United Nations Ban of Mercury in Vaccines Urged by U.S. Group

SILVER SPRING, Maryland, April 8, 2011 - CoMeD - While the United Nations (UN) actively questions the use of
vaccines containing a neurotoxic mercury compound, the Coalition for
Mercury-Free Drugs (CoMeD) (mercury-freedrugs.org), a Maryland-based,
non-profit organization, is urging the UN to ban it.

In mid-March, governments were asked to send the UN secretariat
"information on mercury use in pharmaceuticals, especially vaccines." The
request
(www.unep.org/hazardoussubstances/Portals/9/Mercury/Documents/INC3/Overview%20of%20documents%20for%20INC3_15%20March%202011_.pdf)
was made in preparation for the United Nations Environmental Programme's
third intergovernmental negotiating committee (INC3)
(www.unep.org/hazardoussubstances/Mercury/Negotiations/INC3/tabid/3469/Default.aspx)
on mercury, which is scheduled for this fall. The purpose of the INC meetings
is to develop a legally-binding, global mercury treaty by 2013.

CoMeD (mercury-freedrugs.org) was pleased by this call for
information because CoMeD provided scientific data about health hazards
caused by mercury in vaccines to various international delegates at the
second INC meeting
(www.unep.org/hazardoussubstances/Mercury/Negotiations/INC2/tabid/3468/Default.aspx)
in January in Chiba, Japan.

Since then, CoMeD (mercury-freedrugs.org) has publicized new
studies proving that mercury in vaccines
(www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21225508) and dental amalgams, or
"silver" fillings (www.occup-med.com/content/6/1/2), is associated
with neurological diseases
(jpp.krakow.pl/journal/archive/12_10/articles/14_article.html) such as
autism (informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.3109/1547691X.2010.545086) in
children and Alzheimer's disease
(iospress.metapress.com/content/j33p87808363493j/fulltext.pdf) in
adults.

One recent study, from Mansoura University in Egypt
(journals.lww.com/mecpsychiatry/Fulltext/2011/01000/Study_of_some_biomarkers_in_hair_of_children_with.2.aspx?WT.mc_id=HPxADx20100319xMP),
explores the connection between heavy metals and learning/behavioral
disorders in children. The authors cite Thimerosal
(www.vaccine-tlc.org/docs/Thimerosal%20Material%20Safety%20Data%20Sheet.pdf),
a mercury-based compound used as a preservative in certain vaccines, as a
possible factor in autism. They specifically note that research shows
"exposure to heavy metals, such as lead and mercury, can impair brain
development at very early ages, even at low doses that were earlier deemed
'harmless.'"

Additionally, articles recently published in Folia Neuropathologica
(www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21225508), Neurochemical Research
(www.springerlink.com/content/22115401745m3l44/), the Journal of
Immunotoxicology
(informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.3109/1547691X.2010.545086),
the Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology
(www.occup-med.com/content/6/1/2), and the Journal of Physiology and
Pharmacology
(jpp.krakow.pl/journal/archive/12_10/articles/14_article.html) confirm
the toxicity of the dose of mercury in Thimerosal-preserved vaccines
(mercury-freedrugs.org/docs/090813_fnldrft_EditorialOnSubacuteMercury(Hg)PoisoningByMedicine_r6b.pdf).

In 1999, the U.S. Public Health Service and American Academy of
Pediatrics called for Thimerosal to be removed from the U.S.
Thimerosal-preserved vaccines
(www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm4826a3.htm) "as soon as
possible," and Thimerosal has since been removed from most of these U.S.
vaccines. A CoMeD analysis
(mercury-freedrugs.org/docs/20110105_CoMeD_onepager_Preservatives_rb.pdf)
shows that replacing Thimerosal
(www.hhs.gov/fda/faq/vaccines/1858.html) with 2-phenoxyphenol in
worldwide vaccines is both safe and economical. Additionally, CoMeD has sued
the FDA
(www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/comed-sues-fda-to-force-mercury-out-of-medicine-55926807.html)
for its failure to comply with the law and enforce preservative safety
regulations.

Furthermore, proponents of vaccine safety are asking organizations and
individuals who are responsible for international vaccination campaigns, such
as those in Africa, to heed the overwhelming scientific research about the
human health risks linked to mercury (Thimerosal) and other vaccine
ingredients (www.cbsnews.com/8301-31727_162-20049118-10391695.html).

Rev. Lisa K. Sykes
(www.umc.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=lwL4KnN1LtH&b=6297653&ct=6903307),
President of CoMeD (mercury-freedrugs.org), is warning groups
including the Global Alliance for Vaccines, the United Nations Children's
Fund (UNICEF), and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to stop spreading
mercury to other continents: "While Thimerosal has been removed from most
vaccines in the United States, pharmaceutical companies and the World Health
Organization continue to dump mercury-laced vaccines on developing countries.
No ethic can justify providing prosperous nations with mercury-free vaccines
while endangering children in poor nations by exposing them to this
neurotoxin."

Rev. Lisa K. Sykes, CoMeD President, +1-804-740-7128, Lisa at Mercury-freeDrugs.org