Anyone getting their flu shot?

[Caster]

Dunno if a joke or not. Might actually explain how I've survived such a strange run thus far!

- OS

Nah, you're just tough as nails. Proof is all the licks you take here. Never seen a guy on an internet forum be the butt of so many old jokes and never have rude remark.

A reaper will find you some day [a long time I pray] but I think he'll show up with a cold beer and cigar "God almighty I've been chasing you forever, here, you earned it! Let's go fishin' I know a good spot."

[Oh Shoot]

Nah, you're just tough as nails. Proof is all the licks you take here. Never seen a guy on an internet forum be the butt of so many old jokes and never have rude remark.

Being drawn to perhaps more than a healthy share of strong women along the way, I learned early on to thrive on abuse.

A reaper will find you some day [a long time I pray] but I think he'll show up with a cold beer and cigar "God almighty I've been chasing you forever, here, you earned it! Let's go fishin' I know a good spot."

That certainly sounds more than passable. If I get to meet The, or even A, Big Guy, I'll surely be able to fill a good bit of eternity asking questions. Think I'll break the ice with, "so what's the story on that duck-billed platypus, anyway?"

Well, I'm off on 8 mile round trip walk to the Y. Day to jump around in the pool with a bunch of fat ladies. My fav place to get the latest germs, I reckon, to bring it back on topic.

- OS

Edited September 25, 2012 by OhShoot

[peejman]

I think the contact immunity thing only works if you stay in contact, as the viruses continue to change. And individuals have very different immune systems. To illustrate...

Mom was a teacher for a long time. At first, she was sick all the time. Over time, her immunity built up and she rarely had more than the sniffles. Now that she's been retired for a few years, she gets sick much more often.

My wife rarely gets sick. When she does, it's just the sniffles for a few days. When I get sick, it hits me like a hammer... massive congestion, in bed for a day or two, sinus infections, 2 week recovery. Our older son seems to have gotten my immune system... colds hit him pretty hard, lots of congestion, cough, etc. Our younger son seems to have gotten my wife's immune system... he's sniffly for a few days and that's about it.

That said, we typically get the flu shot. The folks that say the flu shot is bad for you rarely produce any real data to support their claim. They use scary words like mercury, aluminum, and ethlyene glycol, but never say how much or why that's bad. We've never had any sort of adverse reaction to it, but some people do.

[AU_88]

My father is a doctor and though we haven't spoken in some time, he was bringing home flu shots yearly for the family.

[LI0NSFAN]

Never got the Flu in my whole life until I got the shot. I got it when My daughter was born so she had less of a chance of getting it from me. They told me that the shot was for the most common strains, I guess that odd ball got me. I am on the fence about getting it this year. I have 2 under 3yo so I will probably get it either way.

[dats82]

I get the shot every year. I will do so this year. People like to throw around all this stuff about getting to flu from the shot or all the bad stuff in the shot, but it all boils down to pretty simple numbers for me. How many people die from the flu shot every year, and how many people die from the flu ever year? I cannot quote numbers, but invariably, more people will die from the flu than die from the shot. Of course if you are a relatively healthy middle-age person, you probably will not die from the flu, just perhaps wish you were dead for a few days. In that regard, if you don't mind being sick or can afford to be down for about a week, then yeah, I would say no point in it (no pun intended).

Secondly, people complain about getting the flu from the shot. It is not a live virus; it only contains a antigens that are shared with the virus to ellicit an immune response that will react to the real virus. Therefore, it is impossible to get the flu from the shot. You should have an immune reaction and may feel sick for a day or two after the shot, but you are not actually infected with the virus. If you feel like crap after the shot, you might take solace to the fact that that is an indication the shot is working and you should develop strong immunity.

Either way, shot or not, just bear in mind that the flu is not always a benign illness. One of the deadliest, if not the deadliest (not interested in looking up numbers right now), pandemics this world has ever known was caused by a flu virus; the 1918 flu pandemic.

