Health Section:
Adverse reactions, symptoms, illnesses
Health Care resources
Mycoplasma and Squalene Discussion
Suggestions to help your immune system


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Adverse reactions to the anthax vaccine as reported
to the Anthrax Vaccine Network - updated at intervals.

Medical and Research Resources

  • The National Veterans Organization of America
    The NVOA is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to the preservation and enhancement of Veterans Benefits. They are a group of veterans, over 5,000 strong, who are sick and tired of the way that veterans are treated by the US Department of Veterans Affairs and the US Congress. And they intend to do something about it.
  • Dr. Meryl Nass, who has been an incredible physician and resource in our fight against the anthrax vaccine, is no longer able to take patients. She will be available in upcoming months as a consultant as we continue to look for and work with other physicians whose skills might help treat those ill from the vaccine and/or who have Gulf War Syndrome.
  • Dr. Mohammed Al-Bayati
    Dr. Al-Bayati is a toxicologist with experience in helping to diagnose and treat symptoms related to the anthrax vaccine.
  • Dr. Garth Nicolson
    Dr. Nicolson, a research scientist, is an expert in Gulf War Illnes, chronic fatigue, and other illnesses. Click here for his Jan. 29, 2002 Congressional Testimony
  • Dr. Les Simpson, New Zealand
    An expert in the little-known field of blood rheology, Dr. Simpson has a PhD in experimental pathology, with a special interest in pathogenesis - i.e. the cause of sickness. This is his e-mail address; no web site is available as yet.
  • Walter Reed National Vaccine Healthcare Center
    The Vaccine Healthcare Center was established last year as a collaborative effort between the Department of Defense and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. One of the primary objectives is to provide medical care and referral for servicemembers who are suspected of experiencing adverse clinical events to vaccines, particularly the anthrax vaccine.
    Email: askVHC@amedd.army.mil

Mycoplasa and Squalene

There is a lot of controversy about what is actually going on in the vaccine - about the actual causes of such severe reactions that six deaths have been the result to date, along with uncounted veterans who have permanently lost their health.

Those of us who run this Network are not trained scientists or medical professionals. But we do have access to a great deal of research and to various professional and physicians who kindly provide us with their insights and views.

There are dissenting opinions to this research, but we present it here in the interest of providing as much insight as possible into the possible problems with the anthrax vaccine; and we present it as a possible explanation for the motives behind using the anthrax vaccine as an experimental drug upon unwitting and unwilling human beings.

Mycoplasma are the smallest of free-living organisms, and can reproduce outside of living cells. They can cause chronic inflammatory diseases of the respiratory system, urogenital tract, and joints. The most common human illnesses caused by mycoplasma are due to infection with M. pneumoniae, which is responsible for 10-20% of all pneumonias. This type of pneumonia is also called atypical pneumonia, walking pneumonia, or community-acquired pneumonia. Infection moves easily among people in close contact because it is spread primarily when infected droplets circulate in the air (that is, become aerosolized), usually due to coughing, spitting, or sneezing.
(Source: Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine online)

In his Jan. 29, 2002 Congressional testimony, Dr. Garth Nicolson writes:
"...the types of infection caused by Mycoplasma and Brucella species that have been found in GWI patients, can cause complex problems found in GWI [reviews: 23,40,41]. These microorganisms are now considered important emerging pathogens in causing chronic diseases as well as being important cofactors in some illnesses, including AIDS and other immune dysfunctional conditions [23,40,41]."

"Historically, mycoplasmal infections were thought to produce relatively mild diseases limited to particular tissues or organs, such as urinary tract or respiratory system [23,40,41]. However, the mycoplasmas detected in GWI patients with molecular techniques are highly virulent, colonize a wide variety of organs and tissues, and are difficult to treat [23,45,46]. The mycoplasma most commonly detected in GWI, Mycoplasma fermentans (found in >80% of those GWI patients positive for any mycoplasma), is found intracellularly. It is unlikely that this type of infection will result in a strong antibody response, which may explain the DoD's lack of serologic evidence for these types of intracellular infections [47]."

