[FullRangeMan]

Do you take flu vaccine in the winter?
Have you had any problems or side effects?

The President of my country took the vaccine in front of journalists and a few days later had pneumonia! !

[JDUBS]

Yes, absolutely.  Mild site reaction but that's it.

Jim

[Mitsuman]

Do you take flu vaccine in the winter?
Have you had any problems or side effects?

The President of my country took the vaccine in front of journalists and a few days later had pneumonia! !

I've been getting them for several years now. No ill effects. The injected vaccine contains no live virus (unlike the nasal mist) so it is impossible to get the flu from a flu shot. 

[Don_S]

I have been getting flu shots for probably at least six years.  Worst reaction was a little itching in my nose like when a cold or flu is just getting started.  Side affects lasted about a day.  Since I started getting shots I have been flu-free. 

[srb]

I had gone through life avoiding flu shots, perhaps falsely thinking they would/could give me the flu.  Some years I would get a bout of flu, some years not.
 
Due to some recent health problems and finally recently finding a primary care physician (Internal Medicine) that was the best, most interested (in me as a patient) doctor I had ever found, I went with his recommendation to get my first one based on the recent medical history as well as pushing 60.
 
So I got my first flu shot last October, and suffered no reactions (or flu) and will probably continue from now on.
 
Steve
 
 

[Tyson]

I tried a couple of times, got sick.  In fact, I always caught everything that went around, and I usually got it BAD.  And it got worse when my daughter started in daycare.  But, since I started taking 6000 iu Vitamin D a day I've not been sick a single time, and that's been a couple of years now.  I started taking Vitamin D for it's heart benefits, but not getting sick (ever), is a nice unanticipated perk.

[JDUBS]

The flu shot does not guarantee you won't get the flu.  The developers of the vaccine try to predict the strains that will be prevalent but they (obviously) can't get all of them.

Some protection (flu shot) is better than none (no flu shot).

-Jim

[FullRangeMan]

Thanks guys for your input.
I think about it and will stay away from vaccines this winter again, as there are various reports of positive AIDS test in healthy people, after these uninfected people take the H1N1 vaccine !!
http://g1.globo.com/brasil/noticia/2010/05/vacina-contra-h1n1-pode-dar-falso-positivo-para-hiv-diz-anvisa.html

http://www.sonoticias.com.br/noticias/11/106105/resultado-positivo-de-aids-em-quem-tomou-vacina-contra-gripe-suina-pode-ser-falso
I will take the usual 1g Vitamim C. Better safe than sorry.
Regards, Gustavo

[JDUBS]

I'd probably be suspicious of any injectable in Brazil, too.  The flu is probably the least of your concerns.

Jim

[ken]

I would never remotely consider allowing my family or myself to be jabbed with any of that garbage. 

[Rocket_Ronny]

I would never remotely consider allowing my family or myself to be jabbed with any of that garbage. 

I couldn't agree more. Garbage is a great word for it. You have more chance getting the flu with it.

Typically, once you get a disease your body produces antibodies to combat the disease. If the flu shot was truly effective then why the yearly injections for essentially the same disease? Just forget the money making shot and allow yourself to get the flu if it comes. Your body will take care of it if you are healthy.

I have heard of people getting auto immune type diseases from the squaline in the shots. That is far worse than any regular flu.

Rocket_Don't Jab That Junk Into Me Buddy_Ronny   

[Crimson]

I couldn't agree more. Garbage is a great word for it. You have more chance getting the flu with it.

Typically, once you get a disease your body produces antibodies to combat the disease. If the flu shot was truly effective then why the yearly injections for essentially the same disease? Just forget the money making shot and allow yourself to get the flu if it comes. Your body will take care of it if you are healthy.

I don't get it either, but your reasoning is somewhat off. Antibodies have nothing to do with influenza, or future prevention. That's what's unique about a virus.

[Mitsuman]

Lots of speculation and misinformation in this thread. 

