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Thimerosal... Mercury is a Friend to No One

© Adelle Vancil Tilton

Several years ago, many manufacturers of contact lens solutions removed a toxic, mercury based preservative, thimerosal, from their products. This chemical is known to cause severe edema in laboratory animals, and many individuals, myself included, found that when they used certain brands of products, they developed severe swelling around the eyes. Most people felt that when it was initially removed that it was because of government pressure on the manufacturers, but it actually wasn't until 1999 that the Public Health Service in conjunction with the American Academy of Pediatrics ordered the removal of thimerosal from all products.

Unfortunately, a year after this action was ordered, many products ranging from vaccines to nasal spray still contain thimerosal, in amounts which exceed the allowable levels of mercury established by the federal government. Yes, that's right, thimerosal is a mercury compound (ethyl mercuri thiosalicylic acid), and it is toxic. Think back over the years and the stories you've heard of mercury levels in fish, the scares and evacuations when mercury is spilled in a school chemistry lab and the reaction your mother had when you dropped the thermometer in the bathroom when you were a kid. Now we find out that we are ingesting it and injecting it into our bodies, along with applying it to our skin, eyes, and nasal membranes. And we could be getting a lot more of it than we realize, because in many products it is a trace element and does not have to be listed as an ingredient.

Aside from the mercury poisoning issue, this product is also an allergen and causes severe allergic reactions in most people. That is why it was removed so rapidly from the majority of contact lens solutions a few years ago. If you are or were a contact lens wearer, you probably remember the boxes of solutions that stated, " Contains No Thimerosal" on the label. My sensitivity, for example, became irreversible and my ophthalmologist had me use nothing but Johnson's Baby Shampoo and water to wash my contact lenses. I was allowed to use no commercial products in an effort to continue the ability to wear contact lenses. Ten years later, I am still unable to wear contacts, because of the allergy to thimerosal which I believe was caused by extended exposure to thimerosal. I am one of millions severely allergic to this toxic product.

You might think that since it was ordered removed in 1999, this is no longer a problem. Wrong ! Here are just a few products that still contain thimerosal:

Neosporin® Ophthalmic Solution
Neo-Synephrine® Pediatric Formula Mild Formula, Regular Strength, and Extra Strength Nasal Spray
L'Oreal® Miracle Wear Mascara
Many varities of Tetanus and Diphtheria toxoids

Think about it. Many of these products are designed by their manufacturers to be given to our children. When was the last time you were warned not to use a pediatric nasal spray for your child's runny nose, or to question what was in that shot the doctor wanted to give. Most of us accept what we are told by the pharmaceutical, cosmetic and medical communities without question, and now we find that they are telling us to give our children mercury. Even products which list no thimerosal in their ingredients, have traces of it in them. In other words, they lied! And they have endangered the health of your children, and you too.