Does the flu shot really work?

[Safeguard]

most notable in my post above;

"For most people, the flu shot does not prevent illness, but actually does the opposite--it weakens your immune system and makes it more predisposed to illness. The people who actually die after contracting the flu do so because they are already sick and have compromised immune systems, and that certainly does not have to include you.

 

[katydid23]

Just got back from UCLA Urgent Care. Took my 23 yr old daughter in because she has been weak, nauseous, coughing for 2 days. She was diagnosed with Flu type A. Avian flu.

She and her boyfriend went to Disneyland 4 days ago. Bet that did it.

 

[EllieBee]

I was on skype with my son last night. He's Army, so he has no choice but to get the flu shot. I asked him if he thought it worked, and if he would get them, even if he wasn't required to do so.

He said, " well it's not %100 effective of course, but it might work some of the time. I don't think too much about it, I'd probably get it, even if I didn't have to. It might keep me from getting sick".

So I told him about this forum, how to me it felt less like a "discussion", and more like a lynch mob for people who don't get the shot, even to the point of infering we're all a-holes! And he goes;

" It's just a forum mom. Let it go. They're just there to make themselves feel important. Their trying to make you feel bad or mad...

"Here's what you can you do... when they write their long guilt trippy paragraph, just post, " You mad bro?" Then when they write another long @ss paragraph, you post: Yeah, your mad brolo!" when they do it again, you go...Look at ya being all mad broloyo!" LOL!

"mom it just the flu" do what ever you want".

I'm sorry you view my post as a "long, guilt trippy paragraph".

I am STILL recovering from the flu, almost a month later, so I respectfully disagree with you and your son and his rather disrespectful assessment of my opinion and my right to express it IN A POLL THREAD.

Good night to you and your son, broloyo.

 

[pinklilies]

I am really sorry for anyone here that is suffering from flu or is still suffering from the effects of flu. It is a nasty illness for sure.
I certainly haven't meant to cause any offence by my views on it and please accept my apologies if I have.
I'll leave the discussion but wish you all the very best of health.
G'night all.

 

[Boytwnmom]

Wow Zuri, I didn't know that. Scary.

I am always fairly unconscious about the shot. If I happen to have a Dr appt and they mention it, I get it and, if not, no. Now this year I got it and haven't been sick at all which is very unusual. But this winter has been pretty bizarre in western MA overall, no snow storms, fairly mild temps. I generally get sick a couple of times in the winter, often coinciding with school vacations and the hordes of kids running around my house, sniffling & sneezing.

I've also been much better about sticking to my vitamin and supplement regime. My boys are seniors now and so they and their friends are less likely to sneeze all over you.

And each year the shot is different and based on the predictive abilities of the vaccine manufacturers in terms of which strains will likely appear.

So, basically, I have no clue. I also have very little bad reaction to shots, vaccines in general. With the flu shot I take some Motrin before hand and for a few hours to a day after for some arm pain.

I don't really see anything compelling on either side, except to be cognizant of any particular vulnerabilities one has when evaluating whether to obtain it. I agree it is probably hyped and marketed a lot for profit purposes. But that is generally how medicine is handled in this country so everyone is best served by being an informed consumer.

 

[Safeguard]

Pinklilies, you have said nothing offensive. I enjoyed your comments and hope you didn't think anything I posted was, in any way, directed at you personally.

Thank you for your kind comments about the states, Good to hear that you enjoy it here!

Always wanted to visit out your way, thought I might have tea with Queen! Lol!

I love hearing about places I've never been to, and the differences in the ways things are dealt with. Sounds like you guys are very sensible about the flu shot imo!

 

[Safeguard]

Pinklilies, you have said nothing offensive. I enjoyed your comments and hope you didn't think anything I posted was, in any way, directed at you personally.

Thank you for your kind comments about the states, Good to hear that you enjoy it here!

Always wanted to visit out your way, thought I might have tea with Queen! Lol!

I love hearing about places I've never been to, and the differences in the ways things are dealt with. Sounds like you guys are very sensible about the flu shot imo!

Again, I enjoyed our exchanges and apologize if you felt in any way offended, definitely did not mean any offense!