Edited September 25, 2012 by dats82

[Dolomite`s Breezy]

Got the Flu shot once.. about 10 years ago.. not since then. But when I do get sick its awful.I hate being sick and sometimes I wish someone would put me out of my mysery right there and then.

I get sick once a year with the crud.. Already had it this year.. then gave it to husband .. he didnt much appreciate that gift but alas.. he survived it just fine.

What worried me more was the West Nile Virus thing this year.Ithought I had it until we went to the doc..That Menigitis scares me really bad.

I have yet to see any meds that do not contain some kind of stuff that can make you even sicker or give you a different symtome.. I wish we would go back to the old ways and the natural /herb kinda thing..

[Hiker]

I get a flu shot every year. Work with the public so I worry about what I may get exposed to. I also wash my hand often.

[gregintenn]

Not me!

[VERO1]

Believe I will pass on it again this year.

[Sam1]

People should talk to their healthcare providers about the flu vaccination, then make an educated choice armed with knowledge from a professional. These Internet based articles never impress me.

At least educate yourself on the difference between ethyl mercury and methyl mercury. It's a good starting point.

Definitely employ a professional for this cause I just looked up some info on the vaccine and within 15 minutes of internet research it turns out I may have Lupus, Diabetes, Hyperthyroidism, Hypothyroidism and am risk of heart disease even though no one in my family has had a heart attack.

We were talking about this new era of self-diagnostics via WebMD/Internet sites with one of our doctors last year and he said it's sort of funny when people come in and say they feel XYZ is wrong, and when he suggests treatment, they question it saying "well, on the internet we seen it may be ABC". He said he just asks them if you already know what's wrong, then why are you here asking for my opinion?

He's a great Dr.

[subsonic]

You're better off getting a pneumonia vaccine. That's usually what kills people as a complication of the flu. If you're younger than 60, you'll need a booster dose after 60. If you're over 60, one shot for the rest of your life.

[ironsniper1]

Never had the flu and never had a flu shot and I'm not going to start now

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Troutburger]

I've got a 1 yr old at home and a baby nephew on the way, so yeah I got the flu shot.

[GKar]

Lots to say here...starting with "the writer of the linked article probably should stick to photography". There's more misinformation/disinformation in that tome than we get from the White House in a week. How do I know? I was associated with the manufacture and testing of such products for several years in a former life.

As far as the vaccine giving you an active case of influenza: aint gonna happen. The procedures utilized to inactivate the influenza virus particles and extract the lipopolysaccharides that make up the actual vaccine have been shown to have the capacity to kill approximately 48 log greater concentrations of virus than are used in manufacture (think 48 zeroes after a "1"). Greater safety margins can't be found anywhere. And the lots of monovalent antigen that result from that inactivation/extraction process are routinely tested for the presence of residual amounts of the chemicals (ie, formaldehyde, ether, etc) used: and the limits for detection of those chemicals is way, way below acceptable exposure levels to those agents (you have far greater exposure to formaldehyde from materials used to make your mattress than from a lifetime's worth of flu vaccinations). What some folks do experience is a heightened immunologic reaction to the vaccine antigens - can give them "flu-like" symptoms that are much milder than those of true influenza.

And a hint about true influenza infection: its bad-ass. You feel like you've been hit by every car in a mile-long train. Respiratory symptoms aren't all that great in most - its the systemic phase of the disease that's evil. Joint aches, muscle pains in places you didnt now you had. Higher fever than with most respiratory illnesses, dry non-productive cough, headache that lasts for several days. This disease still kills around 25,000 Americans in an average year...and while pneumonia is indeed the primary fatal sequalae, a pneumonia vaccine is not likely to be effective, because that vaccine is only directed against one type of bacterial pneumonia (Strep pneumoniae), and that is often NOT the causative agent of a fatal pneumonia secondary to influenza.