Squalene, an orgamic polymer which occurs naturally in the human body, is, in remanufactured form, an adjuvant, or vaccine "booster," used in several experimental vaccines. The purpose of such an adjuvant is to boost the immune system's reaction to the vaccine.
Althought the Dept. of Defense denied the presence of Squalene in the anthrax vaccine for many years, the FDA tested several lots for the presence of the adjuvant, and found it - in varying levels. Those lots are (ppb=parts per billion):

AVA 020 - 11 ppb squalene
AVA 030 - 10 ppb squalene
AVA 038 - 27 ppb squalene
AVA 043 - 40 ppb squalene
AVA 047 - 83 ppb squalene

Recent research by Pamela B. Asa, Russell B. Wilson, and Robert F. Garry links the anthrax vaccine to Gulf War Syndrome through the presence of squalene antibodies, as noted in the introduction to their report:

"Date: 2002-07-15
Received August 15, 2001, and in revised form October 26, 2001"
"We previously reported that antibodies to squalene, an experimental vaccine adjuvant, are present in persons with symptoms consistent with Gulf War Syndrome (GWS) (P. B. Asa et al., Exp. Mol. Pathol 68, 196–197, 2000). The United States Department of Defense initiated the Anthrax Vaccine Immunization Program (AVIP) in 1997 to immunize 2.4 million military personnel. Because adverse reactions in vaccinated personnel were similar to symptoms of GWS, we tested AVIP participants for anti-squalene antibodies (ASA). In a pilot study, 6 of 6 vaccine recipients with GWS-like symptoms were positive for ASA. In a larger blinded study, only 32% (8/25) of AVIP personnel compared to 15.7% (3/19) of controls were positive (P 0.05). Further analysis revealed that ASA were associated with specific lots of vaccine. The incidence of ASA in personnel in the blinded study receiving these lots was 47% (8/17) compared to an incidence of 0% (0/8; P 0.025) of the AVIP participants receiving other lots of vaccine. Analysis of additional personnel revealed that in all but one case (19/20; 95%), ASA were restricted to personnel immunized with lots of vaccine known to contain squalene. Except for one symptomatic individual, positive clinical findings in 17 ASA-negative personnel were restricted to 4 individuals receiving vaccine from lots containing squalene. ASA were not present prior to vaccination in preimmunization sera available from 4 AVIP personnel. Three of these individuals became ASA positive after vaccination. These results suggest that the production of ASA in GWS patients is linked to the presence of squalene in certain lots of anthrax vaccine. © 2002 Elsevier Science (USA)"

Other research on squalene indicates that squalene causes arthritic conditions in those in whom it is injected; and squalene appears to be highly reactive when injected, although not as reactive when ingested orally. Please write contact@anthrax vaccine.net for references to this research.

Immune System Suggestions

The way we are saying it these days is this: The anthrax vaccine runs right over the human immune system. What it actually seems to do is put the immune system into overdrive, to the point where it turns on itself.

Certainly BioPort was cited numerous times for quality control issues, including lack of sterility, contaminated product, and switching the expiration labels on some lots of the vaccine. Whatever the cause - from bad manufacturing to the concept of the vaccine itself - most of the adverse reactions to the vaccine are tied in some way to the human immune system.

Many troops and veterans have told us that taking nutritional supplements, herbs and vitamins are helping to alleviate their symptoms and fatigue. We do not offer these comments to "boost" your immune system; if you are ill from the anthrax vaccine, your immune system may already be boosted right out of the ballpark. But we do offer the thought that your body needs to regain some of its former natural strength, so that it can deal with the problems it is currently facing.

