Is mercury in vaccines dangerous?

In an announcement video, HHS Secretary RFK JR. claims that mercury in vaccines (through the preservative thimerosal) is a dangerous toxin that was never proven safe, can harm the brain and body, and should not have been given to children or pregnant women.

We know a lot about thimerosal. Thimerosal, a mercury compound used in some flu vaccines today, has caused concern due to its name being confused with a harmful type of mercury. Thimerosal contains ethylmercury, which is safe and quickly leaves the body. It’s different from harmful methylmercury found in some fish. Thimerosal has been used safely in vaccines, drugs, and contact solutions since the 1930s.

Studies on babies, including those preterm and low-weight babies, show that ethylmercury leaves the body quickly. About half of it is gone in three to seven days, and the rest is flushed out in the baby’s stool. Within a month after getting a vaccine, mercury levels in the blood return to normal, so it does not accumulate over time.

Studies also show that thimerosal does not increase the risk of autism and does not harm the brain or body. Additionally, thimerosal has not been used in childhood vaccines since 2001. Autism diagnoses continued to rise following the 2001 removal of thimerosal from all childhood vaccines. The continued rise of autism diagnoses is, in fact, mostly due to growing awareness and changing diagnostic criteria.