With the flu season approaching you may have noticed many of the pharmacy stores and health clubs offering flu shot vaccinations. In theory, this injection provides an enhanced immune response and reduces the odds of getting the flu. How does reality compare with theory?
According to the Centers for Disease Control approximately 75%+ who received the flu vaccine shot for 2015/2016 will likely get sick anyway if exposed to the virus. They reported a “mismatch” between the flu strain covered by the vaccine and the actual virus. This means that doctors and scientists who evaluated the specific viral strains to be inoculated against guessed wrong. This is NOT the first time the flu vaccine has been determined to offer little benefit going into cold and flu season. Going back just one year to 2014, the CDC made the same comment about the sub par level of effectiveness because of a “mismatch” and because of viral mutations. If we drop back one more year to 2013, the CDC reported the flu vaccine was effective in combating this disease. There statistical number for success was 51% across all age groups. In 2011/2012 the overall effectiveness was 47%.
An interesting fact that was left out of much of the research was the increased correlation of getting the flu after receiving the vaccination for two consecutive years. In addition, it has been reported that cholesterol lowering medications (Statins) reduce the effectiveness of the flu vaccine and bring the statistical protection level down to 13%. With all this information readily available the medical community has decided to continue to recommend everyone on cholesterol medications receive the flu vaccine annually anyway.
The decision to vaccinate against any disease is a personal decision. The reason I place the statistical information from the government’s records is to remove any bias any reader may believe I impose on these articles. If you were asked the effectiveness of the flu shot prior to reading this information would you really have believed the BEST PERCENTAGES in the last several years would have been approximately 50% and the WORST PERCENTAGES approximately 13%. Most people seem to believe this shot is essential to prevent a flu episode. The studies seem to prove otherwise. Why is this shot so heavily marketed if it only provides a limited possibility to protect the consumer? A larger percentage of the population suffers nutritional deficiencies. Why isn’t the government and the medical community placing as much emphasis on marketing Vitamins as an essential need across the entire population?
It might be wise to ask yourself one question before you voluntarily donate your arm for this medical treatment.
Is the flu vaccine in your best interest or their best interest?
All About Healthy Choices 
I don’t get the flu vaccine, and have instead made a conscious choice to boost my nutrition during the winter months and wash, wash, wash, wash my hands. I wonder what the rate of flu transmission would be if everyone washed more frequently???
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THE most important thing to remember to combat illness and disease is KEEPING THE IMMUNE SYSTEM STRONG! We don’t have to worry about the individual names of different diseases, because they are ALL handled by a healthy immune system. Some of our conditioning has convinced us to follow procedures that are potentially more threatening to our health or ineffective at protecting us. I certainly am a proponent of hygiene, however, frequent hand washing kills important bacteria on our skin that protects us from illness. If contacting bacteria and other “germs” produced a high risk for contamination leading to illness, gym members (as we all come in contact with each other’s sweat) would chronically be sick. This is NOT the case.
Exposure to “germs” DOES NOT make us sick; exposure to germs with a compromised immune system leads to illness and disease. Want to keep an immune system strong and functioning to the level of personal best? 1. Eat healthy, 2. Exercise regularly, 3. Get good quality sleep ranging between 6-9 hours daily, 4. Reduce and learn to channel stress, 5. Focus on BALANCED living, 6. Drink water in quantities that equal at least half your body weight in ounces. 7. Maintain the nervous system so that communication (nerves) is free of interference. This is an important factor in allowing the immune system to recognize a foreign pathogen has entered the body and respond QUICKLY and EFFECTIVELY.
I have followed these guidelines and have maintained good health. In 20+ years treating patients that came to my clinic SICK, (exposing me to all sorts of disease and having direct physical contact with them while adjusting them) I missed 4 days of work (2 days/2 episodes). In both cases I ran 103 temperature (did NOT take anything to reduce the fever, because this would have interfered with my own body’s ability to fight off the infection) and overcame the illnesses quickly. This does NOT mean I didn’t feel horrible. I provided nutritional support to strengthen immune function, hydrated, and rested and let the incredible doctor within my body do his job!
Anyone that believes that God has provided everything we need, realizes that good health does not rely on man made synthetic drugs. I am thankful they exist in cases where our bodies are so compromised they are unable to function properly. But, in most cases, they are only needed to temporarily allow the body to recover and return to work as usual.
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Had this shot here in the UK for the past three years with no issues yet this time round I have felt crap and tired ever since having it several weeks ago.
The weirdest thing is it appears to be okay and back to normal then I am levelled again with a lack of energy.
Finally I am hoping to be on the mend so fingers crossed.