 

[Safeguard]

I'm sorry you view my post as a "long, guilt trippy paragraph".

I am STILL recovering from the flu, almost a month later, so I respectfully disagree with you and your son and his rather disrespectful assessment of my opinion and my right to express it IN A POLL THREAD.

Good night to you and your son, broloyo.

It wasn't an "opinion" on the flu shot. It was a condemnation of those who don't get one.

 

[Montjoy]

I wondered if Dr. Oz,

rsbm

"Dr. Oz" is a charlatan. I don't have any idea about why we're discussing him here.

 

[pinklilies]

Pinklilies, you have said nothing offensive. I enjoyed your comments and hope you didn't think anything I posted was, in any way, directed at you personally.

Thank you for your kind comments about the states, Good to hear that you enjoy it here!

Always wanted to visit out your way, thought I might have tea with Queen! Lol!

I love hearing about places I've never been to, and the differences in the ways things are dealt with. Sounds like you guys are very sensible about the flu shot imo!

Thank you and no, I didn't think you were directing anything at me.
No, it's just that it seems a touchy subject so I'd prefer not to contribute anymore. That's all.
Have a great day all.

Oh, and good luck with visiting the queen for tea lol
The closest I ever got was a visit to see the [emoji146] crown jewels in the Tower of London on a school trip many moons ago [emoji4][emoji106]🏻

 

[Safeguard]

Wasn't there a whole lot of people that survived the H1N1 in the US?
Now I'm confused. All the reports I can find say there were hundreds of thousand survivors...

"During the pandemic, CDC provided estimates of the numbers of 2009 H1N1 cases, hospitalizations and deaths on seven different occasions. Final estimates were published in 2011. These final estimates were that from April 12, 2009 to April 10, 2010 approximately 60.8 million cases (range: 43.3-89.3 million), 274,304 hospitalizations (195,086-402,719), and 12,469 deaths (8868-18,306) occurred in the United States due to pH1N1.".

http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/estimates_2009_h1n1.htm

 

[LinasK]

Eat Well. Sleep Well. Move Well. Limit all of the stressors in your life and the question "Does the flu shot really work?", will be irrelevant.

The question should be "Is the flu shot necessary?"
For the vast majority of people, I do not believe it to be necassary.

Again
1) Limit and minimize stress.
2) Eat ridiculously well 90% of the time.
3) Get good quality sleep in the right amount for YOU.
4) Move Well and then move often.

The problem with the above 4 tips is that the majority of folks in the western world have no idea how to go about that. And our education/medical/health systems do a piss poor job of teaching us.

If you don't make your own health & well being your #1 priority, then getting quick fixes like the flu shot and other Big Pharma toxic chemical cocktails probably but regretfully makes sense in this day and age.
JMO

Not true, eating well and getting enough sleep will NOT protect you if you get exposed to it. Believe me, I'm miserable right now because I have the flu- a mild case, even though I got my shot. It could've been much worse if I hadn't. My daughter and husband just got it before me, all because he didn't get his flu shot and got exposed at work. This all could've been prevented!!! The flu does kill people (they've had major outbreaks throughout history) and Tamiflu does work to shorten it. My DD was sick as a dog, and she also got the Flu Mist (temps of 103), but after being on Tamiflu for 5 days, she's back at school with only a cough. I don't understand why anyone would willingly risk going through this themselves or exposing other people by the lack of herd immunity!!!

 

[LinasK]

Respectfully snipped...

God Bless Zuri! I appreciate your respecting one's right to their own choice. You, of all people, could be one of those, " How dare you not get the shot, I could have caught this from you because you didn't get the vaccine!" But you don't blame others, and I commend you. (One poster here blamed her husbands evil co-workers who were coughing, when he could have got it from handling a grocery item. There's no way to know).

I don't post about people I actually know, who got devastatingly ill, even after getting the shot. I don't want to scare those who get the shot, and there is always that tired, old excuse that "well you were probably already exposed just before you got the shot, so therefore you got sick... or... you got a strain not covered this season, so therefore... you got sick.

I'm a little tired of the excuses myself, for why so many people get sick and some die, who get the flu shot. Some people have NEVER had the flu in their lives, get sick and DIE after mandated flu shots.

