Is the H1N1 vaccine safe for pregnant women?

Pregnant woman © Nick Stubbs Dreamstime.com

Pregnant women in Britain are to get a form of swine flu vaccine that is not recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The vaccine Pandemrix, which makes up the bulk of NHS supply, contains squalene, an adjuvant that has never been tested on moms-to-be.  According to the WHO Strategic Advisory Group, pregnant women should be given adjuvant-free formulations of the vaccine whenever possible. 

The Department of Health's Director of Immunisations Professor David Salisbury said that even though the NHS has stocks of an alternative vaccine called Celvapan, it will not be prioritised for pregnant women. He said: "If the virus is increasing, as it has been recently and we had the supply of one vaccine ahead of the other, then we have to make a judgment that says pregnant women are at high risk and they need to be protected. And in those circumstances I would recommend whatever is available to hand to protect them." 

University College London vaccine expert Dr Tarit Mukhopadhyay said there was no evidence of harm from adjuvants, but added that in the absence of formal clinical trials in pregnancy, they should not be used. He said: "We don't know what could go wrong. The problem is that not enough pregnant women have had this adjuvant tested on them. So we are going to err on the side of caution and recommend pregnant women take the unadjuvanted vaccine instead." 

Adjuvants such as mercury, aluminum and squalene have been the subjects of extensive research and media exposure as they have been linked to neurological side effects, autism and other autoimmune diseases.  As reported on the newly established website Without Consent, " small mammals injected with this oil (squalene) not only develop the animal versions of rheumatoid arthritis, squalene also induces the animal "model" for multiple sclerosis called Experimental Allergic Encephalomyelitis (EAE); as well as the antibodies specific to systemic lupus erythematosus. The morbidity rate is 100 percent." 

Pregnant women will be advised to do their own research as to the available options and weigh the risks and benefits of vaccination, not only for them but also for the developing fetus.

For more information visit: National Vaccine Information Center, Dr Mercola's Swine Flu Alerts, Think Twice, Dr Russell Blaylock

Read more on how vaccines are made and what they contain Flu vaccine exposed; Think twice

H1N1 misdiagnosis and further considerations for long term health

Does the swine flu vaccine increase risk of cancer?

 If you would like to be notified when similar articles on Natural Health are published, you may click on the subscribe icon at the top of this page.