Are You Getting the Flu Shot for Your Children This Year? Why or Why Not?

The sheer number of flu questions is almost a bit on the spammy side, but I guess a few a week is about par for the course this time of year. The same people line up on the for vs against sides. You might try using the search function though it'd be better if you could sort results by date (most recent to oldest - when I'm searching for something I don't always want to slog through the questions from 2008 or earlier). Anyway -

I'm in favor of the whole family getting flu shots every year.
A disease will cause more harm than a vaccine will.

Some of these people did not vaccinate and some of their children died.
It's not something I ever want to find out about first hand.
http://shotbyshot.org/story-gallery

At it's height, the bubonic plague killed 2 million people per year.
The Spanish Flu of 1918 killed 25 million people per year (my great grandmother died of it during the 2nd wave).
With more illnesses becoming more antibiotic resistant, prevention is crucial.
I get very tired of the anti-vaccine rhetoric.
Still, there's a purpose for everything, so invest heavily in funeral homes and crematoriums. It'll pay off big time sooner or later.

5 moms found this helpful

I ALWAYS get them, the vaccine and autism debate can go on for ages, however I value the information that supports genetics behind the cause. Plus my son had pediatric neutropenia (has grown out of it) basically if he had a fever over 100.5 we had to go straight to the hospital, get an IV with a few dif types of medication to ensure he did not end up hospitalized b/c his white blood cells would fight each other instead of the yukkies. If he were to get the flu that is life or death for my son. As I said he has grown beyond that now but I still get them and I make sure any adult/kid that lives with us or spends major time w/ us get it too.

4 moms found this helpful

Flu shots DO NOT "give" your child autism! I have a 4 year old and a 2 year old and we always get the flu shots, plus I took them while pregnant. Every year I watch most of my neighborhood and school district children get immunized at the local pediatrician's flu shot roundup, and NOT ONE kid (which is amazing given how many children do have autism) is autistic! My main reason is that I had a "true" case of bad flu about 15 years ago in my mid-20s. That made me realize why people actually die from the flu! When you get a bad case of it, it's far beyond "just a bad cold." You are so sick, so feverish (with no let up for days) -it's hell! It also EASILY turns into pneumonia, which is why it's so deadly. I had to have oxygen and an inhaler for a month. If a small child had it like I had it, the child would most certainly be in the pediatric ICU with oxygen, and the extremely high fever that presents with it is also really dangerous for small children. Even though we don't see deaths any more in this country like the flu epidemic of 1918, it still kills an astonishing number of people here every year. Of course there are many who never get the shot and never get the flu, but after my experience I wasn't going to take that chance with my kids.

Below, the first link is to the CDC's flu reporting site. They have yearly reports in the past and currently it's weekly. As of May 2010, 3 pediatric deaths from flu had already happened this year. Maybe not much given the country's population, but that's still 3 dead children. This particular link is for the 2008/2009 flu season and shows 16 pediatric deaths for that flu season (that's just the kids -not all the adults too). The 2nd link is just an interesting historical tidbit about the 1918 flu pandemic. It really makes me happy for vaccines!

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/weeklyarchives2008-2009/wee...

http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/influenza-epidemic/

4 moms found this helpful

YES. The flu is dangerous. If you get the flu, you can spread it to people that may be one of the thousands who die every year before you even know how miserable you will be for about 10 days. I just got my shot, not a problem at all. My kids a scheduled, they always get it, and they have autism. They were born with autism. If your child was not born with autism, you have nothing to fear from any shot. If they were born with autism, they NEED the shot, because they are the last kids on earth who need to be that sick for that long.

M.

3 moms found this helpful

yes. i'm scared of the possible side effects too but i read an article where the mother totally regretted not giving the flu shot to her toddler because he died in the ambulance ride to the hospital from the flu. it can get very bad very fast for kids this age. so yes, i am giving the flu shot to my 16 month old who is in daycare and gets lots of germs!

3 moms found this helpful

L., your question is right up my alley. I DO have a son (17 years old) on the AUTISM spectrum and had been anguishing over the flu vaccine too. Here is what I suggest: If you will anguish over the next 6 mos. about if your son may catch the flu, you may want to immunize him. But, call around for the preservative free shot. They come pre-filled & individually wrapped. Ask to SEE the syringe wrapper before it is removed from the package so you can read it. It should not say Thimerosal anywhere on the wrapper. (What bothers me about the flu-mist is that it is a live vaccine.) Back to the Thimerosal issue: (It is an excellent preservative, which was the original justification given for putting it in vaccines). By weight, thimerosal is ~ 50% mercury. Uranium is the only chemical more deadly to humans. There is NO justification for mercury to be injected into anyone's body. The link between Autism and vaccines has NOT been debunked. This is a huge area of research for me, and If you read only one book on the topic this is it: "Healing the New Childhood Epidemics- Autism, ADHD, Asthma and Allergies." by Kenneth Bock, M.D. and Cameron Stauth. (2008) Thimerosal was removed from most vaccines in 2001. But, mercury is a cumulative toxin. So, I'm concerned for people who get the flu shot with thimerosal every year. Do vaccines Alone cause Autism? Unlikely. Genetics load the gun, & environmental factors- including mercury exposure- pull the trigger. Vaccination recommendations changed in 1991, when the CDC recommended that all infants get the Hep. B and HIB vaccines. At that point, childhood vaccinations had increased to over 20, and 6 mo. old babies had received the following amounts of thimerosal: 75 mcg. from 3 DTP injec.,75 mcg. from 3 HIB. injec., and 37.5 mcg. from 3 HEP. B injections. This =187.5 mcg. of thimerosal. What does this mean? 6 month olds who got their vaccinations on schedule received mercury dosing that was 87 X higher than guidelines for Adult's maximum daily mercury consumption in fish. Also, the amount of mercury injected by the time a baby was 2 months old was 99 times higher than the EPA's standard recommendations. It only got worse, as more immunizations (with thimerasol) became required. Of course, this wasn't intentional. But it is the saddest high in stupidity, and our children are paying for it. So, do your research before you trust anything to be safe for your child. I agree that the Vaccination book by Dr. Sears is excellent; It gives an alternate vaccination schedule so our kids aren't exposed to so much at one time. Another Excellent book on Vaccines & the thimerosal issue is "What your Doctor May Not Tell You About Children's Vaccinations" by Stephanie Cave, M.D. These doctors (&more) are not anti-vaccination; They are anti- thimerosal and propose a safer, modified schedule. Good luck, L.. We Love our kids, and there are many difficult decisions to make.

