Household chemicals reduce the effectiveness of vaccination
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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A group of American pediatricians from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston published in the Journal of the American Medical Association the results of a study in which a direct proportional relationship was found between the concentration in the body of seven-year-old children of perfluorinated compounds and the immune response to vaccination against diphtheria and tetanus, reports MSNBC.
The authors of the study believe that perfluorinated compounds reduce the effectiveness of vaccination.
Children who had a high concentration of perfluorinated compounds had fewer diphtheria and tetanus antibodies in their blood.
Philippe Grandjean and his colleagues examined 587 children living in the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic between Scotland and Iceland. These islands were chosen because a significant part of the diet of their inhabitants is seafood, in which perfluorinated compounds accumulate.
Measuring the level of perfluorinated compounds in the blood of five-year-old children, scientists also tested the immune response to vaccination against diphtheria and tetanus in children from five to seven years. All examined children received a booster dose at the age of five.
In seven-year-old children with a content of perfluorinated compounds twice as high as the average, the number of antibodies in the blood was lower by 49 percent.
According to scientists, the probability of diphtheria and tetanus in children with the highest level of perfluorinated compounds is increased fourfold: The level of antibodies in them is so low that it can not protect against infection.
Perfluorinated compounds are a group of fluorine-containing organic substances having wide application. They are part of home textiles, non-stick coatings of dishes, greaseproof packaging for cooking popcorn in the microwave oven, packages for grilled chicken, cosmetics, stain removers and much more.
The half-life of perfluorinated compounds in the human body is from 4 to 8 years or more.
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