August 2025 — Aluminum in vaccines: Is it safe?

Dr. Paul Offit talks about aluminum, why it is in vaccines, and whether it’s safe. He explains that aluminum serves as an adjuvant to boost the immune response to some vaccines. This in turn allows for using fewer doses and lesser quantities of the vaccine.

He explains that aluminum is the third most abundant element on the earth's surface. It’s found in the water we drink and the plants we eat. We ingest about 7 mg to 9 mg of aluminum each day, whereas the amount of aluminum we receive from vaccines is infrequent and much less. 

Dr. Offit also describes a 2025 study of 1.2 million children that found no link between aluminum and many health conditions, including autoimmune, atopic or allergic, and neurodevelopmental disorders.

Aluminum resources

• Vaccine Ingredients: Aluminum (webpage)
• Aluminum: What you should know (Q&A) English | Spanish | Japanese
• Aluminum in Vaccines: 3 Things to Know (infographic) – English | Spanish
• Aluminum in Vaccines (video playlist)

Measles resources

As of July 29, 2025: 1,333 cases of measles have been confirmed in 40 locations throughout the U.S.  

For more information related to measles, see these resources:

• Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR): The Diseases and Vaccines (webpage)
• Measles, Mumps & Rubella (infographic): PDF (English | Spanish) | PNG
• Measles: What You Should Know (Q&A): English | Spanish
• Rash Information, includes measles image and information (webpage)
• Parents PACK Personal Stories – Measles (webpage)
• Measles infections, outbreaks & vaccines playlist (videos)
  • Measles: symptoms, spread & SSPE
  • Why Are We Seeing Measles Outbreaks?
  • March 2025 - Measles outbreaks: At the intersection of vaccines and religion
  • 3 lessons from current TX measles outbreak: Higher cases, low vaccination & too much vitamin A
  • Is Vitamin A Effective for Treating or Preventing Measles?
  • Vaccine Expert Reacts: RFK Jr. Falsely Claims Measles Vax Causes Deaths 'Every Year', MedPage Today
  • ATS Breathe Easy - Vaccine Hesitancy and the Fear of a Measles Outbreak, American Thoracic Society
  • This Is How Easy It Is To Spread Measles, National Foundation for Infectious Diseases
  • 5 Things You Need to Know About Measles In 30 Seconds, National Foundation for Infectious Diseases
  • Do people need a measles vaccine booster during an outbreak?
  • MMR and chickenpox vaccines: Together or separate?
  • Attenuation: How Scientists Make Live Vaccines
  • Wouldn’t it be better for my child to get diseases naturally?
• May 2025: Measles — How did we get here, and how bad is this? (video)

COVID-19 resources

For more information related to COVID-19 and the vaccines, see these resources:

General information

• COVIDVaccineAnswers.org
• Vaccines and Diseases: COVID-19
• COVID-19: What you should know: English | Spanish | Japanese
• COVID-19: The Disease vs the Vaccine – infographic
• COVID-19 Vaccines: What’s in the Vial? – infographic  
• June 2025: Understanding recent announcements about COVID-19 vaccines (video)

Related to long-term and immune system effects

• Long-term Side Effects of COVID-19 Vaccine? What We Know. (article)
• What Stops Body from Continuing to Produce the COVID-19 Spike Protein after Getting an mRNA Vaccine? (video)
• What Are the Long-term Side Effects of COVID-19 Vaccine? (video)
• Do COVID-19 Vaccines Disrupt the Immune Response? (video)
• How COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines Work (animation)

Resources related to topics from the June ACIP meeting

• MMR and chickenpox vaccines: Together or separate? (video)
• Why Do Newborns Get the Hepatitis B Vaccine? (video)
• Hepatitis B: What you should know (Q&A): English | Spanish | Japanese
• Hepatitis B (infographic)
• How Does Hepatitis B Combat the Immune System?
• Vaccine Safety and Your Family: Separating Fact from Fiction (booklet): English | Spanish
• Science Behind the Vaccine Schedule
• Immune System and Vaccines
• Vaccine Safety References (See “Too many vaccines, too soon” for studies looking at the overall schedule.)

Thimerosal resources

• Vaccine Ingredients: Thimerosal
• Thimerosal: What you should know English | Spanish
• Is there mercury in vaccines? (video)
• June/July 2025: Thimerosal in multidose vaccine vials: Then and now (video)

Last updated: Aug. 1, 2025