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Jim Carrey at the LACMA 50th Anniversary Gala sponsored by Christie's at LACMA on April 18 in Los Angeles. Photo: Charley Gallay. Source: Getty Images
ACTOR Jim Carrey has gone on a Twitter rant criticising California’s decision to impose mandatory vaccination laws, claiming they can poison children.
Carrey insisted he is not against vaccinations, but claimed that the particular vaccines advocated for Californian schoolchildren contain neurotoxins including mercury.
“All we are saying is, ‘Take the neurotoxins out of the vaccines.’ Make them toxin free. History will show that that was a reasonable request,†the Dumb and Dumber star tweeted on Tuesday.
The comments came after California’s Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill this week toughening vaccination requirements for children, following a measles outbreak and outcry across the US.
The new law will require all children to be immunised before entering kindergarten, with exceptions allowed only if a doctor advises against immunisation.
Carrey started his series of tweets with: “California Gov. says yes to poisoning more children with mercury and aluminium in manditory (sic) vaccines. This corporate fascist must be stopped.†He added: “They say mercury in fish is dangerous but forcing all of our children to be injected with mercury in thimerosol is no risk. Make sense?â€
He was referring thimerosal, an organomercury compound used as a preservative in vaccines also known as thiomersal.
Carrey’s comments have been slammed by health experts, including the Professor Arthur Caplan from New York University.
“The childhood vaccine schedule has been proven safe, and arguments about “dangerous†ingredients have been proven incorrect over and over,†he wrote in a piece for NBC.
“Not only is Carrey ignorant when it comes to vaccines, he is a fool when it comes to using terms like fascism. Fascism is when a government imposes its will upon the people by fiat. Nothing like that has happened in California — not even close.
“The legislature heard testimony, debated and then voted through the law to end liberal exemptions. Passing a law through the legislature and having the governor sign it is called democracy!
“Democracy turned out to be very good for public health in California this week,†Professor Caplan wrote.
Deputy Director, National Centre for Immunisation Research & Surveillance (NCIRS) Associate Professor Kristine Macartney says thimerosal is not a harmful substance.
“Mercury is a naturally occurring element in the environment and it’s not harmful in the small, regular amounts we encounter on a day-to-day basis, including in vaccines. It’s not a harmful substance. It’s been hijacked by anti-vaxxers and taken out of context as a reason not to vaccinate,†she said.
The California governor’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Governor Brown’s vaccine measure garnered support from both Republicans and Democrats after a measles outbreak in December in the Disneyland theme park affected some 130 people.
In total during the outbreak, 159 cases of measles were recorded between January and April in 18 states and the US capital.
The viral disease was believed to have disappeared years ago in the US thanks to vaccination programs.
But measles made a comeback after the anti-vaccination movement gained momentum recently and some parents stopped vaccinating their children.
The disease is highly contagious. It causes fever and rash and can lead to brain damage, loss of hearing or sight, and sometimes death.
Infants, the elderly and those with weakened immune systems are particularly vulnerable.
Carrey joins a long list of celebrities who have criticised vaccinations, including Jenna Elfman, Carrey’s ex-wife Jenny McCarthy, Alicia Silverstone, Charlie Sheen, Kirstie Alley and Selma Blair.
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