We are trying out something new! This week’s top 5 public health nuggets, whether or not they made headlines, explained for you.

Novavax Covid-19 is now available! 

FDA approved Novavax’s updated fall Covid-19 vaccine. This vaccine is the only protein-based (i.e., traditional) option with an updated formula targeting the latest circulating Covid-19 subvariants. Check out YLE’s guide to fall 2024 vaccines to decide if this vaccine is right for you.

• The challenge is always finding Novavax vaccines. I had luck at Costco last year. Word on the street is that Costco will have it available at all pharmacies this year. Vaccines.gov may have other options for you, too. (It will take a week or two to stock fully.) 
• Timing for Covid-19 vaccines this season is tricky. I’m still waiting until Halloween to get my Covid-19 and flu shots. 

Back to school = eyes on routine childhood vaccinations 

We are having a bad measles year, and whooping cough is exponentially increasing. A new analysis found HPV vaccine uptake is dipping among teenagers. As a society, we are moving backward. 

The beginning of the school year is a great time for trusted messengers to discuss routine vaccinations. It’s clear many people have lost trust and have many questions about vaccines:

1. This week, Annenberg found fewer people thought routine vaccines were safe and effective in 2023 compared to 2022. 
   • More than 1 in 4 respondents incorrectly believe that Covid-19 vaccines have been responsible for thousands of deaths.
2. Another Gallup poll showed that fewer parents support vaccines, and more parents think getting the disease is safer than getting a vaccine. (It isn’t.) Unfortunately, this varies dramatically across political lines, which breaks my heart.
   • Vaccination mandates in schools are being questioned, with nearly 50% of parents saying, “The government should stay out of it.”

Over the past 50 years, childhood vaccines have saved more than 150 million lives. And yes, they are safer than the diseases themselves.

A pretty amazing analysis from Scotland earlier this year showed NO cases of cervical cancer in women vaccinated at 12 or 13 years of age. The HPV vaccine is remarkably safe and effective.

Another school mass shooting

We, parents, have enough anxiety about sending our kids to school. Hearts sank, and frustrations brewed with news of four people murdered and many wounded after a shooter opened fire in a Georgia high school. This adds to the growing list of more than 200 school shooting incidents this year in the United States.

Georgia is ranked #46 of 50 in terms of its gun laws’ strength—the state does not require background checks or purchase permits to own a gun. States with more permissive laws have more firearm deaths, overall. Georgia ranks #16 for age-adjusted firearm deaths.

Fluoride in toothpaste doesn’t lower children’s IQ

Concern is stirring after a new report found fluoride impacts children’s IQ by 2-5 points. As Jess Steier wrote in Unbiased Science, “Fluoride is having a rough day in the court of public opinion.” 

Read her great deep dive here. TL;DR:

• The National Toxicology Program (NTP) released a study linking high fluoride levels (>1.5 mg/L) with lower IQs in children.
• This fluoride level is more than double the amount used in U.S. community water fluoridation (0.7 mg/L).
• Less than 1% of the U.S. population (1.9 million people) are exposed to these naturally high fluoride levels.
• The American Dental Association (ADA) criticizes the study’s methodology and supports water fluoridation.
• Do not throw out your fluoride toothpaste!

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) agrees that water fluoridation is effective and safe and works to prevent tooth decay.

Reader question grab bag: How did polio reach Gaza? 

In this week’s YLE State of Affairs, we highlighted that WHO has started vaccinating for polio in Gaza after the first infant case was detected due to deplorable conditions.

One reader asked: “I am surprised because I had thought that polio was generally rare, worldwide, except for a few regions. And also because few people are being allowed in or out of Gaza. So, how could the virus have entered Gaza?”

The poliovirus detected in Gaza is vaccine-derived. This means someone was vaccinated with a polio oral live vaccine, and because there’s a live virus in the vaccine, that person sheds the virus in their feces. Then, due to low sanitation and low community immunity, it started spreading like wildfire. The vast majority (90%) of polio infections are asymptomatic, but transmission gives the virus opportunities to replicate and offers much more time to attack the nervous system among unvaccinated.

Another reader asked: “Why does the modified live oral vaccine revert to wildtype in the feces? Why is it then infectious?”

A critical part of the virus must be present for polio to cause paralysis. When we make the live oral vaccine, we change this spot so it doesn’t cause paralysis after vaccination. The issue is that as soon as it starts spreading (due to low immunity and poor sanitation, like in Gaza), the virus starts mutating and can undo this change, giving it the ability to cause paralysis again. The WHO is working to deploy a newer vaccine in Gaza that makes this reversion much harder.

Poll of the week

Bottom line

You’re now caught up with this week’s public health bites. Have a great weekend!

Love, the YLE team

P.S. Drop your thoughts below on this Dose format! Curious to hear your thoughts.

“Your Local Epidemiologist (YLE)” is founded and operated by Dr. Katelyn Jetelina, MPH PhD—an epidemiologist. The main goal of this newsletter is to “translate” the ever-evolving public health science so that people will be well-equipped to make evidence-based decisions. This newsletter is free to everyone, thanks to the generous support of fellow YLE community members. To support this effort, subscribe below: