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Chemicals May Impair Vaccine-Induced Immunity

Childhood vaccines are critical for protecting our children against disease. But these vaccines may not be providing as much protection as they used to.

New research shows that exposure to PCBs and other toxicants in utero and during the early years of life can weaken the protective value of childhood tetanus and diphtheria vaccines. The study, which looked at children in the Faroe Islands (where people eat whale blubber that is highly contaminated with PCBs), linked high concentrations of PCB in the mothers’ blood to low tetanus and diphtheria antibody counts in children.

As many as 25 percent of the children were no longer protected by their vaccinations, researchers discovered. Previous studies have also linked exposure to PCBs and dioxin to more frequent ear and respiratory infections in children.

The children’s exposure to the toxicants came via their mothers’ breast milk. But researchers are reluctant to advise mothers to stop breastfeeding, since there are so many other health benefits associated with this practice. Breastfeeding helps boost a child’s immune system, offers complete nutrition and helps protect a child from allergies, asthma and eczema. Breastfed babies also have a lower risk of obesity, which has reached epidemic proportions in the United States.

To see a copy of the study, click here.

To read more about this and other environmental health issues, go to: www.environmentalhealthnews.org, www.ourstolenfuture.org, or www.healthandenvironment.org