Posted on 09/25/2015 3:24:27 PM PDT by blam
Bob Bryan
September 25,2015
As summer turns to fall, the medical community is ramping up for their annual fight against the flu.
One Wall Street firm thinks this flu season could be a bad one.
William Quirk and Alexander Nowak at Piper Jaffray use the number of flu cases from Australia and New Zealand to forecast the US season, and they say the numbers from the southern hemisphere point to a massive increase in sicknesses this year.
'The Southern hemisphere just went through one of the worst flu seasons on record (despite the vaccine targeting the correct strains)," wrote Quirk and Nowak in a note to clients. "Using the New Zealand influenza season (reinforced with Australia) as our basis (influenza-like illness cases +45% yoy), our analysis suggests a 31.9% rise in influenza-like illnesses (ILI) season/season for the United States."
This would mean that their average prediction for US cases is 943,356, which is the worst since the H1N1 pandemic in 2009. Last year there were 715,031 reported ILIs, and 2009 was the only year in a decade to crack 750,000.
(snip)
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
Yup - each year’s flu vaccine production is a crap shoot month’s out guess at what flu variants will affect the populace.
Last year’s flu shot efficacy estimated to be around 20%.
The doctors, hospitals and the CDC do a poor job of consistently testing and recording the exact strains of flu immunized individuals contract in order to determine solid statistical evidence that the flu vaccine is worth getting.
The insert PDR info clearly states there are some serious risks associates with getting the flu vaccine shots.
Therapist relative who rehabilitates at a large hospital encounters a number of patients who contract Guillain-Barre syndrome (Permanent Paralysis) from flu vaccinations Every flu season.
She and her nurse colleagues Refuse to get the flu vaccine for that reason, and also because they see poor medical science supporting it’s efficacy to prevent flu.
DHHS considering revising their advisory statement regarding risk of contracting GBS paralysis to 1 in 50,000.
Flu vaccine is the number 1 cause of federal vaccine injury claims awards, ie: 120+ in Dec 2013 - Mar 2014 season.
Flu vaccine is an annual placebo ritual at best.
Like most above have said, they say that every year.
My last flu shot was in 1973. A few days after that one I went down with the flu for nearly a month and looking back, finally figured out that had been the pattern for the previous eight years or so when flu shots had become de rigueur. in 1974 I risked court-martial in the military when I refused that shot that permanently damaged or killed so many people.
The funny thing is... I got the flu real bad a couple times a year, and bad colds several times a year prior to 1974. Haven’t had the flu at all since I quit getting the vaccination, and only a couple of colds that were much more than sniffles.
Never got ‘em for free!!! Tho, now in my dotage, w/Medicare they are “free.” I think Costco gives the shots for $10 for non-Medicare types. They used to cost @ $40, IIRC.
I’d rather avoid the flu if possible, and to that end, stay away from the public as much as possible. Probably more effective than any shot.
I think the sky is about to fall. Again.
Yeah—Just like in the Spring when we were heading for what could have been one of our worst hurricane seasons in years.
I have a strange reaction to the vaccine if it contains preservative, sometimes I have trouble finding a vaccine without it but I search until I do find it.
Whatever !!!!!!!!!!!
.
Isn’t every year going to be the worse flu year ever? Probably global warming . . . .
I get the flu shot every year because people all around me come to work while sick :-( I can handle my own kids being sick off and on all school year but at the factory I am out numbered.
The labs almost never get the flu vaccine right because by the time they make it the flu has mutated. Last year the vaccine gave you a 45% protection. We have oil of oregano and elderberry tincture that we take during flu season. So far so good.
Gee, wonder which big pharm corp they're pushing this year.
Check out N-Acetyl Cysteine taken along with about twice the amount of buffered ascorbic acid and see what it will do for you. There is plenty of info about it available.
The history of flu vaccination suggests other reasons to doubt claims that it dramatically reduces mortality. In 2004, for example, vaccine production fell behind, causing a 40 percent drop in immunization rates. Yet mortality did not rise. In addition, vaccine “mismatches” occurred in 1968 and 1997: in both years, the vaccine that had been produced in the summer protected against one set of viruses, but come winter, a different set was circulating. In effect, nobody was vaccinated. Yet death rates from all causes, including flu and the various illnesses it can exacerbate, did not budge. Sumit Majumdar, a physician and researcher at the University of Alberta, in Canada, offers another historical observation: rising rates of vaccination of the elderly over the past two decades have not coincided with a lower overall mortality rate. In 1989, only 15 percent of people over age 65 in the U.S. and Canada were vaccinated against flu. Today, more than 65 percent are immunized. Yet death rates among the elderly during flu season have increased rather than decreased.
Above from The Atlantic:
http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2009/11/does-the-vaccine-matter/307723/
In practical terms, pay attention to the following.
1) The flu shot comes in regular and extra strength. The latter targets the “elderly” (65+), those with kidney problems, and diabetics. This season they are quickly using up the extra strength shots, so if you or someone you love needs one, get it soon.
http://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/vaccine/qa_fluzone.htm
2) The length that the flu shot works for the elderly is thought to be much less than for younger people. So if they get a shot early in the season, around now, they should consider getting another shot in January. Do not mention this to whoever you are getting the second shot from, as there is no official doctrine that supports this, and they may turn you down.
3) It is also vital to keep up your serum vitamin D levels during cold and flu season. 1000 IU/day supplements should be enough for adults, unless you are sensitive to it.
In addition to directly attacking viruses, it also opens immune pathways to detect and react to them. The icing on the cake is that it is a natural ACE inhibitor, which moderates the immune response, and keeps your system from overreacting, which can itself be unpleasant or even lethal.
4) Last but far from least is if you are out in public during the flu season, that you frequently use hand sanitizer. The optimal conditions for flu to be spread by coughing and sneezing are 40F and low humidity. If the temperature and humidity are higher than that, the spread of flu is much more dependent on physical contamination.
And the hands are the primary means by which flu spreads from person to person, and from objects to person. If there is visible contamination, use soap and water to remove it first. Otherwise, at least 60% ethanol sanitizer is needed.
Excellent points and cited article.
As stated earlier - the annual flu vaccine at best, is a placebo ritual.
We had a Hurricane Season? Why wasn’t I informed? Darn, missed it again.
Oh well, there is always next year’s “worst hurricane season of the century”.
Never got a flu shot in my life and never will.
BTTT Thanks for that flu research
I’ve never had a shot in my life ...
Something about a free injection from the government just kind’a red flags the whole thing
I’ve had the flu maybe 4 or 5 times in all my adult years
When I get it, boy do I get it .... but it’s a legitimate time off from work with mama and chicken soup
Get your Vit D3 levels checked...keep them between 50-70 and you likely will NOT get the flu...ever
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