Dr. Mercola November 18 2008 178,576 views
Each year enormous effort goes into producing that year's vaccine and delivering it to appropriate sections of the population.
And yet, year after year there are studies showing that flu vaccines DO NOT provide any benefit.
Flu Prevention Strategy Repeatedly Called Into Question
Two years ago a study in the British Medical Journal concluded that the effectiveness of annual flu shots has been exaggerated, and that in reality they have little or no effect on influenza campaign objectives, including reducing the number of hospital stays, time off work, and death from influenza and its complications.
Other studies, done prior and subsequently, also confirm these findings.
However, preventing flu-related deaths in the elderly has been, and still is, the primary argument for recommending flu shots each year. And, according to the theory of “herd immunity,” a majority of the population must be vaccinated in order to protect the lives of the elderly and other categories of people susceptible to flu-related complications.
However, the flu prevention strategy set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been called into serious question time and again.
Another study from 2005, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine also could not find support for the use of flu vaccine to prevent deaths in the elderly. The report highlights that although immunization rates in people over 65 have increased dramatically in the past 20 years, there has not been a consequent decline in flu-related deaths.
Do You Know What the Risks are?
Instead, there is emerging evidence that flu shots cause Alzheimer’s disease, most likely as a result of combining mercury with aluminum and formaldehyde. Mercury in vaccines has also been shown to be a contributing factor in autism.
Other serious, and potentially deadly, adverse reactions to the flu vaccine include joint inflammation and arthritis, anaphylactic shock (and other life-threatening allergic reactions), and Guillain-Barré syndrome, a paralytic autoimmune disease.
And, in the case of Tamiflu, thousands of cases of abnormal behavior, neuropsychiatric problems like convulsions, delirium or delusions, and brain infections, have been reported.
(Tamiflu is approved for treatment of uncomplicated influenza A and B in children 1 year of age or older. It is also approved for prevention of influenza in people 13 years or older.)More Scientific Research Backing Up Recommendation to Avoid Flu Vaccines Like the Plague
For those of you who are still unconvinced, there’s plenty of scientific evidence available to back up the recommendation to avoid flu vaccines – if not for their potentially serious or deadly side effects, then for the simple reason that they don’t work, and don’t offer any real benefit to offset their potential health risks.
A sampling of these studies include:
New Theory May Explain the True Nature of the Flu, and Why Vaccines Don’t Work
One credible hypothesis that explains the seasonal nature of flu is that influenza is a vitamin D deficiency disease.
Vitamin D, “the sunshine vitamin,” may very well be one of the most beneficial vitamins there is for disease prevention. Unfortunately it’s also one of the vitamins that a vast majority of people across the world are deficient in due to lack of regular exposure to sunshine.
This hypothesis was presented by Dr. John Cannell and colleagues in the journal Epidemiology and Infection in 2006, and again, more recently, in the Virology Journal.
This explanation actually makes perfect sense.
The vitamin D formed when your skin is exposed to sunlight regulates the expression of more than 2,000 genes throughout your body, including ones that influence your immune system to attack and destroy bacteria and viruses. Hence, being overwhelmed by the “flu bug” could signal that your vitamin D levels are too low, allowing the flu virus to overtake your immune system.
For most people, the flu shot does not prevent illness, but actually does the polar opposite--it weakens your immune system and makes you more predisposed to the 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 doesn't have to include you.
In addition to making sure your vitamin D levels are in the optimal range, the following tips are surefire ways to improve the function of your immune system and greatly reduce your chances of getting the flu this winter:
I served 10 years in the USAF. The first 5 was on deployment status meaning I could be sent anywhere at anytime. Being on deployment status I was required to receive and keep up to date ALL vaccinations. This is an USAF regulation and as a service member you can't decline. Interestingly enough every year for 5 years when I received the required flu vaccine I would, within 24 hours, become very ill with flu-like symptoms and high fever. The last 5 years I was not on deployment status and declined the flu shot. I never got the flu. Now this is not clinical, only anecdotal, but since separating from the USAF I have refused all flu shots and NEVER had the flu.
bkgarner:
I understand where you are coming from. I have read many details from personnel in our military services where these so called preventative measures have done more harm than good. Yet in most instances those who serve in the military, cannot refuse these injections, makes me wonder if these people are being used as lab rats. Barbaric would be the correct expression.
I have noticed of late that our so called free press has not aired the collective complaints of our service people concerning these injections. Hiding something, you think?
Same thing here- I'm in the Navy and 2 of the three years I received the flu vaccine I was deathly ill- once requiring a friend to help me get to the emergency room.
My son, who is in the army told me this: his first day of recruitment, they were given eight shots, one of which was penicillin "just in case". Most got very ill in a day or two. Every year the were given the nasal flu inhalent, and all got very ill. He tried to opt out by telling them he got very ill, to no avail. Now that he is an SF soldier, and in a very small group, he and his buddies are able to have it faked for them by their medic. None of them take it anymore, they know it's a load of crap. Yessir, nothin's too good for our men and women in uniform, including the on-going experimentation with vacs. Disgusting.
Yeah, I can remember as a kid getting a flu shot when my Dad was in the Army. My arm ached the next day. My arm actually felt sick. So I've avoided them ever since. My Mom must have agreed because I don't recall getting any more.
Then I learned something from writing "The Doctor Who Cures Cancer." Dr. Revici isolated that fatty acids are our evolutionary defense against any and all viruses.
He found that every bacterium is comprised of a virus at the primary layer and fatty acids and nucleo-proteins as the secondary layer. For the bacteria to survive the virus, it needs to have a natural defense. Revici found that the fatty acid provided the defense.
So when mom or grandma insisted we take a spoonful of cod liver oil, she was on to something. Of course, the cod liver oil also contains vitamin D as well.
The fatty acids can stop cancer, too, as does the vitamin D...if the imbalance is too anabolic! If the imbalance producing the cancer is too catabolic, fatty acids and vitamin D can spread the cancer faster.
I cured myself of stage 4 cancer by knowing which was which:
hubpages.com/.../How-I-Cured-Stage-4-Cancer-in-Two-Weeks-For-Less-Than-The-Cost-Of-A-Night-At-The-Movies
The best to you.
Kelley Eidem
Together we can cure cancer - one person at a time!
HI bk,
I guess I was just a little smarter than you about that flu vaccine requirement. I also got the flu the first time I received their required vaccination. I however was on a deployment status I was a basic Electrical Instructor at Sheppard Air Force Base, Wichita Falls, TX.
I just lied the next 3 years about getting the shot. My mother who was a Registered Nurse, died July 31, 2007 was very adamant about getting her yearly flu shot. I totally disagreed with her and she said at my age 69 years old I needed to get one because of my age. Well I usually obeyed my mother, but that was one thing I could not do because I saw no advantage of having all that crud injected into my system for any reason.
So you can get around those Military requirements if you are devious and can lie a little.
Have a great because at 70 I still see no value in getting a flu shot.
From what I've read about immunizations, that short sickness after a shot can be an immune response, but it's less serious than getting the sickness itself, and occurs at a predictable time when you can deal with it. The response is not to an actual active virus so there's no risk beyond the symptoms.
Magnolia:
Kind of like the employees of Monsanto who refuse the eat the GMO products in the company cafeteria. You think?
Excellent point- thank you for bringing up the possibility that it was scripted. Most likely not as it seems quite natural and spontaneous, but nevertheless it is good to be skeptical of youtube (and really any source of information) as anything can be posted.
Sheila, your conclusion that Merck knows nothing about the report due to be given to Health Canada is flawed. The most you can state from the data you have shared here is that the person with whom you spoke knew nothing about the information due to be sent to Health Canada. Had you asked to speak to someone else, you may have found that they had the information.
I am by no means a pharmaceutical company apologist. I just think it is important to be accurate in drawing conclusions. Anything less than that makes us look foolish to the drug companies, Health Canada, the FDA etc.
How right you are Halaluani, that would be terrible if I were to look foolish to Health Canada and the FDA, LOL. So I phoned again to ask the same question and was told that is private information between Merck and Health Canada. So I asked why Health Canada has not posted the 27 deaths associated with Gardasil and she said there was no such deaths, they were all causal. I thanked her and told her I was going to blog it for all the world to see.
"Merck says 27 deaths were causal and not associated with Gardasil"
Is that what the CDC is saying?
I got my flu shot on October 13 to appease my demanding Primary Care Provider and a week and a half later came down with a suspiciously flu-like illness. My fault, since the same thing happened to me last year. When I brought up reducing or eliminating some of my prescription medications, my PCP said maybe I would be happier with a Naturopath. Maybe she's right. I have learned my lesson about the flu shots...NO MORE!
run, don't walk, to your nearest naturopath.
keep in mind that just because they are naturopaths does not mean that they are good doctors. find a good practitioner.