National Flu Vaccine Week -- It's NOT Too Late to Get Your Flu Shot This Year!

Please let me caution anyone against giving any credence to the comment above. You'll notice it was written anonymously, with no real explanation, just links to a self-serving website that puts you in an endless loop of forcing a signup just to read the article in question. Looks scammy to me.

Kathi

You should not get a flu shot without really knowing what's inside a vaccine.   Like Squalene, thimerasol, and live virus from animals in them.  The information is a lot of medical and health sites.

You can find me on Twitter.com/qutequte and I am not anonymous like the other person.  :)  My personal blog is under maintenance MyQute.com and my name is kelly.

Hi Kelly,

I wanted to respond to this as there is an inaccuracy in what you have said that must be corrected. First off, and most important... there is definitely NOT live virus in the flu shot. There is killed virus and you cannot get the flu from a flu shot. See this page on the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) website for more information and FACTS: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/keyfacts.htm

Second, you are right that there are additives used in flu vaccine, including thimerosol. And you are also correct that one should know what's in a shot before taking it. But any reputable flu shot provider will tell you about this and do a screening interview before giving the shot.

I agree that we should each of us be informed consumers. It's our responsibility to learn all we can about medical treatments before agreeing to them. You just want to be sure that you're getting the real facts, and not "old wive's tales" or common misbeliefs (such as the belief that you can get the flu from the flu shot).

Thanks for chiming in,

Kathi

Thank you for your reply Kathi.  I really appreciate it.

A friend of mine had the flu shot and he still caught colds.

"Flu vaccine does not have the live virus" is mis-information.  The FLUMIST is a nasal spray vaccine using LIVE ATTENUATED VIRUS:  http://www.cdc.gov/FLU/about/qa/nasalspray.htm

WHO recommended live attenuated virus for flu vaccine as stated on the WHO's website at http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/notes/h1n1_vaccine_20090713/en/index.html :
"In view of the anticipated limited vaccine availability at global level and the potential need to protect against "drifted" strains of virus, SAGE recommended that promoting production and use of vaccines such as those that are formulated with oil-in-water adjuvants and live attenuated influenza vaccines was important."

Live attenuated (live but weakened) virus is in the H1N1 vaccine/ (HHS Awards MedImmune the contract):
"Under the agreement, NIAID and MedImmune will use methods such as reverse genetics and classical reassortment to place hemagglutinin genes with pandemic potential into an attenuated human flu virus. "  - http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/news/newsreleases/2005/medimmune.htm

Viruses for producing the flu vaccine are grown in chicken eggs and then killed with a chemical so that they can no longer cause an infection. As a result, the flu vaccine may contain some egg protein, which can cause an allergic reaction.

The Flu Shots are not even recommended for asthmatic patients:  http://asthma.about.com/od/preventioncontrol/a/flu-vaccine.htm

There's no long-term human tests for the common flu shot to prove:
--->  interactions with other drugs or skin gels
--->  fertility affects
--->  any affects on diabetic or patients with cancer

In the news too: 

Genesis Medical Center Pediatric Clinics suspended their use of childhood vaccines. The decision comes after a baby received routine vaccinations on Tuesday, then died several hours later at home.

Vaccines are now under suspicion as more and more people and babies die after their vaccine shots:

HPV Vaccines caused Paralysis in one 12-year-old  http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/local/news-article.aspx?storyid=95517

Ian's first vaccine killed him within 49 days (graphical pictures of Ian suffering!)  http://www.iansvoice.org

http://www.medicalvoices.org/en/vaccination/articles/live-attenuated-swine-influenza-vaccine-for-children-safety-in-question.html

Eye of unborn baby used for manufacture of vaccine without permission from the women who'd the abortions.  How do we know?  It's in an FDA document:  http://su.pr/1RLiiS

Tamiflu causes sickness and nightmares in children, study finds: http://su.pr/9zAs6M

I also just read:  http://www.wellsphere.com/healthcare-industry-policy-article/doctor-recommends-natural-remedy-to-beat-nbsp-flu/664859

I have to say CDC knew all along - they watched as scientists used ferrets for H1N1 flu virus experiments (then known as Swine Flu) way back between 2002 to 2006.

While 5 died in Mexico, CDC reported 159 died (stats as at May 2009).  In my opinion, the CDC is not credible and I'd be better off relying on accurate information from a variety of other websites.

More than half of medical professionals do not trust common flu and H1N1 Flu shots. - UK News

Hi Kelly,

You're still bending the facts a bit to fit your opinions. When I said the virus in a flu vaccine is killed virus, I was responding to your original claim that flu shots have live virus. That is blatantly untrue. However, what I typed was flu vaccine and you are right about that statement not being 100% correct.

Flu shots DO NOT contain live virus and you CANNOT get the flu or a cold or anything else by taking one. However, flu nasal spray vaccine (FluMist) does have a much weakened, but live strain of virus in it. For that reason, FluMist is NOT recommended for people with asthma.

