The flu, the vaccine and some facts about each one. The flu, short for Influenza, is a contagious respiratory infection caused by a virus. Some flu symptoms can include chills, fever, sore throat, cough, muscle aches, and fatigue. For most people, these conditions usually improve after a few days with just a few fluids and bed rest.
So why is there so much fuss about the flu virus? How dangerous is it really?
The flu can lead to some serious complications, such as pneumonia, but these conditions generally only affect high-risk groups, such as the elderly and people with pre-existing medical conditions. Serious complications from the flu may even lead to death.
Every year thousands of people get the flu. It is a mutating virus that changes from year to year and can spread when people are in close contact. But despite this fact, very few develop serious or fatal complications.
The Centers for Disease Control publicly state that about 36,000 Americans die each year from the flu. However, if you take a look at the official records from the CDC, they show that the actual numbers of flu deaths are in the hundreds, not the thousands. To put this in perspective, in 2007, 457 people died from the flu. That same year, 3,355 people died from asthma (a disease that has been classified as a possible side effect of vaccines) and 2,600 died from malnutrition. (MALNUTRITION!?! Is this possible in a country that has one of the highest living standards ever known?) The numbers are very similar for each year you want to look at. This is all part of the public record and you can see for yourself by reading the National Vital Statistics Report.
But even one death is really too many, so having a vaccine to prevent the flu is a great thing; It is not like this?
Well, let’s take a look at the flu shot.
In the US there are five different flu vaccines available. Four are injections and one is a live virus that is sprayed through the nose. All 5 vaccines contain the same attenuated influenza viruses.
To make the flu virus, scientists travel to Asia at the beginning of each year to see which strains of the flu virus are active. They assume that these same flu strains will arrive in the US later in the year for our flu season. All companies that make the flu vaccine are instructed to include these active flu strains in new flu vaccines.
To start with, the different influenza viruses are grown in chicken embryos for a few weeks. The virus is then inactivated with formaldehyde and preserved with thimerosal, a derivative of mercury. (Some flu vaccines have been shown to have up to 25 mcg of mercury per dose.) The vaccine manufacturer also adds other ingredients, such as sodium phosphate, sodium chloride, and gelatin.
Basically your flu shot is a mixture of chicken embryo based toxins and viruses with some preservatives mixed in to keep it from going bad and becoming “dangerous”.
So we discussed the possible dangers of contracting the flu virus, now let’s look at some of the possible side effects of the flu vaccine.
Some possible serious reactions to the flu shot include life-threatening allergies and GBS (Guillain-Barré syndrome). GBS can occur within a few weeks after receiving the flu vaccine and is fatal for about 1 in 20 people who get the disease. Other studies of the flu vaccine have documented cases of encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), various neurological disorders, and thrombocytopenia, a serious blood disorder.
When looking at the statistics of children under the age of 5 who have died from the flu, an important statistic is immediately apparent. From 1999 to 2002 (before the CDC suggested it was a good idea to vaccinate young children) there were an average of fewer than 20 flu deaths per year. In 2003, after the CDC recommended that these children get a flu shot, deaths more than quadrupled for this age group (90 children in 2003).
Here is a quote directly from the Fluvanol flu vaccine package insert for the 2009-2010 formulation:
“FLULAVAL is an influenza virus vaccine indicated for the active immunization of adults 18 years and older against influenza disease caused by influenza virus A and B subtypes contained in the vaccine. This indication is based on the immune response elicited by FLULAVAL and there have been no controlled trials demonstrating a reduction in influenza illness after vaccination with FLULAVAL.”
It bears repeating: “There are NO controlled trials showing a decrease” in getting the flu after vaccination! He goes on to mention that each dose contains 25 mcg of mercury. This is 250 times the amount considered safe by the EPA. So the company itself says the vaccine doesn’t show a decreased risk of getting the flu, but it has pages full of warnings and possible side effects. It is a very interesting read if you care about your health and your body…
But then again, most drugs and medicines have some sort of side effects, but if they save lives, it’s worth the risk.
The problem, the flu vaccine has a disproportionate number of problems compared to the potential benefits it could provide.
First, officials have to guess months in advance which strains of the flu virus will end up here in the US If they’re wrong, the flu shot is totally useless in preventing the flu. It is only good for creating dangerous side effects.
Second, even if they are right, the vaccine is not very effective. In a study conducted over the past 40 years, researchers found that in healthy children older than 2 years, the flu vaccine was only effective in 33-36% of those who received the vaccine. And in children younger than 2 years, the same study found NO evidence that the flu vaccine had any effect in preventing flu.
The study also looked at adults. For adults younger than 65 years, research showed that receiving the flu vaccine did not affect time away from work, length of hospitalization, or death from the flu virus or its possible complications. For those adults 65 and older, the study again found that the flu vaccine was NOT effective against the flu virus.
None of these data support the need for “universal immunization” of healthy adults.
So all the articles and research show that getting a flu shot is really not an effective way to prevent the flu. But what do people who are supposed to understand sickness and disease do for themselves?
Doctors, nurses, and health care workers are supposed to be trained in disease prevention, so you’d think if the flu shot was useful, they’d be the first to line up for the shot. I mean they are exposed to sick people all the time and they would want to protect themselves. But then again, the data doesn’t support this…
70% of doctors and nurses do NOT get a flu shot and 62% of all healthcare workers do the same. They do NOT get a flu shot and are among the least likely to get vaccinated.
So if the flu shot doesn’t help much (and may actually be more dangerous than the flu virus), what can people do to stay healthy and avoid getting sick?
First, a study was conducted in 2006 that showed a direct relationship between vitamin D deficiency and a weakened immune system. A less than perfect immune system creates susceptibility to the flu and really any viral or bacterial infection.
Second, a different study showed that interferon plays a key role in keeping your immune system running at peak performance levels. It has been clinically tested and proven by four published human clinical studies that a combination of immune-boosting plant extracts can strengthen your immune response by increasing your body’s natural interferon. Researchers have shown that interferon can prevent infection and disease when taken properly. There is actually a supplement available that has been shown to boost your immune system and strengthen your immune response to viral infections.
Of course, I am not a doctor and I am not telling you what to do, I am just writing facts that anyone can find. Don’t think that just because something is reported by the 5 o’clock news or by the ‘government’ that it is necessarily true.
Do some research, talk to your doctor, and decide for yourself what is best for you and your situation. There are different shades of truth, but if you care about your health and well-being, it’s worth looking at the black and white facts…
It is definitely something to think about!