There are many other viral respiratory diseases that are prevalent at the same time of the year as influenzae in North America: parainfluenza, certain adenovirus strains, RSV, rhinovirus, etc. Depending on the exact strain, these may result in symptoms that somewhat mimic influenza, and likely account for a significant proportion of the accounts of illness patient associate with the influenza vaccine. There are no effective vaccines for these other viral agents: handwashing and good hygiene are your best protection.

Effectiveness of the vaccine: as noted, the makeup of the vaccine is determined based upon worldwide monitoring of emergent and persistnt strains in populations known to be reasonable predictors of disease in North America (pacific rim in particular). Significant mismatch has not occurred in the past decade, as predictor models and techniques get better...but, we are fighting a living agent and that is always fraught with the possiblity of mutations, etc. That said, cessation of widespread vaccination would be disastrous: what many folks who dont take the vaccine dont realize is that they are the beneficiary of "herd immunity" - a phenomena occuring with infectious disesase prevention wherein widesprad prevention (ie, vaccination) programs prevent the epidemiologic infection rate from reaching a "critical mass" of the populace, and thus widespread transmission is avoided. If you are reasonably healthy and do not live in a confined area with numerous close contacts, such herd immunity may be quite efective. However, in institutions such as prisons, nursing homes, schools, etc, it is necessary to have a much higher vaccination rate in order to keep widespread infection from occurring.

Lastly, everybody responds differently immunologically to the vaccine. About 80% of the population responds to the traditional vaccine forumlation (15 micrograms of hemagglutinin per strain represented) by developing protective immunity within 4 weeks or so of vaccination, and lasting about 3-4 months. If you are in poor health, are over 65, or have other health issues that typically depress antibody formation, you may not see sufficient immunity develop, or it may not last as long.

No, I'm not a doctor...nor do I derive any financial gain from flu vaccinations. But I have seen this disease kill too many folks that might have been saved if others hadn't bought into misinformation and speculation to stand by and let it go unchallenged.

Edited September 27, 2012 by GKar

[Jesse]

I never had a flu shot, i had the flu once and i worked though it for about 8 days. I would feel cold and vomit at night. And was really tired during the work day. My work offers free shots every year though.

[seez52]

The last one I got was about 10 years ago. Oddly enough they were giving them for free at a funeral home, is that weird or what. I don't plan to get another one

[Garufa]

Oddly enough they were giving them for free at a funeral home, is that weird or what.

That seems counterproductive.

[BryanP]

Just got mine. And this paragraph of Bovine Scatology at your link tells me everything I need to know about the level of education and gullibility involved:

Mercury is extremely toxic. It can cause brain injury and mercury in vaccines have been linked to an epidemic of autism, with the number of children affected by autism having risen by thousands of percent in the last two decades. Mercury can also cause auto immune diseases.

Edited September 27, 2012 by BryanP

[Guest motonut]

I've gotten one the last 4 or 5 years and will get one again next month. Yes it's a crap shoot on the strain but the effects of the flu can be more severe as we get older (and the very young). Biggest issue I've had with them is a sore arm the next day.

[Guest 6.8 AR]

I don't recall ever having one. Don't expect to get one, either.

[Bubba0031]

Got mine yesterday.

[Guest Lester Weevils]

Definitely employ a professional for this cause I just looked up some info on the vaccine and within 15 minutes of internet research it turns out I may have Lupus, Diabetes, Hyperthyroidism, Hypothyroidism and am risk of heart disease even though no one in my family has had a heart attack.

We were talking about this new era of self-diagnostics via WebMD/Internet sites with one of our doctors last year and he said it's sort of funny when people come in and say they feel XYZ is wrong, and when he suggests treatment, they question it saying "well, on the internet we seen it may be ABC". He said he just asks them if you already know what's wrong, then why are you here asking for my opinion?

He's a great Dr.

