It’s a claim that’s making the rounds again: “Vaccines haven’t been tested. They just put them on the childhood schedule.”
It sounds alarming — and that’s the point. These kinds of rumors are designed to scare people. But here’s the truth: Vaccines are actually one of the most heavily tested and regulated medical products in the world.
Let’s unpack a few of the most common claims.
Rumor: Childhood vaccines haven’t been safety tested.
Fact: Every vaccine on the U.S. childhood schedule has undergone extensive safety testing before being approved.
Before a vaccine can be given to anyone — especially children — it goes through multiple phases of clinical trials. These trials involve thousands of participants and test not only whether the vaccine works, but whether it’s safe, how it interacts with the body, and what side effects may occur.
And as Dr. Paul Offit, a vaccine expert, writes: “Vaccines are subjected to greater scrutiny than drugs.”
Rumor: There have been no placebo-controlled trials of childhood vaccines.
Fact: That’s false. Several vaccines have undergone placebo-controlled trials — they just might not always look the way people expect.
Trials can be confusing, so we’ve tried to break it down in the figure below:
Because clinical trials are hard to understand, this talking point takes advantage of the fact that people might not fully understand all the parts of clinical trials.
Yes, some Phase 2 clinical vaccine trials give some people placebos (essentially, injections with no active ingredients), and then researchers compare the results to the people who have the real vaccine. Others use comparison vaccines to see how the real vaccine works. Lastly, some test booster ingredients (adjuvants) to see how the vaccine may work when new ingredients are added. But each of these types of trials still give us valid, scientific comparisons.
Even under the narrowest definition of “placebo,” vaccines have still been tested in randomized, placebo-controlled trials. The idea that vaccines skipped this step is just untrue.
Rumor: I trust supplements more than vaccines — they’re natural!
Fact: Supplements are not safety tested by the FDA before being sold. Vaccines are.
Here’s the irony: A lot of people who distrust vaccines may be quick to take supplements and wellness pills. But those products don’t go through any review for safety or effectiveness. The reality is supplements aren’t always natural, and the FDA can only step in after a supplement is shown to be harmful.
Vaccines? They’re studied for years before they ever reach the public.
📣 Curious? Ask the Experts, not the Podcasters!
If you’re unsure about vaccines, you’re not alone — and asking questions is a good thing. You want to protect yourself and the people you care about, which is incredibly important.
But be sure you’re getting answers from sources that are grounded in evidence, not driven by fear or profit.
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