[Heff]

I have one stat for you...I am 40 and had a flu shot once...12 years ago...I also got the flu once....12 years ago, after getting the flu shot...lesson here???

Stat: I am 1 for 1 on flu shot to flu infection

Don't get the flu shot!

[R. Scott]

I used to get the flu every year – when I took the Army Issue flu shots. I haven’t had a shot since about 1975 when I started dodging them.
I haven’t had the flu since.

[Stirner]

I don't have the stats, but the way flu vaccines work is that they are developed to create immunity to one specific type or strain of flu. What researchers have to do is guess, months in advance, what sort of flu will be prevalent later. From what I gather, if they guess right, flu vaccine can be very effective, but if an unexpected flu variant comes along, the vaccine will be useless. I think its quite rare for people to get the flu from the vaccine itself since they kill or at least weaken the viruses that make up the vaccine.

On another topic, I have wondered why people can't give informed consent and accept the tainted vaccine if they want it. Flu vaccine protects against a virus, and the British vaccine was slightly contaminated by some bacteria. If we had an extremely virulent flu spreading rapidly, such as the one that killed 20-40 million people in 1918, I might want to take a chance on a bacterial infection to save my life.

[Spyder]

From "The Placebo Gazette" - this is hilarious.

---

I Opened Up The Window and Influenza

How could I not start this Placebo Gazette without mentioning the insanity of what is going on with the flu vaccine? This should be a reality check for anyone who believes that Americans would accept a national healthcare system which rations out healthcare. We can’t even ration flu vaccines much less CT scans, bypass surgeries or specialist referrals!!! I have patients who never received the flu vaccine before and are healthy as a horse trying to bribe and sweet talk me into getting them a shot. Old people are waiting hours on line for it. People are getting in fights over it. Did you know that in some states doctors can be fined up to $2000 if they give the flu shot to a healthy person? Unless, of course, it is a congressman. It seems they all got their flu shots as soon as the shortage was announced. It turns out that they didn’t meet the criteria to get these immunizations but, sorry, it is too late to do anything about it now. Also, it seems that prisoners are getting them as well (as long as they meet the specific criteria). They are so lucky since there are no lines for them in jail. This whole thing is crazy. Kerry says it is Bush’s fault. Bush say’s it was the manufacturers fault. I say it is no one’s fault. It is a great reality check for us to see what life would be like if you couldn’t get what you wanted. Besides every other damn year I can’t convince most of my patients to get the flu shot anyway. The conversation always went something like this.



“Do you want a flu shot?”

“No. Not for me. It gives me the flu just by taking it.”

“No it doesn’t. That isn’t true and you really do need it with all your illnesses.”

“In that case, let me think about it. Uhhh….no”.





Now everyone and their uncle is trying to get the flu shot like it is some sort of delicacy. Forget washing their hands and not spitting on each other. Forget quitting smoking so your lungs could handle the virus. No, they want the shot. For the record, my medical office has none and now my patients are actually mad at me like I did something wrong. Why don’t we do what the Iraqi government is doing with the insurgents? Instead of an arms-for-cash program we can have a cigarettes-for-flu vaccine program. People with COPD (emphysema) who won’t quit smoking but will bitch about not getting the flu shot can exchange a carton of Luckys for it. Then maybe we can convince a few people that by taking care of their own health they will be better off than getting a flu shot in the long run anyway. Would it work? No. I believe they would deposit their carton, get their shot, bum a cigarette off the first person they see in the street and then go to a local convenience store and buy another carton. Wait a minute! That is almost exactly what the insurgents are doing in Iraq!

[elbucko]

People have always gotten the flu but the hysteria..

It is partly due to the Influenza Pandemic that killed approximately 20-40 million people worldwide in 1918. It was known as the "Spanish Flu" or "La Grippe", which is where we get the phrase "He died from the Grip". Most of the oldsters going to get theses early flu shots have memory of the Spanish Flu or a family legend about its effects.

During the term of President Gerald Ford, the scare was the "Swine Flu" and the government gave out the shots. A few people died from the shots (millions were given) and the government was sued. The Flu did not materialize as bad as thought.

[techdawg2k]

I have some personal statistics. 6 years of flu shots without ever getting the flu. 8 years with no shots and had the flu about 50% of the time. The last 2 years of shots with no flu and 3 weeks ago with the latest shot that made me feel like I had the flu for about 6 days.

So for me, 50% chance of getting the flu without the shots. 100% immune with the shots until this year when it wiped me out.

[geekchick]

Hear, hear!!

I, my son, my family, and most of my friends have turned down flu shots -- never had one since their inception, even though I can get them for free at work. Guess what? We're all still alive. In fact, I don't recall any of us getting the flu in all that time.

When we do get a cough or runny nose, it hangs on for a few days but doesn't get worse. Usually this happens after we haven't been eating right or sleeping enough, and a corresponding adjustment in habits takes care of the problem.

In contrast, many of my co-workers who get the shots seem to experience difficulty immediately after receiving the shots, and it does hang on. Not all vaccines are created equal.

How long did all of us live without annual flu shots? If the flu problem is so bad, how did we survive all that time? Could it be that maybe, just possibly, there's so much flu hysteria because there's good money in flu shots?

I received a nice little inoculant as a child that has kept me and my family healthy over the years. It's free, but sometimes in short supply. It's called "common sense."

[Doomonyou]

Never had one, never will.

I figure, if everybody else gets one, no one will get the flu, and therefore, there will be nobody I can catch it from.

[LocoAardvark]

Michelle Malkin has been discussing this, with lots of links to bloggers and others who've analyzed the data.

Start here http://michellemalkin.com/archives/000672.htm
then go to her main page http://www.michellemalkin.com/
for more articles (scroll down a bit).

Umm... sorry, first time poster, don't know how to make those URLs clickable... must read posting guidelines and stuff... again... and pay attention...

[Sans-Culotte]

Below here is a link to a M.D. blogger who says the flu shots are worthless.

I got this in an e-mail from a friend who is always looking for new remedies, etc. This doc says putting drops of hydrogen peroxide in your ears is more effective!

Hydrogen Peroxide for Colds and Flu

[Cicero]

I was hoping for some informed reference to medical research here, but I don't see any. Anecdotal evidence only goes so far. My experience is that flu shots help, but I don't think that means anything.

There must be hundreds of large-scale studies. You would have to look at them with a suspicious eye, because you never know who pays the research grants. But usually you can find some sort of helpful statistical information on this kind of thing.

[petercooper]

http://www.nypost.com/postopinion/opedcolumnists/30666.htm

[Jim Noble]

Has research been done that would show those who got the flu shot vs. those who did not, and how many contracted the flu?

Yes

[BossLady]

Interesting info on all vaccines here:

http://www.whale.to/vaccines.html

And for the record...you couldn't pay me enough to get a flu shot.

There are great ways to keep your immune system up so you do not even have to think about getting a vaccine for last year's flu strain. ;)

[George from New England]

The stats I REALLY WANT....

How many of the deaths, let's say last year 2003-2004, were amoung people that had already GOT the shot.

Nobody will talk about it.

How about how many that get the flu that also had gotten the shot?

I think these stats would shut the MSM up.