Flu shots, however, ARE strongly recommended for people with asthma. And the page you pointed us to on About.com supports that. I quote, Dr. Pat Bass: "Anyone with asthma over the age of 6 months should get a flu shot every year..."

So, I'm not sure why you directed us to that page?

Also, many of the references you provide are talking about swine flu. Swine flu is a whole different entity than the regular type of influenza I was talking about in my article and also which Dr. Bass is referring to in his article on About.com. So you are mixing apples and oranges.

You say your friend still caught colds after taking the flu shot. Well, yes, that's entirely possible. The common cold virus is not the same as the flu virus. Flu shots are only designed to prevent the flu, not anything else. So the fact that he got colds is really not relevant to this discussion at all.

Yes, flu virus is often made using chicken eggs and that is why people getting flu shots should be warned about that first. If screening is not done in your area, then it is important to be an informed healthcare consumer and to research the risks yourself. I have worked flu clinics and I know that the U.S. government requires that screening be done.

You say you would rather rely on news reports for your "facts." I would caution you and all of our readers against believing everything you read in the media, especially on the Web. The media will often write what sells and sensationalism, hype, conspiracy theories and downright inaccuracies are often what sells. And not all web media is even credible or reliable. One of your articles, for example, says the mother has determined that her daughter's paralysis is due to a vaccine. Is the mother a medical professional? How does she know for sure that the vaccine had anything to do with it?

I agree that we should all be cautious about what we put into our bodies. But, as with any medical treatment, you need to weigh possible risks of treatment against possible benefits. And there can be many greater risks from not getting preventive treatment. If someone with asthma gets the flu, they can die from the complications. Bottom line. At the very least, they can be severely ill for a week or more.

We each have to judge for ourselves what is true and what is not, and what we want to do with our own bodies. But it is MY mission here at HealthCentral.com to educate people about the facts surrounding asthma and its treatments.

Take care,

Kathi

Thank you again for your reply, Kathi!   :)   6 million doses of Flu Vaccines were banned.  http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1P2-210052.html  (Not sure if anyone died due to these vaccines before the ban.)

Read carefully  --->  Flumist is vaccine in nasal spray.  It does have attenuated live virus.  To say flu vaccines do not have live virus is just misguided info.   Which part of my statements are "bent"?

I mentioned Swine flu is because like the common/seasonal flu, both have vaccines made.  Both vaccines are questionable.  Ask why Czech Republic banned H1N1 vaccines.

So you're saying the cold is not a symptom of flu, Kathi?  How do you know if it wasn't the flu my friend caught?    [ I am STILL bending facts?  You're saying my first comment and second comment are "bent facts"?  Anyweeee! ]

"You say you would rather rely on news reports for your "facts." I would caution you and all of our readers against believing everything you read in the media, especially on the Web. The media will often write what sells and sensationalism, hype, conspiracy theories and downright inaccuracies are often what sells."

Yep, like doctors, you are free to seek more than ONE doctor's expert opinion.  You are free to choose whatever treatment or meds or vaccines you want.  One can always check facts from a variety of websites (that's how I came to HealthCentral.com and to your articles.)

a)  And yes, what sells are vaccines!  Donald Rumsfield made a killing previously for SARs.  Obama will be the next as he own shares via Baxter (1 of 5 phamraceutical companies that made your H1N1 Vaccines).  Conspiracy theories or not, Bible or not, Nostradamus or not, facts are facts.

As for the About.com content I am not so sure when they have changed their content since it's common for many websites to accept paid advertisements by pharmaceutical companies who manufacture vaccines.  (Not a suprise there.)

b)  "A common myth is that Thimerosal is added to vaccines in 'trace' amounts," said Mike Wagnitz of University of Wisconsin.

c)  7 states have passed Thimerosal bans: California, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, New York, and Washington   That means, vaccines with Thimerasol in other states of USA are not banned yet.  What makes the flu vaccine safe??

d)  90% of Current Flu shots contain thimerasol (mercury).  This alone accounts for major reason why a sane American (or other citizens of other countries) does not want the Flu shot nor the H1N1 shot.

e)  There are no clinical trials to say vaccines do not interact with prescription drugs taken by asthmatic patients.  Drug + Vaccine can be deadly.

f)  Canadians and people in Massachussets have more to fear as the shots will be mandatory and fines (MS) are $1,000/day for refusal of shot.  Making a big deal of this - yes!  Because it may be our turn soon!

In short, what you're saying Kathi via your article, is that all asmathic patients should get the questionable flu shots.  However, I most welcome you to dispute any of the above facts which I have indexed for easier commenting on your part.

Best regards
kelly

Hi again, Kelly, This will be my last response, but I must set the facts straight. You speak with authority, but much of your reasoning is flawed. I'm not trying to be insulting, but as a healthcare professional, I cannot allow such assertions to go unchallenged. So, let me respond to each of your points...

