{"id":16446,"date":"2026-06-18T11:31:45","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T16:31:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.voicesforvaccines.org\/?post_type=jtf_topics&p=16446"},"modified":"2026-06-18T11:33:32","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T16:33:32","slug":"why-wont-scientists-do-placebo-trials","status":"publish","type":"jtf_topics","link":"https:\/\/www.voicesforvaccines.org\/es\/jtf_topics\/why-wont-scientists-do-placebo-trials\/","title":{"rendered":"Why won’t scientists do placebo trials?"},"content":{"rendered":"
[vc_row source=”” text=”Clinical Trials” font_container=”tag:h2|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” google_fonts=”font_family:Abril%20Fatface%3Aregular|font_style:400%20regular%3A400%3Anormal” link=”” css=”.vc_custom_1708910874436{border-top-width: 1px !important;border-right-width: 1px !important;border-bottom-width: 1px !important;border-left-width: 1px !important;}”][vc_column][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_custom_heading text=”The Claim:” font_container=”tag:h3|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][vc_column_text css=””]In an\u00a0interview<\/a>\u00a0with an Italian journalist, former TV producer Del Bigtree says that vaccines have never been tested in \u201crandomized placebo-controlled\u201d trials. He says it is wrong not to do those kinds of tests.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_custom_heading text=”The Facts:” font_container=”tag:h3|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][vc_column_text css=””]A placebo is something used in a study to help scientists compare results. Many people think a placebo must always be saline, but that is not true.<\/p>\n

There are two common types of comparison groups in\u00a0vaccine studies<\/a>. One type is an inert placebo, such as saline. This has no active ingredients. Another type is an active control. This may be another vaccine or vaccine\u00a0ingredients<\/a>\u00a0that are already known to be safe. Active controls help scientists compare a new vaccine to something already understood.<\/p>\n

Scientists choose the type of comparison based on the study. A saline placebo can be used when there is no vaccine that already works. But if a safe and effective vaccine already exists, it may be unethical or wrong to give some people only saline. That would leave them unprotected from a serious disease.<\/p>\n

Giving protection is especially important for babies and children. If scientists already know a vaccine can prevent serious illness, they do not want to leave some children unprotected just to use saline in a study.<\/p>\n

The pneumococcal vaccine is a good example.\u00a0Prevnar-13<\/a>\u00a0was tested against Prevnar-7, an older vaccine that already worked. If researchers had used saline instead, some children would have been left unprotected from\u00a0dangerous<\/a>\u00a0bacterial infections. That could have put them at risk of serious illness or death. In cases like this, scientists compare a new vaccine to an older trusted vaccine. This helps them see if the new vaccine works as well or better, while still helping protect the people in the study.<\/p>\n

Both saline placebos and active controls are accepted in science. These studies look at two main questions: Is the vaccine\u00a0safe<\/a>? And does it\u00a0protect people<\/a>\u00a0from disease?<\/p>\n

Some people claim childhood vaccines were not tested with saline placebos. That is not accurate. Many vaccines have been tested with saline placebos, including vaccines for\u00a0rubella<\/a>,\u00a0pneumococcal<\/a>\u00a0disease,\u00a0Hib<\/a>\u00a0disease,\u00a0HPV<\/a>,\u00a0polio<\/a>,\u00a0measles<\/a>,\u00a0Tdap<\/a>, and\u00a0COVID<\/a>.<\/p>\n

After vaccines are approved, safety checks do not stop. Researchers\u00a0keep studying\u00a0<\/a>vaccine safety over time and monitor millions of real-world doses.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many vaccines have been tested with saline placebos, contrary to Del Bigtree’s claim. Active controls are also valid when a safe vaccine exists.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"parent":0,"template":"","jtf_topic_subjects":[199,301,277,204,384,315,196,305,191,383,385,198,298,313,194,218,280,278],"class_list":["post-16446","jtf_topics","type-jtf_topics","status-publish","hentry","jtf_topic_subjects-childhood-vaccines","jtf_topic_subjects-covid","jtf_topic_subjects-del-bigtree","jtf_topic_subjects-dtap","jtf_topic_subjects-francis-collins","jtf_topic_subjects-hib","jtf_topic_subjects-hpv","jtf_topic_subjects-infants","jtf_topic_subjects-measles","jtf_topic_subjects-placebo","jtf_topic_subjects-pneumococcla","jtf_topic_subjects-polio","jtf_topic_subjects-rfk","jtf_topic_subjects-rubella","jtf_topic_subjects-vaccine-ingredients","jtf_topic_subjects-vaccine-safety","jtf_topic_subjects-vaccine-schedules","jtf_topic_subjects-vaers","entry","no-media"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.voicesforvaccines.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/jtf_topics\/16446","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.voicesforvaccines.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/jtf_topics"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.voicesforvaccines.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/jtf_topics"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.voicesforvaccines.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/jtf_topics\/16446\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16449,"href":"https:\/\/www.voicesforvaccines.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/jtf_topics\/16446\/revisions\/16449"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.voicesforvaccines.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16446"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"jtf_topic_subjects","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.voicesforvaccines.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/jtf_topic_subjects?post=16446"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}