insert
yourself at:
http://www.fda.
gov/cber/
label/mpdtave102
105LB.pdf It is easy
to test a
vaccine in animals to
see if it causes cancer
or infertility, but the
vaccine maker failed to
do that. Its package
insert expressly states
that
the "vaccine has not
been evaluated in
animals for its
carcinogenic or
mutagenic potentials or
for impairment of
fertility."
When long-term harm from
the vaccine is combined
with the short-term harm
indicated above, it is
quite possible that the
vaccine is causing more
harm
than it is preventing.
For a disease that can
be largely avoided by
not
mixing saliva with an
infected person, or
receiving prompt
treatment if one
is infected, the
insistence on
vaccination rather than
education is
unfortunate.
And what benefits are
truly provided by the
vaccine? The
meningococcal
vaccine does not
even claim to protect
against at least
one-third of the
strains of the
meningococcal disease,
according to the above
package
insert. Of the remaining
strains, the vaccine
provides no guarantee of
immunity either.
Vaccination information
is often more objective
from state agencies than
from the federal
government, because
vaccine manufacturers
can influence
the federal government
and distort federal
policy more easily than
dealing
with 50 different
states. This information
from the
Illinois Department of
Health is useful,
and supports several of
the above facts:
http://www.idph.
state.il. us/public/
hb/hbmenin. htm
Parents and students may
not realize that all
states have available
exemptions to decline
this and other vaccines.
Know your rights, and
exercise them.
Andy Schlafly
General Counsel
Association of American
Physicians & Surgeons
Meningococcal C vaccination
http://www.vaccination.inoz.com/meningococcal.html