1. Anyone who follows the link to encyclopedia.com about the banned flu doses will learn as I did that this article is about flu vaccine that was banned because of problems with its manufacture, not with the flu vaccine itself. The vaccine was contaminated due to shoddy manufacturing. It was caught and no allowed to be used. I don't see how that speaks to the safety of flu vaccine itself.

2. As I clearly stated in my last response, I made a typing error in saying that flu vaccine contains killed virus. I was responding to your contention that flu shots contain live virus which is NOT true. I should have typed flu shots, but made a mistake. I clearly acknowledged this typing error and agreed with you that FluMist (which is NOT recommended for people with asthma) contains live (albeit very weakened) virus.

3. You can compare swine flu vaccine to regular flu vaccine all you want, but they are not the same. You might as well compare measles vaccine to flu vaccine. Either way, it's not relevant to the discussion here.

4. You are absolutely correct... YES, I AM saying that the cold is not a symptom of the flu. They are in fact two different diseases, caused by two different viruses. Neither one is a symptom of the other, though both diseases do have SOME similar symptoms. And I have no idea what your friend had. YOU told ME that he had a cold after taking a flu shot.

5. I'm glad to hear you are making some effort to check facts. There are some reliable health sites on the Web and many that are not. HealthCentral.com is one of those health sites. WebMD and About.com are others. I don't know what you were trying to say about About.com taking advertising dollars, but I have to tell you. I wrote the content on that asthma section of About.com up until a year ago. All content is reviewed by a medical review board and none of the writers are required to do anything to support advertisers. So, again, what you seem to be trying to say is blatantly untrue. I am quite certain that you NEVER read anything on About.com saying people with asthma should not get flu shots. Every health authority recommends that people with asthma SHOULD get a yearly flu shot.

6. Your comment that the flu vaccine plus asthma medication is deadly is laughable. I have been getting a flu shot each year for years, am on asthma medication and have never had one problem. Nor have I ever heard that there have been any such reports.

7. The mandatory flu shots you speak of in Massachusetts are swine flu shots, so again you're mixing apples and oranges.

8. In short, what I am saying in my article and all of my comments is that I do support that people with asthma get a yearly flu shot. I am NOT commenting on swine flu shots, because I'm not sure today what the recommendation will be from the asthma governing bodies.

And I think we've now beat this horse as dead as we need to.

Best regards,

Kathi

Hi Kathi, Never thought I spoke with authority but thanks for responding and I read your comments as well. I must say you do not need to be a healthcare professional in order to stay atop of information, just common sense and a thirst for truth.  Stay well!

best regards

kelly

Hi Kathi, Never thought I spoke with authority but thanks for responding and I read your comments as well. I must say you do not need to be a healthcare professional in order to stay atop of information, just common sense and a thirst for truth.  Stay well!

best regards

kelly

vaccines have thimerasol just as all fruits have anti-oxidants.  duh...

Have you heard of SUDDEN INFANT DEATH?  Happened to many asthmatic babies.

P.S. Kathi, in my country, there is no screening whatsoever when children line up in schools for their immunization.  They only pick OUT those who are already sick, so they don't get further weakened by vaccines.  And if they are not careful in picking kids off the immunization queue, there is a risk.

Thanks for this discussion!  God bless ya!

Hear ye hear ye! Kathi is consultant to the health authorities! And to wikipedia!

Dear kelly, this reminds me of those cancer statistics.  "If you live within 3 years of chemo but die in 4th year, the treatment has been successful."  :)

Hi Norman,

You sound pretty passionate about what's going on in your state. I'm not sure I totally understand the issue. I don't see how a bureaucrat can deny you access to medical care. And I don't understand how you can medically have asthma but not legally. If a doctor has diagnosed you, that's not good enough? That doesn't make much sense.

The good news is that flu shots are not that expensive. I don't have health insurance and I've paid around $20 to $30 the past couple years at Walgreen's Pharmacy. Lots of local drug stores, grocery stores and other similar locations offer flu shots every year now throughout the U.S.

You have to think of getting a flu shot as an investment in your health. If you don't find a way to pay for the flu shot in the fall, imagine what will happen come January or February if you happen to catch the flu? You could lose at least a week of work, maybe two, because the flu usually makes you too sick to feel like working and/or your employer doesn't want you around infecting everyone else. So that will be lost income. On top of that, you may need to buy flu/cold medicine or even visit your doctor or local urgent care clinic for treatment/evaluation. More money. Scraping together a few dollars in the fall could prevent all that!

Sure it would be great if you could get someone else to pay for the shots, but for me, when you compare the one-time cost of a flu shot each year against the pain/suffering/expense of getting the flu, it's a no brainer where I'm going to spend my money!

To your health,

Kathi