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Glad to hear you’re coming around. The purpose of the article was to show that healthcare sometimes creates a process that doctors are expected to follow, however, the science behind the procedures doesn’t justify the treatments. We assume doctors intentions are noble and attempting to improve our health. In most cases, I would agree with these sentiments. The problem is that healthcare has become very big business and sometimes conflicts of interest collide with ethical and moral responsibilities. We, the consumer, need to be more diligent in our own responsibility when it comes to our health. Healthcare is a FOR PROFIT business. Independent non affiliated organizations are NOT USED to oversee the research proving the efficacy of drugs and other treatment modalities. It’s never a good idea to rely on the fox to guard the hen house.
Doctors are taught and PAID to implement policies created by the companies that hire them. It is a good idea to have several different types of doctors to offer perspectives to make a better informed decision for yourself. This approach will help educate and place your health back in your hands where it belongs.
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I shall certainly think twice about the next shot I am offered!
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I have never had a flu vaccine. Never will. I hear more negative stories about the effects than I do positive. Still, we need to be informed of our choices and to make the right decision for our body.
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I agree with you Karen. Gaining access to a variety of credible information provides the consumer with the information needed to make the best informed decisions. These decisions are not necessarily based on the concepts right and wrong; they can be based on personal feelings and personal exposure to situations that guide us through the decision making process. My concern deals with the integrity of the people behind the research, the design of the research and the truthful results of these studies. Big business has a tendency to focus more on their bottom line than the welfare of the people subjected to their medicines and products.
I have rejected this vaccine as well based on the lack of credible evidence. If our doctors were taught to help their patients maintain health rather than focusing on fighting disease, our system would save tremendous expenses and people would likely be living healthier and happier lives.
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Amen to that comment. I agree.
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Never had a flu shot either and never will and I agree that people are so crazy about germs they compromised their own immune systems. I got one kid who has OCD and washes his hands all the time and though the girls aren’t quite as bad they both carry and frequently use the anti-bacteria stuff. I didn’t even sterilize the babies bottles or pacifyers. They didn’t get sick. Now they and their kids are always sick. I believe there is a connection to too much handwashing and have for a long time and I am not a doctor. My dr got mad at me and so did the hospital when I refused the flu, pneumonia and some other shot. tough! I don’t believe in them (besides I am a big sissy when it comes to needles LOL!
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I agree with many of your points. Our doctors need to understand to help us on the level WE CHOOSE rather than impose their beliefs on us. We are all very different and in many cases our needs are different. Applying a cookie cutter approach across the board to every patient will be met with great resistance. This will result in frustrated patients and doctors.
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They try to do that with mental health. They try to treat us all the same and we aren’t all the same. We may all have Bipolar, but we are all different in treatment styles and how we react to the symptoms.
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Well that’s very interesting. I’ve never had a flu shot because honestly I have an irrational fear of it. I had no idea the CDC itself says it has a 75% failure rate though! Now I don’t feel so dumb for avoiding it. Again, thanks for the info. 🙂
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I wouldn’t call it irrational; I would call it intuitive. There are legitimate concerns about issues associated with vaccinations. I didn’t go into details because I would have likely cured insomnia in the process. That being said, common sense should throw up red flags regarding 40 year old vaccination technology and the lack of research and development to improve the safety and effectiveness of many vaccines used today.
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“I didn’t go into details because I would have likely cured insomnia in the process.” Lol!
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My husband who has poor lungs always get a flu shot better to be safe than sorry…..I do not, I am against the thought of injecting God knows what into my body….not sure if I am being stupid but its how I feel….another good post..kat
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A well informed person that makes a decision (based on their choice) is never stupid. I’m glad to hear you actively participate in the decision making process when it comes to your health.
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forever and always…..kat
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Dunno how carefully the following bit of conventional wisdom has been verified:
If U do get the flu after getting the shot, it is likely to be a milder case than if U did not get the shot.
Personally, I get only very mild (if any) side effects from the shot. Have been getting it for yrs and have been flu-free, even in the wrong-guess yrs discussed here. How much credit the shot deserves is a tricky question.
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The issue isn’t one dimensional: whether or not we contract the flu after the vaccine is of course one main “side effect” everyone is aware of, and the concern being how severe are the symptoms. A much larger concern, in my opinion, are the mercury and thimerosol still used as preservatives. This antiquated “technology” can have serious ramifications, not the least of which is a possible link to cancer and autism. I have not had the flu in 30 years, though I do contract a virus once or twice a year. I have to ask myself if it’s worth the risk to get the vaccine, and in my opinion it is not. The flu, though uncomfortable, is in MOST cases not life threatening. Do you ever wonder why we are now inundated with vaccines, and why now when you call your pharmacy the first question is “have you gotten your flu shot?” Big profits. It’s sad but true. I am not a conspiracy theorist by any stretch, and have recently begun to get my head out of the sand and look at the possible motives behind what we, as a culture, assume is for our own good. I believe the goal of this blog site is NOT to tell us not to do something, rather to QUESTION and research some of our endeavors that we have previously taken for granted and then make an informed decision about our future course of action.
