Heavy metal | Centre for Science and Environment  Heavy metal
In the 1980s, worried parents and medical researchers in the US
alleged that mercury in vaccines was responsible for the growing
number of autism cases among children in the country. The issue
was debated in medical circles, wheels moved in many western
countries, but developing countries still don’t have a choice —
because without mercury, vaccination is expensive.  There was
pressure on the US government for legislation against mercury in
vaccines. At the same time, a combative vaccine industry
brandished studies vouching the safety of mercury in vaccines.
Nonetheless, the US states of Iowa and California passed
legislations in favour of mercury-free vaccines. The uproar was
not restricted to the US: the Danish parliament, in 1992, banned
the heavy metal from vaccines. The UK has recently passed a
similar legislation.  At the root of the problem is thimerosal:
this preservative with a 50 per cent mercury constituent is a
key ingredient of mult