Should You Get a Flu Shot?

I have a knack for stirring up the pot. Well, you know what they say, “If you’re not on a government watch list, shame on you!” I’ve become a rebel.

Have you ever gotten a flu shot? Did it work? Most of the people I know who’ve gotten them still got sick, or they got sick after they received the vaccine.

In my opinion, flu shots are one of the biggest scams on the population. Like fluoridated water, we’ve swallowed the proverbial Kool-Aid® of toxic advice thrust on us by mega-corporations who care far more about their share-holder’s bottom lines than our health. Let’s face it folks, this isn’t about medicine anymore – this is business.

Why do I feel so strongly about this? Almost on a daily basis, I see reputable articles about the dangers and inefficacy of influenza vaccines. You can check out the resources and references below, but if you don’t want to read any further, please look at this one link below.

It’s from the Gaglio Christopher & Taole law firm and it’s “… a selection of decisions of the United States Court of Federal Claims awarding compensation to vaccine injured clients” of their firm, through the National Vaccine Injury compensation Program.

Of the 184 decisions, approximately 148 of them involved the flu shot!  This is just the tip of the iceberg.

So here’s why I have never gotten a flu shot.

1) Flu shots aren’t very effective

I research everything on vaccines and all the science and medical articles I’ve read tell me they their efficacy is questionable.  If this concerns you, see this article from Gaia Health on a study done by the Chochrane Collaboration Study. Here’s a host of medical data assembled beautifully by GreenMedInfo.com, that effectively negates the arguments for getting this vaccine. And here’s another great article I received from The Refusers from the International Medical Council on Vaccination.

This really angers me, especially when it concerns the push for pregnant women to get the flu shot.

2) 60% of flu shots contain Thimerosal (thimerosal is 50% mercury)

Yes, mercury – which was supposedly banned in vaccines by the FDA in 1999, but it’s still allowed in many influenza vaccines. Does that make sense?

Take a few minutes to read this article from PreventDisease.com to get the full scoop on this toxic ingredient they encourage women to take when pregnant. Why tell a pregnant woman to avoid eating fish that might contain mercury, but get jabbed with a mercury laden vaccine? Here’s the crux of the article from PreventDisease.com:

“Factually, Thimerosal is a mercury-containing compound that is a known human carcinogen, mutagen, teratogen and immune-system disruptor at levels below 1 part-per-million, and a compound to which some humans can have an anaphylactic shock reaction. It is also a recognized reproductive and fetal toxin with no established toxicologically safe level of exposure for humans.”

Even “thimerosol-free” vaccines contain trace amounts of mercury. If you receive multiple flu shots (and other vaccines) it accumulates in your system.

3) Flu shots have some serious side-effects

Have you ever read the package insert for a vaccine? Most of us haven’t. Don’t you think that’s odd? Why wouldn’t we want to know what we’re injecting in our bodies and what the risks are?

Fortunately there are organizations like the National Vaccine Information Center that make this a little easier for us. Here’s a link to the influenza vaccine package inserts. When you click on the flu shot you’re considering, be sure and read the contraindications, warnings and adverse reactions – you may reconsider.  Here’s the package insert for Fluzone® from sanofi pasteur – it’s 24 pages long!

Here’s what really irritated me:

“Adult influenza vaccine injury claims are now the leading claim submitted to the federal Vaccine Injury Compensation Program.” (Source: NVIC)

In addition, the FLUARIX® vaccine insert states “There are, however, no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women. Because animal reproduction studies are not always predictive of human response, FLUARIX should be given to a pregnant woman only if clearly needed.”

It also says caution should be exercised in giving it to nursing mothers because they  don’t know if it’s excreted in the mother’s milk.  But it’s okay to inject it in her body? What sort of logic is that?

Every pregnant women I know has been told to get a flu shot unless she has an egg allergy. If you have an egg allergy don’t worry, two of the newest vaccines are made with dog kidney cells and army worms. Does that make you feel better?

Everywhere you turn you’re encouraged to get a flu shot. Everyone from pregnant women to 6 montho old babies and the elderly. Just line ’em up! Even churches are sponsoring flu shot clinics.

Since the only people sounding the alarm about the hazards of flu shots are those in the natural health field, consider yourself warned.

Here’s a myriad of side-effects from several of the package inserts I checked out:

• Guillain-Barre syndrome
• Crying Abnormal
• Irritability
• Appetite lost
• Vomiting
• Fever
• Drowsiness
• Myalgia (muscle pain)
• Headache
• Arthralgia (Sharp severe pain, extending along a nerve or group of nerves, experienced in a joint and/or joints.
• Narcolepsy – if you think you’re tired now, try getting a flu shot!

If that’s not enough to concern you, there are the adverse events known as”Postmarketing Experience” from worldwide voluntary reports – listed here are some from the FLUARIX® vaccine:

• Blood and Lymphatic System disorders
• Tachycardia (Cardiac disorders)
• Immune system disorders
• Gastrointestinal disorders
• Infections and infestations (injection site cellulitis, rhinitis, tonsillitis

Here’s a great article about the staggering increase in fetal deaths following the flu shot in pregnant women. And for more information on the flu vaccine in pregnancy, read “Why This Preganant Mom Refused the Mercury-Laced Flu Vaccine” from SafeMinds.