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Thank you for contributing your ideas to this article. People like you help open the eyes of people giving them better chances to see new realities. It is my opinion that this is an important step and necessary for eventual positive change. We live in a dynamic world that requires acceptance of change to survive. Those with the “deepest pockets” typically oppose change because it decrease their PROFITS. Creating FEAR to maintain status quo as long as possible is the typical game plan for many big industries. Your willingness to open your mind to the possibility of new truths and share these ideas with other people will expose our healthcare system for what it truly stands for. If people started living a healthier lifestyle, less pharmaceutical intervention and diagnostic testing would be needed. The end result would be healthier people at a lower financial, physical and emotional cost. Ironically, better health for the consumer would be achieved along with the reduction in medical profiteering. Can you understand why BOTH the medical industry and the big drug companies invest big dollars to prevent this outcome?
Thank you for your thoughtful comments.
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I think we need to step back from the question, “how effective is the flu shot” and address the question, can a vaccine be produced using newer technology and safer components and offer protection to the patient? Why continue to use adjuvants that create controversy in lieu of newer products. I recently wrote an article stating we currently offer 50 different cholesterol lowering medications. Why do we need 50 different medications for this one condition while we continue to use the same methodology for “guessing” which 3-4 variant strains of flu vaccine to develop year after year. In addition, our guesses have clearly been BAD for several years. I am concerned this unscientific approach will lead to the recommendation we place everyone on cholesterol lowering medication since heart disease is the number 2 killer? Our approach to healthcare is very broken and needs new eyes from a new perspective to create change from our tired unsuccessful approach.
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I agree that there is a tendency to keep coming out with yet another way to lower cholesterol (or whatever) w/o much thought to whether the new way is a significant improvement for the patient (rather than just a drug company’s profits). The last I heard, we keep using the old technology for flu shots because nobody has thought of a better one. It might help if NIH had adequate funding plus a more explicit policy of favoring proposals on designated priority topics.
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I’m not convinced the “thinking” or technology isn’t available for newer flu vaccines. As I write this comment and hear in the background the 5th commercial for a 5th new drug to be used for diabetics and notice that every actor and actress in these diabetes commercials are overweight, it becomes very apparent that marketing and profiting has far surpassed the altruistic motivation that we, the consumer, believe to be the primary goal of drug development.
People can and do die from almost any infection. This does not mean we need to discover serums that kill every organism in fear of exposure. Why not develop products that naturally stimulate our bodies to reinforce function. Why do we primarily develop pharmaceuticals to “manage” and treat disease or dysfunction only after the problems surface? I believe this is the medical model for the allopath. It is basically “disease care” not “health care.” This is simply their training and their approach. This model, however, is currently undergoing challenge as integrative functional medicine is gaining greater recognition. This new approach focuses much more on ROOT CAUSE and integrates a more holistic approach to addressing these underlying issues.
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Majority of flu shots come out of China, the same people that brought us melamine laced dog food and baby formula…it’s incredible how gullible we are when it comes to public annnouments of actions that are supposed to be “good for us”
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Cost and distribution will remain the biggest two factors in the purchasing of vaccines. It is very understandable that most people support these treatments, because most people are not given the opportunity to hear from credible professionals with information and insight that opposes these types of treatments. My biggest concern for the consumer is their freedom of choice when it comes to health care. Imposing controversial policies pertaining to mandatory medical treatments is a dangerous precedent. FEAR is a common tool used to motivate compliance. The public must be able to gain access to good credible information showing all sides so the consumer can make the best informed decision for themselves. The consumer, however, must be willing to open their eyes to the possibility of new truths and follow new paths based on these new truths for improved outcomes. It is difficult to awaken the masses of people and remove the blinders that doctors and big pharma have used to hide alternative truths and research. The current system relies on patient apathy and the willingness for them to continue to participate in human experimentation (ex. genetically modified organisms, new vaccinations without qualified safety studies) that produce massive wealth for Big Business. If a new path is not discovered, the liberties we claim we are so proud to possess, will no longer exist.
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I was naive not to realize, until I reached my late 50s, how much of our modern “health care” is driven by greed. Not only are big pharma and medical professionals trying to sell us drugs and treatments that we do not need, Rx and Tx that do not benefit us and in many cases may harm us — they also ignore simple life-saving treatments because there is little to no profit in it.
Hereditary Hemochromatosis, which I believe is the most common genetic disorder, is a case in point. Too often it goes undiagnosed and untreated, in large part because the most effective treatment, blood-letting, won’t make any money for the drug companies.