Life itself is a bit of a risky endeavor. But I do think we should get to live it, with ability to make our own choices, without the condemnation of of those who choose differently.

When they are through with the "Ginnie pig" stage, and develop a inoculation that stands on more solid ground, I'm in. Until then I'll be watching... from a distance. (Good luck to the "Early Adopters"!)


Ya know, each one of my five children, got sick after scheduled immunity shots. High fever, chills, achy... some worse than others. But not ONE pediatrician would admit that the shots caused any reaction...I KNOW they did. But it was always..."No, they must have been coming down with something, right at the same time." ( REALLY? All FIVE OF THEM? EVERY SINGLE TIME THEY GOT A SHOT!!!). BS! My littles got sick from those injections! I don't have too much faith in the medical community now.

I wish you well Zuri!

Believe me- the reaction from the shot is an extremely mild form of the flu compared to the full-on flu if you don't have it. I've been there years ago. I will ALWAYS get a flu shot for the rest of my life. The flu I've got now would be much worse if I hadn't gotten it!!!

 

[LinasK]

Not buying a ticket on that guilt trip.
What's next? Prosecuting those who don't get the flu shot for public endangerment?

As a matter of fact, the measles vaccine has become law in California for entry to public school for that very reason- endangerment of public health, so if it comes down to it, yeah!

 

[LinasK]

Are there people dying from getting the flu shot ?

Nope! But there are people dying every day from not getting it, and having it right now, I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy!

 

[LinasK]

Linas K has made a lot of valid points on why you should get one, especially if you are in the high risk group. I think you are also correct in that most healthy individuals with intact immune systems probably won't contract influenza.

There are so many factors at play, it is like rolling the dice. After almost dying from H1N1 pneumonia in 2009, I no longer have the option to refuse. I found out I like breathing.

BBM. Nope! All 3 times I've been exposed has been in work situations- nursing home, retail store break room, and hubby's workplace- major corporation and we all have healthy, intact immune systems, and DD and I got the shots in the Fall, and still got it! It also circulates in school populations.

 

[Zuri]

So sorry to hear what you've been through and are still going through Zuri. It can't have been easy for you, at all. (()))

The flu shot is not something I really think about as it's never been available to us on our NHS unless we are deemed 'at risk'.
I do know if you are in the 'at risk' group, then you are sent an appointment in the Autumn to have the vaccine at the local health centre.
If you're not in the 'at risk' group, the health profession deems you don't need it and it's simply not available to you.

If you particularly wanted it, you'd pay privately and have it done at the pharmacy.

I would only do that if there was an epidemic due, like when the swine flu and the bird flu were due to hit us several years ago. It caused hysteria and that is when we had our one and only shot. Other than that, we don't have it. But, I'm sure it only takes one dose of it to make us change our minds!

I had to google the pneumonia shot as I'd not heard of it. Apparently it is available to us but again, only if you're in the at risk group. I would presume we could go pay for this at the pharmacy just like the flu shot but I've never heard of it.
These things are just not advertised here.
I just love how different countries deal with lots of things, differently.

Sending best of health wishes to all.

This is simply just my knowledge of it, of how I see it.

Respectfully snipped...

God Bless Zuri! I appreciate your respecting one's right to their own choice. You, of all people, could be one of those, " How dare you not get the shot, I could have caught this from you because you didn't get the vaccine!" But you don't blame others, and I commend you. (One poster here blamed her husbands evil co-workers who were coughing, when he could have got it from handling a grocery item. There's no way to know).

I don't post about people I actually know, who got devastatingly ill, even after getting the shot. I don't want to scare those who get the shot, and there is always that tired, old excuse that "well you were probably already exposed just before you got the shot, so therefore you got sick... or... you got a strain not covered this season, so therefore... you got sick.

I'm a little tired of the excuses myself, for why so many people get sick and some die, who get the flu shot. Some people have NEVER had the flu in their lives, get sick and DIE after mandated flu shots.

Life itself is a bit of a risky endeavor. But I do think we should get to live it, with ability to make our own choices, without the condemnation of of those who choose differently.

