About that flu shot . . .

joshandchris_gmail.com says...

Sensationalism sells newspapers. You cannot believe everything you read on the internet,in the newpaper or see on TV. Mr Masterson is perpetuating internet myths and then recommends them as information.
Why are we concerned? "The Great Influenza" by John M Barry details the H1N1 pandemic in 1918. Our population today has little immunity against it. We do not have a crystal ball, but the potential for disaster is there. H1N1 2009 flu will be at least as deadly as seasonal flu, killing about 36,000 a year, so far 76 pediatric deaths. It could get much worse. 675,000 died in the U.S. from H1N1 in 1918.
There are no adjuvants (such as squalene) in either H1N1 or seasonal flu vaccines used in U.S. Thimerosal is not used in FluMist, the nasally administered vaccine. The trace amount in the shot, used to prevent contamination in multidose vials,is less than in a tuna fish sandwich and much less than in many of the fish you eat. If you are worried, ask for single dose vials, they have less, and avoid the tuna. Scientific data about Guillain-Barre (GB) syndrome from the 1976 vaccine is inconclusive. Flu vaccine carries about 1 in one million risk of GB syndrome. But, 1 in 8,300 Americans dies of regular flu annually.
This vaccine is made exactly the same way as previous flu vaccines and has been well tested. Of the first 39,000 people vaccinated in China this year, only four had side effects, muscle cramps and headaches.
There are so many confounding genetic,environmental, and dietary factors with the Amish that you cannot conclude that lack of vaccines has anything to do with their incidence of autism. They exercise vigorously, avoid cigarettes and alcohol, eat generally home grown, non-store bought foods. Even so, they reportedly have a higher incidence of birth defects.
So, who are you going to trust to make your decision? Overall U.S. life expectancy at birth in 1900 was 47.3 years. It was 78.11 years in 2009. It has been continually increasing to modern day, despite vaccines and modern medicine...or is it, perhaps, because of them? There is no such thing as a risk free environment but,the risk from the vaccine appears much lower than the risk from the flu. Medical professionals strongly suggest that you get your flu vaccines and try not to be one of at least 36,000 Americans to die annually from flu, or transmit it, and kill someone else. Just don't get your information from sensationalist internet sites. Be critical and look at the credibility of the source.
Instead read sites such as these.
http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/update.htm
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrh...

The medical communities' only vested interest in this is to try not to be overwhelmed with illness and deaths. I have studied the data and will be vaccinating myself and my children.

Robert J. Grant, D.O., MPH
Internal Medicine, Preventive and Aerospace Medicine.

October 11, 2009 at 2:59 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )