I fully understand the many reasons a lot of people pass on the flu shot.

I had the flu in the 90's when my Son was in grade school.
Sick as a dog and in bed for a week!

Have gotten the flu shot every year since.

A few years ago I wasn't going to get it and then read some
alarming statistics on the increased risk of heart attack.
Not willing to "risk" it.

If you get the flu you DOUBLE your risk for a heart attack or stroke. :22yikes:

Baloney
 

It is untrue that doctors and nurses mostly avoid getting the flu vaccine. First, it would be dangerous to care for patients and carry the flu to them. After all, they care for compromised patients. Secondly, who in this day and age can avoid crowds for 6 months. Eating well and plenty of sleep is always good. Hand washing is a very good idea as viruses can remain transmittable on surfaces for a long time. Also, avoid touching your face. If you feel ill (including if you have a sore throat, feel like you are getting a cold, feverish or chilled, achy) please stay home. Don't expose everyone else including children, elderly and those with compromised immune systems.

Physicians Oppose Mandatory Flu Vaccine for Health Workers
Dec 15, 2011

In letters to Colorado public health officials, the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) opposes a rule requiring workers in health care facilities to have an annual influenza vaccination or lose their jobs…

...
In the age of “evidence-based medicine,” AAPS notes that there is surprisingly little evidence supporting the efficacy of influenza vaccine, and evidence of safety is also limited.

According to a 2006 article in the British Medical Journal by Tom Jefferson Public health: Influenza vaccination: policy versus evidence, the coordinator of the vaccines section of the Cochrane Collaboration, safety data are reported in only five randomized studies with 2,963 observations. Many repeated doses of similar vaccines likely increase the risk of allergic reactions, and no data exist on the safety of a large number of doses, states Dr. Orient, citing a 2006 article in the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons. http://www.jpands.org/vol11no3/geier.pdf

…

AAPS, a national organization of physicians in all specialties, was founded in 1943 to preserve and promote the practice of private medicine and the sanctity of the patient-physician relationship.


http://www.aapsonline.org/index.php/...ealth_workers/

>>The Cochrane paper, “Influenza vaccination for healthcare workers who work with the elderly,” found “that vaccinating healthcare workers who look after the elderly in long-term care facilities did not show any effect on the specific outcomes of interest, namely laboratory-proven influenza, pneumonia or deaths from pneumonia.” Thus, even in the most high-risk health care population and scenario, there is NO evidence that influenza vaccination protects patients. In fact, vaccination may actually increase risk because the health care provider, feeling that they are protected by the vaccine, may be less likely to carry out the behaviors that do protect patients.
<<


A physician takes his flu vaccine under protest

Another view casting doubt on the effectiveness of the flu shot:

>>Doctors Intrigued and Troubled by Findings

In an accompanying editorial, Drs. John Treanor and Peter Szilagyi wrote a response to the findings for the most recent study showing lower effectiveness with back-to-back flu shots.

“As we are currently struggling through one of the most vigorous influenza seasons in recent memory, the apparent failure of influenza vaccine under optimal conditions seen in this study is indeed troubling,” they wrote. 6

As usual, further study on flu vaccine effectiveness is necessary. There are a lot of conflicting data available. However, the growing number of studies showing low overall effectiveness, waning immunity and a negative effect of prior-year vaccination cast doubt on influenza vaccine policies and strategies, especially when influenza vaccinations now are being required as a condition of employment for health care workers.
…


In 2010, PLoS Medicine published an analysis of Canadian epidemiological studies suggesting that people, who had received seasonal flu shots the year before the 2009 H1N1 swine flu pandemic, had an increased risk of becoming infected with the pandemic swine flu.
<<


Effectiveness of Flu Vaccine Raises More Red Flags

Hi Bonanza,

I'm not a journalist and am merely posting opinions from medical doctors and scientists questioning the efficacy and safety of the much hyped flu shot. This is a discussion board, isn't it? I think people reading this board are quite intelligent and can decide for themselves if the flu shot is something they wish to get.

That's all… no big conspiracy.

Not sure where you are getting your info from but this R.N. and pretty much all the other nurses and doctors I work with get the flu shot. Who do you think are the most heavily exposed to the flu virus ? It is the healthcare worker like me who is highly exposed to coughing-in-your-face flu infected patients, and most of us opt for the shot to not only protect patients but to protect ourselves from patients.

Formaldahyde
 

From the FDA

Formaldehyde has a long history of safe use in the manufacture of certain viral and bacterial vaccines. It is used to inactivate viruses so that they don’t cause disease (e.g., polio virus used to make polio vaccine) and to detoxify bacterial toxins, such as the toxin used to make diphtheria vaccine. Formaldehyde is diluted during the vaccine manufacturing process, but residual quantities of formaldehyde may be found in some current vaccines. The amount of formaldehyde present in some vaccines is so small compared to the concentration that occurs naturally in the body that it does not pose a safety concern.*

Formaldehyde is also produced naturally in the human body as a part of normal functions of the body to produce energy and build the basic materials needed for important life processes. This includes making amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins that the body needs.

Formaldehyde is also found in the environment and is present in different ways. It is used in building materials, as a preservative in labs and to produce many household products.

The body continuously processes formaldehyde, both from what it makes on its own and from what it has been exposed to in the environment. When the body breaks down formaldehyde, it does not distinguish between formaldehyde from vaccines and that which is naturally produced or environmental. The amount of formaldehyde in a person’s body depends on their weight; babies have lower amounts than adults. Studies have shown that for a newborn of average weight of 6 - 8 pounds, the amount of formaldehyde in their body is 50-70 times higher than the upper amount that they could receive from a single dose of a vaccine or from vaccines administered over time.

Excessive exposure to formaldehyde may cause cancer, but the latest research has shown that the highest risk is from the air when formaldehyde is inhaled from breathing, and occurs more frequently in people who routinely use formaldehyde in their jobs. There is no evidence linking cancer to infrequent exposure to tiny amounts of formaldehyde via injection as occurs with vaccines.

I agree. I had the flu about 14 years ago. I was sicker than a dog. Every year since 2001 I have gotten the flu shot; I just got mine last week for the upcoming flu season.

I always remind my 84 year old Dad to not forget to get his flu shot!

Dr. Miller, Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz all have an audience and don't know you from Adam but are all peddling something. What does your doctor who knows you best suggest?

Since the fact that anabiotic's and steroids will kill me. I am thinking that my hatred of big pharm has nothing to do with the fact that a lot of people cannot take drugs ...we deal with it when we sometimes end up in ICU. And sometimes we die. But you will find those who cannot take pharmaceuticals have a tendency to have a different look on life. We have no choice, or as my kids say if you want to get rid of me quick float an antibiotic in my coffee. Anaphylactic shock is a quick way to go