When they are through with the "Ginnie pig" stage, and develop a inoculation that stands on more solid ground, I'm in. Until then I'll be watching... from a distance. (Good luck to the "Early Adopters"!)


Ya know, each one of my five children, got sick after scheduled immunity shots. High fever, chills, achy... some worse than others. But not ONE pediatrician would admit that the shots caused any reaction...I KNOW they did. But it was always..."No, they must have been coming down with something, right at the same time." ( REALLY? All FIVE OF THEM? EVERY SINGLE TIME THEY GOT A SHOT!!!). BS! My littles got sick from those injections! I don't have too much faith in the medical community now.

I wish you well Zuri!

Thank you for your kind sentiments. The H1N1 vaccine came out at the end of October 2009 and I was hospitalized mid October. And yes, I almost died. I was in the hospital where I worked so I knew the doctors, the score. I can also read faces and the downcast or wide shocked eyes said a lot.

Blaming or deflecting never helps anyone. Making blanket statements as a "one size fits all" kind of thing is ridiculous. What does help is being informed, doing due diligence, making an informed decision as to whether it's right for YOU.

I take precautions now as I am severely immunocomprimised. I rarely go to the mall or grocery store. If I do, I wear a mask and use hand sanitizer, and I don't go in peak flu season at all. I stay away from vectors lol like little children and my DH MD lol as he is exposed to everything.

All these actions diminish my risk of acquiring influenza. Most people don't have this luxury, have to go to work, the store, buy groceries, take care of their families. This is when you need to be your own advocate and do what is right for yourself. IMOO

 

[LinasK]

My son is a grown man. 31 years old, thank you.
(So much for what some old woman thinks).

Old woman, and you know my age how???

 

[Zuri]

So sorry to hear what you've been through and are still going through Zuri. It can't have been easy for you, at all. (()))

The flu shot is not something I really think about as it's never been available to us on our NHS unless we are deemed 'at risk'.
I do know if you are in the 'at risk' group, then you are sent an appointment in the Autumn to have the vaccine at the local health centre.
If you're not in the 'at risk' group, the health profession deems you don't need it and it's simply not available to you.

If you particularly wanted it, you'd pay privately and have it done at the pharmacy.

I would only do that if there was an epidemic due, like when the swine flu and the bird flu were due to hit us several years ago. It caused hysteria and that is when we had our one and only shot. Other than that, we don't have it. But, I'm sure it only takes one dose of it to make us change our minds!

I had to google the pneumonia shot as I'd not heard of it. Apparently it is available to us but again, only if you're in the at risk group. I would presume we could go pay for this at the pharmacy just like the flu shot but I've never heard of it.
These things are just not advertised here.
I just love how different countries deal with lots of things, differently.

Sending best of health wishes to all.

This is simply just my knowledge of it, of how I see it.

rsbm

"Dr. Oz" is a charlatan. I don't have any idea about why we're discussing him here.

Dr. Oz may have spoken about the H1N1 vaccine as it was coming out. There were no tests for its efficacy initially. There was not a date provided on that link and it was on a chiropractor website? who is not held to the same standard as an MD.

Like always, consider the source. Educate yourself. You are your own best friend and can only decide what is right for you and yours. IMOO

 

[Zuri]

Wasn't there a whole lot of people that survived the H1N1 in the US?
Now I'm confused. All the reports I can find say there were hundreds of thousand survivors...

"During the pandemic, CDC provided estimates of the numbers of 2009 H1N1 cases, hospitalizations and deaths on seven different occasions. Final estimates were published in 2011. These final estimates were that from April 12, 2009 to April 10, 2010 approximately 60.8 million cases (range: 43.3-89.3 million), 274,304 hospitalizations (195,086-402,719), and 12,469 deaths (8868-18,306) occurred in the United States due to pH1N1.".

http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/estimates_2009_h1n1.htm

The deaths were primarily caused by Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome and secondary infections like MRSA, pneumonia, viral cardiomyopathy. The initial cause was H1N1 virus which opened the body up to secondary issues. A marathon runner could have gotten H1N1 on Wednesday and developed a viral cardiomyopathy and been dead by Saturday. That is how powerful some of these viruses are.