Yep you can't get to be a doctor without being smart and a hard worker. Though the best way to avoid confusion is only have one doctor because if you have more than one they will occasionally contradict each other and then you have to use yer own faulty unedumacated BS detector. Some doctors have objections to the vaccines for various reasons. Maybe just nutcase doctors and maybe not. Ain't qualified to judge.

Just a couple of days ago heard some multi-year epidemiological research from canadian university doctors. Supposedly big population samples. Implicating mercury and lead association with ADHD. Tiny tiny differences in lead and mercury levels significantly associated with incidence of ADHD. Maybe they are just nutcases and maybe not.

Lots of autoimmune diseases nowadays. Some doctors say the vaccines have too much organic impurities, stray fractions of random DNA, unintended virus fractions, prion lookalikes, etc. Squirting that stuff right into the body. Maybe no big deal. Maybe false allegations.

Some research about retroviruses and cancer-- "harmless" retrovirus embeds in a cell and doesn't do much. Cell eventually dies and the retrovirus pulls out dragging along pieces of human DNA randomly attached, embeds into another cell splicing in that random DNA at random locations. As the theory goes, occasionally the accidental gene-splicing because of a "harmless" retrovirus results in a cell which expresses uncontrolled growth and also blood vessel growth factor so the cell colony gets a good blood supply and doesn't die off when it grows too big to receive nourishment otherwise. If the cell only had blood vessel growth factor it wouldn't matter because the cell would die off. If the cell only had uncontrolled growth it wouldn't matter because it would be self-limiting. Gotta have both modifications to be a successful cancer. The retrovirus isn't a "cancer virus", it just accidentally causes cancer occasionally, because it is sloppy, even though it isn't especially virulent. Maybe BS, dunno. Maybe so many random viruses and dna enter the body that a few extra impurities from an injection (if impurities exist) don't matter.

Re contact immunity gradually picked up just from living long enough to catch lots of bugs, OS and Peejman are correct it is difficult to generalize from one person's experiences. Long ago when I was about 20 went thru a couple of years just couldn't go more than a couple of months without getting strep throat. At the time about 1970 read that vitamin A helps with resistance, took vitamin A for a few months. You can take toxic doses of vit A if you take too much for too long, but taking large doses of vitamin A and cod liver oil for a few months was correlated with getting out of the habit of having routine strep throat and the problem never came back. Possibly just coincidence.

The bugs I dislike most are called "stomach flu" which probably isn't a real flu, dunno. They say sometimes "stomach flu" is just food poisoning, but have had "stomach flu" about three or four times, once every decade or two. Fever, feel like you are freezing even wearing a coat in the summer time. Severe vomiting for a couple of days. No fun. It seems real contagious. One person in the family gets it, good bet everybody in the house will get it within a week or so.

There was a flu epidemic about 1978 or 1979, worse flu I recall. Hadn't married current wife but we were staying at each other's houses a lot. Luckily we didn't get it the same time. She got it and had to be nursed real sick for a few days then I got it. A couple of days was so out of it, is easy to understand how some virulent strains young healthy people just up and die from it.

[Oh Shoot]

.... A couple of days was so out of it, is easy to understand how some virulent strains young healthy people just up and die from it.

Yep. We're an odd species, amazing the damage we can withstand, yet succumb to something seemingly relatively minor and transient.

Any of the bugs that make ya crap and puke a lot are dangerous just because of those reactions. Cholera has killed maybe a billion people or more through the centuries, you can croak in 48 hours, all due to just dehydration/electrolyte depletion. Yet sousing down plain ole sugared and salted water can pull 90% through.

Weird thing about the 1918 flu was that it targeted the prime of lifers, and healthy young and middle aged adults were the majority of the dead. Nobody really knows how many it killed, could have been as many as 50 million world wide with some 25% infection rate. With populations nowadays, that would be 200 million dead and 1.75 billion that wished they were for a while Now that's a bug.

- OS

[TGO David]

It's required in my industry.