Please view this very sad story of a professor of nursing who became disabled from a flu shot.

Thanks but no thanks, I’ll take my chances with Mother Nature!

4) Flu shots contain some very questionable ingredients

Like most vaccines, it contains formaldehyde, polysorbate 80, Triton X-100 (Dow Chemical detergent), monosodium glutamate (MSG), and chick kidney cells, to name a few. I’d rather not put these toxins into my body. You can see all the ingredients in this CDC Vaccine ingredient listing.

Help me understand why we’d want this foreign DNA and toxic chemicals injected into our bodies or those of our children?

And speaking of children, the CDC used to consider the flu vaccine unsafe for children under 5, but it’s now okay. What changed?

In this article The Flu Vaccine – What Your Doctor Won’t Tell You (Or Probably Doesn’t Even Know) you’ll learn that “The number of children dying from the flu has risen *drastically* since the CDC recommended children under 5 receive the flu vaccine.” Yes, that’s correct.

In fact, according to the article, research presented by the 105th International Conference of the American Thoracic Society in San Diego, children who get the flu shot have a three-fold risk of hospitalization, compared to kids who didn’t get the flu shot. If your child has asthma, the risks are significantly higher that they’d be hospitalized. Where is the logic in this?

It’s unconscionable to me that employees of hospitals and medical clinics are forced to get these vaccines. It’s also ironic that nursing unions are often the first to protest mandatory flu shots. Smart people!

The right to choose whether or not you receive one of these shots has become so problematic, there’s now a website: Nurses Against Mandatory Vaccines. It’s so wrong that healthcare workers are forced to get flu shots or lose their jobs.

5) Most of the time what people call the “flu” isn’t really the flu at all

80 – 90% of what people perceive to be flu bugs aren’t the true influenza. According to WebMD, there are “more than 100 different viruses that can cause a cold, but only influenza virus types A, B and C, cause the flu.”  Many of these viruses mimic flu-like symptoms. Unless your doctor actually tests you for true influenza, getting a flu shot is a crap shoot.

The current year’s vaccine contains last year’s strains and also the H1N1, but the CDC admits these strains can change or mutate in a short time. By the time you get the vaccine, it may not protect you from it anyway. Influenza vaccines are often rushed to production – does that make you feel safe? Remember, if you have a serious reaction to any vaccine, you have no legal recourse.

6) Children who receive the flu shot have 3x the risk of hospitalization for flu over kids who never get the shot. Here’s the article from ScienceDaily. This report hails from the 105th International Conference of the American Thoracic Society.

Support your immune system naturally!

So now you know why I don’t get flu shots. I’m a very social person and mingle with people all the time, not to mention the boatload of grand kids we have with runny noses, etc., but I still seldom get sick. If you’re wondering what I do to stay healthy, here’s the list….

• Wash my hands religiously (I do not use antibacterial soap – plain soap & water is fine!)
• Take vitamin D3 (I take 5,000 IUs a day – sometimes more!) If you live in a warm climate get out in the sun.
• Take a quality probiotic – 80% of your immune system is in your gut!
• Avoid sugar & processed food (this is another reason people get sick during the holidays – sugar suppresses the immune system – scrap the crap!)
• Exercise….okay, I’m not so great at this one, but it really does help keep your immune system strong.
• I take a good omega-3 supplement and zinc.
• As an all around preventive measure I take CuraMed every day.

We have a medical system that is very effective in fear mongering. If you still feel you need a flu shot – please educate yourself first. Read the package insert. I wish you a healthy winter!

References and Resources: 

http://mercola.fileburst.com/PDF/Flu-Shot.pdf

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/10/08/developing-universal-flu-vaccine.aspx

http://www.nvic.org/NVIC-Vaccine-News/March-2013/effectiveness-of-flu-vaccine-raises-more-red-flags.aspx

http://www.greenmedinfo.com/article/maternal-influenza-vaccination-during-pregnancy-does-not-reduce-incidence

http://vaxtruth.org/2011/09/the-flu-vaccine-what-your-doctor-wont-tell-you-or-probably-doesnt-even-know/

http://vaxtruth.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/cdc-vaccine-ingredients.pdf

http://vactruth.com/2012/11/23/flu-shot-spikes-fetal-death/

The Cochrane Library – Vaccines for preventing influenza in healthy adults

http://tv.greenmedinfo.com/still-want-a-flu-shot-after-watching-this/

http://www.nvic.org/vaccines-and-diseases/Influenza/Influenza-Vaccine-Package-Inserts.aspx

http://guardianlv.com/2013/09/flu-season-vaccines-more-dangerous-than-the-flu-video/

http://www.medalerts.org/vaersdb/index.php

http://www.mommypotamus.com/just-how-dangerous-is-tamiflu/

http://www.newsmaxhealth.com/Headline/influenza-virus-flu-vaccine-Peter-Doshi-Ph-D-/2013/05/16/id/504942

http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/studies-find-flu-shots-can-harm-your-heart-infant-and-fetus

http://gaia-health.com/gaia-blog/2012-10-05/no-value-in-any-influenza-vaccine-cochrane-collaboration-study/

http://www.examiner.com/article/why-can-t-health-care-workers-refuse-flu-shots-if-patients-can