We want to stress that the following information, gained from personal experiences with immune system illnesses and with various troop members' reactions to the vaccine, in no way constitutes medical advice, nor do we recommend taking natural supplements of any kind without first consulting your physician. Certain supplements do interact with prescription medicines, and only your own physician can help you decide what might be best for you.

First, purchase and read the book, Nutritional Healing, by James F. Balch, M.D., and Phyllis A. Balch, C.N.C. Itâs available in General Nutrition Centers, natural health food stores, and many bookstores. It's a big paperback, and there is a long section in it on working with the immune system. This book also gives careful explanations of all the supplements it talks about it any way. ( Note: We are not tied in any way to this book or its authors, and receive nothing for recommending it here. We recommend it soley on the basis of personal experience.)

To combat fatigue, weakness, a propensity for colds and the flu, and arthritic symptoms, we found the following particularly helpful:

  • Co-Enzyme Q10 - strengthens the immune system
  • Garlic Capsules - acts as a natural kind of antibiotic
  • Echinacea (only take for 6 weeks at a time, then take a rest break) - most people know about this, and take it at the first sign of a cold or flu; but it also helps enormously to lift the first fatigue and symptoms when your immune system gets smooshed
  • Acidophillis (non-dairy) - helps put good bacteria back in your stomach lining
  • Evening Primrose Oil - helps women, but also is good for menâs immune systems
  • Ginkgo Biloba - for mental alertness - but if it contains ginseng, be careful, because that can cause bad reactions with prescription drugs. Again, consult your physician.
  • Extra Vitamin C - up to 1000 mgs. Per day
  • Extra Vitamin E - up to 1000 mgs. Per day
  • Boron - in limited amounts - helps bone and joint pain
  • Calcium - helps bones and joints, and also helps calm your mind
  • Vitamin B complex - helps enormously with stress and depression
  • Multiple Vitamin tablets - to be sure youâre getting everything else you need
We recently saw an article in Newsweek written by a couple of physicians which recommended the following to help prevent and treat colds and the flu (seems to work):
  • Olive Leaf Extract
  • NEC 600 (n-acetyl-l-cysteine)
  • Astragalus.
To prevent your immune system from having to fight unnecessary battles when it may need strength for other things, eliminate the following from your diet, no matter how difficult (please note, we know how difficult this is - it took the author 8 years to quit caffeine because caffeine made it possible to keep working with continual, severe fatigue even though it sent her blood pressure spiraling):

  • Caffeine
  • White refined sugar
  • Alcohol
  • Smoking
Try to eliminate most, if not all:
  • White processed flour products
  • Soda pop - these just dump plain old chemicals and caffeine into your system
  • Prepared, packaged foods - they are preserved with salts and sugars, and too often contain chemical colorings, flavorings, MSG, and so forth. Your immune system doesnât want these, either.
Buy food in its natural state, such as:
  • Apples, bananas, and other fruit
  • Potatoes and other root crops
  • Brocolli and other veggies
  • Meat and fish
And cook simple meals yourself. This doesnât mean you shouldn't eat out in restaurants or accept an invitation when friends invite you to dinner. Go! Enjoy life! Just be sure that about 90% of the meals you eat are cooked or prepared from natural food, not from packaged food.

Eat lots of brown rice, not white rice. Drink lots of pure fruit juice, not fruit cocktails or fruit punches.

These seemingly simple instructions can be excruciatingly difficult to carry out. A lifetime of habits doesn't disappear overnight. After you've eliminated all of these immune-poisoners for at least a month, go ahead and have one soda pop - or one cup of coffee - so that you don't feel totally deprived. But DON'T have even one cigarette, and try to see if you can go longer without alcohol.

Your immune system needs to be free to fight the larger battles that you can't voluntarily control. So give it a break, and help it to fight only one set of toxins at a time. All best wishes as you learn more about the immune system and what it needs - and, again, don't expect to change your habits and ways of eating and drinking overnight. Just keep trying as much as you can every day. Even a small beginning will help - you might be very surprised!

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