As has been reported in this newspaper, there has been a great deal of public concern in the Kingdom about the anti-swine flu vaccine. Scare e-mails and text messages claim that it has not been properly tested and that it could result in all sorts of dangerous side effects such as kidney or liver failure. So worried have people been that the authorities have decided that it will not be used without first being tested in the Kingdom — although questions inevitably are being asked what that testing entails and who is doing it.
There are no such fears about the vaccine, however, in other parts of the world. Mass vaccination began in Germany on Monday and had already started in the UK, Belgium, Sweden and Italy. In the US, people have been queuing up in thousands to be vaccinated. The only worry there is that there is not enough vaccine to go round.
The US and the EU have the highest standards when it comes to food and drug safety — standards that the rest of the world, including the Middle East, follows. They test new drugs rigorously, taking years in the process if necessary, before licensing them for public use. There can be shortcuts if absolutely necessary but even then testing is more than adequate. That has certainly been the case with the anti-swine flu vaccines licensed by the EU and the US.
It is true, though, that tests on the four vaccines licensed by the US’ Federal Drug Administration showed up some instances (but not many) of side-effects, such as swelling or bruising, the sort of thing that can happen when blood is taken. The worst that happened, and there were very few cases, was the occasional headache or nausea.
It is also true that there has been a row in Germany about the vaccinations. But it is over who is getting what. The fact that the most effective of the three vaccines authorized by the EU is being reserved for the army, the police and essential workers has prompted complaints. But there is no clamor, either there or in the US, against taking the vaccine. Quite the reverse.
So why the fears in Saudi Arabia? Why are wild stories doing the rounds?
The simple truth is that there is a lack of information available about swine flu, the vaccine and what to do if infected. In such an environment it is so easy for rumors to spread like fire in a dry season.
The Europeans and Americans are not fools; they would not allow themselves to be vaccinated if they thought there was the slightest danger. Their governments are not going to permit vaccines to be used without being fully convinced that they are ultra safe. They could be sued for billions if things went wrong. Nor are people in Saudi Arabia somehow genetically prone to side effects that no one else is going to experience. A little common sense and logic should tell people that there is nothing to worry about.