[ctviggen]

There are no double blind, placebo controlled studies of flu vaccine (or ANY vaccine, for that matter).  All studies are epidemiological (can only prove correlation, not causation).  I have a better article linked at work, but here's one:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003900531_flu25m.html

Speaking solely of the group most likely to die from the flu, seniors, there's been a common perception (based on epidemiological studies) that the flue vaccine causes 50% fewer deaths.  Then some people had a theory that the reason this was, was because healthy people were getting the vaccine and sick people were not.  Therefore, the purported benefit could be due to healthy people getting the vaccine (and living) and the sick people not getting the vaccine (and dying).  They compared records for seniors who got the flu vaccine with seniors who did not, but looked at both winter AND summer death rates.  The death rates were constant, meaning that the vaccine likely had no or very little effect.

Of course, placebo controlled, double blind studies would lay all of this controversy to rest, but people simply refuse to perform these studies (for ALL vaccines, not just the flu).

[TheChairGuy]

I would never remotely consider allowing my family or myself to be jabbed with any of that garbage.

Never - not once nor the family - don't jab me with that pharmacological swill, either.

Good hygeine (washing hands regularly) and various aids from extra Vitamin D (like Tyson) and natural source C (not the shitty synthetic ascorbic acid derived from corn that most get) and high quality probiotics keep flu's to a minimum. At the first sign that something takes hold copious amounts of fluids, raw and gently cooked garlic and onions, horseradish, hot mustard and real wasabi are ingested...that normally scares anything out.

Green and white tea do a nice job on bacteria that complicates colds and flu's, too.

I've also had substantial success using the homeopathic remedy Oscilloscollum (sp?) - it's really surprising in it's positive effects. Two vials separated by a few hours at the start of anything usually ends up a few hours later amazed at how effective it normally is. For the 6 cooler months around here the family normally takes a vial every couple weeks to keep ourselves 'inoculated'

No need to jab me with any shit...there are LOTS of safer, natural alternatives with no possible ill effects in existence.

[Mitsuman]

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/keyfacts.htm

Please refer to this information if you want facts. 

[Rocket]

Hi,

I've been having the flu vaccination since 2002 and I have only experienced very mild flu like symptons on one occasion.  The reason I started having the vaccination was every other year I would get the flu and be really sick for several weeks.

I haven't had a bad case of the flu since I started having the vaccination.  My work provides it for free and I think it is a good investment. 

Regards

Rod

[JDUBS]

Sounds like witchcraft.

Jim

Never - not once nor the family - don't jab me with that pharmacological swill, either.

Good hygeine (washing hands regularly) and various aids from extra Vitamin D (like Tyson) and natural source C (not the shitty synthetic ascorbic acid derived from corn that most get) and high quality probiotics keep flu's to a minimum. At the first sign that something takes hold copious amounts of fluids, raw and gently cooked garlic and onions, horseradish, hot mustard and real wasabi are ingested...that normally scares anything out.

Green and white tea do a nice job on bacteria that complicates colds and flu's, too.

I've also had substantial success using the homeopathic remedy Oscilloscollum (sp?) - it's really surprising in it's positive effects. Two vials separated by a few hours at the start of anything usually ends up a few hours later amazed at how effective it normally is. For the 6 cooler months around here the family normally takes a vial every couple weeks to keep ourselves 'inoculated'

No need to jab me with any shit...there are LOTS of safer, natural alternatives with no possible ill effects in existence.

[JDUBS]

I don't get it either, but your reasoning is somewhat off. Antibodies have nothing to do with influenza, or future prevention. That's what's unique about a virus.

Ha!!     I'm glad you posted this.  I guess some folks flunked high school  biology.

Jim

[TheChairGuy]

Sounds like witchcraft.

Jim

Jabbing yourself with stuff you know not what when there are very good and helpful alternatives (some hundreds of years known) seems like insanity or at least insufficiently thought thru to me.

That which you do not know should trigger thought, perhaps action, not
assumption - how will we better ourselves without curiosity?

John