Byproducts: Antibiotics - VEC Vaccine Notes | Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Did you know that the first antibiotic, penicillin, was discovered by happenstance in the 1920s? Charlotte Moser, Co-Director of the Vaccine Education Center, touches briefly on this history as she discusses the use of antibiotics; health considerations, including allergic reactions and antibiotic resistance; and why antibiotics are used in vaccines. As she describes, any antibiotics that remain in vaccines are present in very small quantities, causing no harm. Find out more in this episode of VEC Vaccine Notes.
Check out the video version on YouTube.
Watch the episode to find out:
How Alexander Fleming discovered the antibiotic properties of penicillin
How World War II affected the development and availability of penicillin
Some of the different considerations related to how antibiotics work
Which types of antibiotics are used during the vaccine manufacturing process
How many infections and deaths are caused by antibiotic resistance each year in the U.S.
To learn more about antibiotics, please visit https://bit.ly/vec-antibiotics.
To learn more about vaccine ingredients, please visit https://bit.ly/vec-vax-ingredients.
Questions? Submit the VEC Vaccine Notes form, https://bit.ly/contact-vec-vaccine-notes.
For other vaccines, diseases or general questions about vaccines, check out https://vaccine.chop.edu/.
Subscribe to our Parents PACK newsletter, https://bit.ly/3KfLUoO.
7 Oct 2026
Byproducts: Formaldehyde - VEC Vaccine Notes | Vaccine Education Center at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
What is formaldehyde, and how much is present in vaccines? Find out in this episode of VEC Vaccine Notes. Charlotte Moser, Co-Director of the Vaccine Education Center, explains how our bodies naturally produce and break down formaldehyde every day — in quantities far exceeding those found in any vaccine. She talks about the differences between the gaseous and liquid forms of formaldehyde; the latter, called formalin, is the version used in vaccines. She also discusses where we encounter formaldehyde in daily life and why it remains in trace amounts as a purified byproduct in vaccines.
This episode also explores the real-world health effects associated with long-term, high-dose occupational exposures, including cancers, and reveals why the minimal, infrequent exposure from childhood vaccines does not cause harm. Hint? A 2-month-old infant naturally has 10 to 220 times more formaldehyde circulating in their blood than what is delivered in any single vaccine.
Check out the video version on YouTube.
The different forms of formaldehyde
What kinds of products and places it is found
How much formaldehyde an infant can be exposed to from vaccines recommended during the first two years of life
The situations when formaldehyde can cause health concerns
To learn more about formaldehyde, please visit https://bit.ly/vec-formaldehyde.
To learn more about vaccine ingredients, please visit https://bit.ly/vec-vax-ingredients.
Questions? Submit the VEC Vaccine Notes form, https://bit.ly/contact-vec-vaccine-notes.
For other vaccines, diseases or general questions about vaccines, check out https://vaccine.chop.edu/.
Subscribe to our Parents PACK newsletter, https://bit.ly/3KfLUoO.
30 Sept 2026
Preservatives: Thimerosal - VEC Vaccine Notes | Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
What is thimerosal, and why was it used as a vaccine preservative? Find out in this episode of VEC Vaccine Notes. Charlotte Moser, Co-Director of the Vaccine Education Center, explains the differences between elemental mercury (the silver-colored form of mercury found in products like thermometers and dental fillings), methylmercury (the type we’re exposed to when we eat fish), and ethylmercury (the preservative used in childhood vaccines). She details why small changes in the chemical structure between two compounds that might sound similar greatly impact the level of toxicity and how they are processed by our bodies. This episode also explores the history of thimerosal in multidose vials, why routinely recommended childhood vaccines in the United States transitioned to single-dose vials in the late 1990s, and what decades of rigorous scientific studies reveal about thimerosal and autism. Hint? Study after study found that thimerosal in vaccines does not cause autism.
Check out the video version on YouTube.
Listen to the episode to find out:
About the worst, single-source mercury poisoning in history
How ethanal and methanol can help us think about ethylmercury and methylmercury
Symptoms of neurologic damage caused by mercury
The different types of studies that looked at thimerosal exposure from vaccines
Some of the known causes of autism and why we know mercury isn’t among them
To learn more about thimerosal, please visit https://bit.ly/vec-thimerosal.
To learn more about vaccine ingredients, please visit https://bit.ly/vec-vax-ingredients.
Questions? Submit the VEC Vaccine Notes form, https://bit.ly/contact-vec-vaccine-notes.
For other vaccines, diseases or general questions about vaccines, check out https://vaccine.chop.edu.
Subscribe to our Parents PACK newsletter, https://bit.ly/3KfLUoO.
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