# How many of the following are harmful: vaccines, GMOs, fluoride? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 2, 2020, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033 "2020-05-02T20:01:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![scarface54345](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@scarface54345](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scarface54345)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2020, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/1 "2020-05-02T20:01:59Z")
You may comment if you want to specify which are harmful and which are not. ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2020, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/2 "2020-05-02T20:20:11Z")
I voted “none of them are harmful”. Of course, _occasionally_ some people will have a bad reaction to a particular vaccine, and you could probably come up with similar caveats for GMOs and fluoride. But on balance, I think all three of those things are not just “harmless” but are in fact extremely beneficial. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2020, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/3 "2020-05-02T20:20:44Z")
Overall none of them are more harmful than the good they do. There are some risks with GMOs reducing variety. But overall they’re generally a good thing and reduce reliance on fertilizers and pesticides quite often. ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2020, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/4 "2020-05-02T20:31:36Z")
With the question posed like that, none of them are harmful. You shouldn’t consume too much fluoride, and it’s easily to picture bad effects of specific GMOs, but our current use of them is beneficial and conducted with sensible respect for any risks and side effects. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2020, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/5 "2020-05-02T20:37:23Z")
i want to vote both that all of them are harmful, and that none of them are. For each of them, it depends. Does the GMO now express some exotic protein you are allergic to? Does it mean that the workers and down-wind villagers are exposed to excessive quantities of herbicides? Does the vaccine agrivate symptoms, instead of of making you immune (as with dengue) or was it made in chicken eggs, to which you are allergic? How much fluoride are we talking about? I have sought out optional vaccines and made sure my infants got fluoride. And I don’t usually think about whether a product contains GMO elements. But that doesn’t mean that they can’t all be harmful. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2020, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/6 "2020-05-02T20:48:02Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > i want to vote both that all of them are harmful, and that none of them are. For each of them, it depends. Does the GMO now express some exotic protein you are allergic to? Does it mean that the workers and down-wind villagers are exposed to excessive quantities of herbicides? Does the vaccine agrivate symptoms, instead of of making you immune (as with dengue) or was it made in chicken eggs, to which you are allergic? How much fluoride are we talking about? > > I have sought out optional vaccines and made sure my infants got fluoride. And I don’t usually think about whether a product contains GMO elements. But that doesn’t mean that they can’t all be harmful. Agreed. The closest to the truth is none are harmful but the real answer is “it depends.” ---
**Author:** ![Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tastes_of_chocolate/32/3232_2.png) [@Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tastes_of_Chocolate)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2020, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/7 "2020-05-02T20:52:51Z")
Which of the above are harmful? Water, sunshine, beer? Like your question, the answer is all of them in specific situations. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2020, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/8 "2020-05-02T20:53:59Z")
Yeah, it depends, but compared to so many other things they’d all go in the not harmful category. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2020, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/9 "2020-05-02T21:04:50Z")
I can kill you with any of them, but none of them are harmful. Helpful, wasn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![rsat3acr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@rsat3acr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsat3acr)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2020, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/10 "2020-05-02T21:39:13Z")
Depends on what you mean by harmful. As a dentist I can assure you that in proper amounts fluoride is beneficial but too much can kill a person. That holds true for many things, but as usually used I’d say not harmful. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2020, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/11 "2020-05-02T22:58:29Z")
What’s the point of this poll? ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2020, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/12 "2020-05-02T23:04:46Z")
The dose makes the poison. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2020, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/13 "2020-05-03T00:36:15Z")
GMOs aren’t harmful to you, but they pose significant dangers to ecosystems, including agricultural ecosystems. Fluoride is all about the dose. Vaccines have no significant downsides at all that I know of. All are bugaboos of the fringe, but they have little else in common. Reading social media discussions of the pandemic makes me realize that the large majority of people not only cannot understand science but they cannot understand that they don’t. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2020, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/14 "2020-05-03T00:42:54Z")
I voted all 3 since dosages and context weren’t mentioned. Vaccines do have some side effects and can have serious effects in a minority of people, like all medicine, but the benefits outweigh the side effects. Fluoride is good for teeth in the right dose but is a poison at higher doses. GMOs have been found dangerous to rats and mice in some situations. Technically water is harmful too if you drink too much. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2020, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/15 "2020-05-03T01:07:57Z")
ALL OF THEM! They’re all dastardly plots by the gleeful godless commies to rot and capture the gullible minds of our youth! > [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > Technically water is harmful too if you drink too much. Yeah, this too! Careful with that dihydrogen oxide there! Many household products (and foodstuffs! :eek:) are contaminated with it! These popular household disinfectants too, any of which ingested in sufficient doses have been touted as cures for COVID-19: [ul][li] [Dioxygen Difluoride](https://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2010/02/23/things_i_wont_work_with_dioxygen_difluoride) (aka FOOF)[/li][li] [Dimethylcadmium](https://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2013/05/08/things_i_wont_work_with_dimethylcadmium)[/li][\*] [Chlorine Trifluoride](https://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2008/02/26/sand_wont_save_you_this_time)[/ul] ---
**Author:** ![Orr\_G](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ee59a6/32.png) [@Orr\_G](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orr_G)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2020, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/16 "2020-05-03T01:46:53Z")
I’m in favor of vaccines, hand down, and I hope they continue to be developed with the highest of medical and ethical standards. Fluoride, I’m not very knowledgeable about. I agree with its purpose and understand that it is generally safe as typically used/administered, but I wouldn’t be able to discuss whatever risks there might be or if any trends in society would require reevaluation of our use of fluoride (such as, say, people drinking more water, or more bottled water vs tap, or whatever). Although I’m far from an expert, nor am I even a knowledgeable lay person (compared to 'dopers, at least), GMOs concern me. I’m fine with science getting involved in our food. What concerns me is the effect that how we structure corporations has on the science that gets applied to our food. Our food should be safe and nutritious, and should not be harmful to the environment, ideally. I tend to doubt that those ideals have a very high priority for many of the corporations that supply our food. GM techniques make it possible to more quickly develop foods with qualities that are attractive to corporations other than safety, nutrition, and sustainability. ---
**Author:** ![RioRico](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f04885/32.png) [@RioRico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RioRico)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2020, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/17 "2020-05-03T04:06:16Z")
Would you rather be shot, hanged, or eaten by crocodiles? ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2020, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/18 "2020-05-03T04:14:22Z")
Unless you get killed when a case of vaccine falls on your head, not a goddamn one of them. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2020, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/19 "2020-05-03T04:28:28Z")
> [@RioRico](#): > > Would you rather be shot, hanged, or eaten by crocodiles? I would much rather be shot by crocodiles. Their arms are too short to aim properly. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2020, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033/20 "2020-05-03T04:34:24Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > I would much rather be shot by crocodiles. Their arms are too short to aim properly. I was shot by a crocodile in my pajamas. How he got into my pajamas, I’ll never know. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-of-the-following-are-harmful-vaccines-gmos-fluoride/853033.md?page=2)