I know this is true because I have been genetically tested and I know that I inherited the most common HH gene from both of my parents. I am very frustrated because it seems that I have to wait until my body is damaged beyond repair and I am literally dying from toxic iron overload, before my doctor will order the right tests or the right treatment. I eat a low iron, almost vegetarian diet and I now take calcium and green tea when I eat, to help stop my body from accumulating even more iron. However, I am 4 years post menopause, which means I no longer lose iron every month, and I can tell by my physical and even mental symptoms that my iron is probably quite high now. I can’t go to the blood bank and donate to get rid of excess iron that way, because my AB negative blood type is so rare, the blood banks refuse to take it. They never need my blood, I was told, and so all it would do is take up space in the frig and then spoil.
So now I am trying to find a doctor who is savvy enough to order phlebotomies for me, despite the fact that I am not yet so bad that I have obvious liver cirrhosis or cancer or deeply bronzed skin. I am almost tempted to try doing phlebotomies on myself.
Where is a vampire when you really need one? 🙂
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Thank you for stepping out on the edge and sharing your personal story on this blog site. It is obvious you’re frustrated with the current lack of response by our health care system and recognize that treatment will likely be withheld until your symptoms reach a level they’re prepared to “manage.”
You might want to look into finding a doctor that practices integrative medicine to evaluate your situation. I’m not sure where you live, but Dr. Kelly Brogan in NYC is a classically trained ob/gyn and psychiatrist turned integrative physician and might be a good starting place. She is likely to provide better resources and information for you than Dracula! 🙂 I hope this info. helps you.
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I live a couple of thousand miles away from NYC. But I will check for integrative physicians in this area. Thanks!
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I only got the flu shot once when I was a teenager and I got the worst flu I’ve ever had in my life right after. As such, I have never gotten it again and I likely never will. However, I have heard that it can be beneficial for pregnant women and the elderly, so I may reconsider when I’m part of either of those groups (hopefully I get to be a part of both!).
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Just one idea to think about. What source originally suggested you receive the flu shot? You decided not to continue receiving this treatment as a result of your response. What source suggested that it might be beneficial during pregnancy or for the elderly? Does it make sense to rely on the same type of source (in and of itself) for pregnancy or geriatric care especially without reviewing ALL the risk factors and details of a patient’s health history? Please make any health care decision ONLY after consulting a list of various types of doctors you trust to gain the various perspectives and recommendations to make the best informed decision for yourself. If I was your doctor, I would encourage you to get 2nd opinions even if I was adamant that my recommendation was the “best.” Health care is not always about right and wrong. There are also various choices available often to attain the best outcomes with reduced risks of complications. PLEASE, do not rely on 1 opinion (including mine!)
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Preach it!! All the the stats you provided are reasons why I tell others I do not get the flu shot. In my previous job they required all employees who did not get a flu shot to wear a mask throughout the whole flu season while they worked. More emphasis should be placed on nutrition like you said!
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Thank you Nena. We need to step back and take a realistic view of the costs and benefits of any procedure that introduces foreign chemicals into the body. In most cases, nutrition can offer greater protection by strengthening the immune system along with other components needed for maximal health. These include: 1. exercise, 2. adequate quality sleep, 3. stress reduction, 4. proper nutrition, 5. proper hydration (WATER), 6. emotional, physical and spiritual balance. 7. correction of any nerve interference via spinal adjustments that might impede the brain from recognizing viral or bacterial compromise to the body. If the nerves are unable to communicate properly, the immune response can be delayed.
People typically want to know the ONE thing they need to do to stay healthy. My answer is: follow all the steps mentioned in this ONE reply and you dramatically increase the odds! 🙂
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You are so right! Unfortunately, many look for a “magic pill” for their ailments. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and advocating and educating on the importance of health and what truly keeps it up:) You are a gem in our world.
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Very interesting post! I was hospitalized with the flu years ago and almost died because I have an underlying respiratory condition. Over the next few years I got the flu shot and never got sick. I even worked in an office where everyone in the building got the flu but me. Then I started hearing about how bad the flu shot was and how I shouldn’t be putting this stuff in my body, so one year I decided to skip getting the flu shot against my doctors advice. That same year I got the flu and wound up in the intensive care unit and it took me around 4 months to recover. I went back to getting the flu shot and haven’t had the flu since. I guess a lot of this is based on personal experience, but personally, I do feel that the flu shot helps me.
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Since I do not believe in ALWAYS or NEVER scenarios when it comes to health decisions, your case may be one where the potential harms of the flu vaccine are outweighed by the potential benefits. Based on your history which presents with multiple episodes of respiratory compromise requiring emergency medical intervention, your immune system may need exposure to an attenuated virus to provide enough of an immune response to protect your system from greater potential dangers.
You are a perfect example of why I believe health care decisions need to be based on the INDIVIDUAL. To deny the potential benefits and potential risks seems foolish. I believe the doctor and patient need to discuss ALL viable options as well as backup plans. This seems to produce the best results and increases patient confidence in the decision making process.
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