3 moms found this helpful

Nope, we don't do the flu shots. Vitamin D, a healthy diet, and hand washing are more effective.

3 moms found this helpful

I don't normally get or give my kids flu shots - but this year I am, because last year they were laid up one after another with the flu, my son missed 3 weeks of school, I was up for a week solid with my daughter who couldn't breathe due to the build up of phlegm, my husband missed a week of work (unpaid) and I was having to look after everyone with flu myself.

I don't want to do that again - I am getting my kids flu shots on thursday.

They have not proved any link between flu shots and autism, or any other vaccine and autism

3 moms found this helpful

Why??
I have never given any of my children the flu shot nor have I had any. Personally I don't believe that any vaccine gives Autism to any child. I question the need to need to continue or introduce some of these that are just not necessary.
Chicken pox?? Gardisil?? Flu??

And about 6 years ago we all go the flu, hubby included, and he is mandated to get the flu shot every year.

3 moms found this helpful

Actually, there has never been a link or even a theoretical link between Autism and the flu vaccine. That was the MMR vaccine which was given via multi-dose vials in the late 80s and much of the 90s. That "link" has since been disproven.

As for the flu shot, we will not be getting them (myself, my husband or our 4 kids ages 10, 7, 2 & 1). The only one in my family to ever get the flu shot has been my 7 y/o because she lives with severe asthma and it really did help her. We have only had 2 bouts with the flu in the 10 years we've been a family, and ironically, it was the same years that my oldest daughter also got a flu shot (before the little ones were born). My medical training helps me understand that the flu shot did not cause the flu, but I still do find it a really big coincident none the less.

We've decided to refuse all flu shots this year for the simple fact that it now includes a "built-in" H1N1 as well as H3N2 componant. I absolutely do not trust the whole H1N1 thing, and have never even heard of H3N2 until just recently (within the last week or so). I feel like these vaccines have been shoved down our throats and we are being treated as lab rats with them. H1N1 came out of no where last year and suddenly there was a vaccine for it. Tell me how a virus only discovered for a few months can be cured or prevented, but a virus such as AIDS that has been around for decades can not even be explained? Makes no sense to me. Call me a conspieracy theorist if you'd like, but I'm not buying it and I refuse to let my kids be free research tools :)

3 moms found this helpful

Yes - definitely - they have already received their flu mist (ages 2 and 3). I don't believe that the flu shot has ever been linked to autism (and am not sure there is any conclusive evidence that any vaccine has caused autism). There are MANY more hurtful things in our environment than a flu vaccine. Why put your child through the risks and incredible discomfort of the flu???

3 moms found this helpful

I'm 43, hubby is 36, kids are 14, 11 and 8. We have NEVER had the flu shot, NONE OF US! And my kids have not had the flu since they were babies and my hubby and I probably haven't been sick with a stomach bug for 20 years. Go with your gut and don't do anything you don't feel comfortable doing. Good luck!~

2 moms found this helpful

No, I don't. My husband and I don't get them either. Too many questions about the "stuff" in them, not just the vaccine but the preservatives and other items. However, we have extremely strong immune systems due to our nutritional supplementation program, and we have never been sick in the last 3 years. So the flu doesn't worry us, nor do any other viruses or infections or allergens. We breathe easily, literally and figuratively!

2 moms found this helpful

My son is 7. Not getting it this year. I got it for him until he was about 3, basically just because the pediatricians pushed for it. My decision is not due to the alleged autism link, just my general disbelief of the benefits of flu shots.

2 moms found this helpful

I decided to give my 9 month old the seasonal flu shot(preservative free). He goes to a daycare and the chances of catching the flu are high and it can be potentially serious for an infant.
My husband and I both get the seasonal flu shot every year - I came down with flu the one year I didn't get the flu shot and it was pretty bad. Don't just go by what other people believe and say - learn the facts and do what works best for you and your family!

2 moms found this helpful

NO! We will NOT! EVER! My son got the flu mist one year and was soooo sick afterwards. I will never put them through that again.

2 moms found this helpful

The times I got the flu shot, (back in the day before I researched vaccines), I always ended up with the flu. Now I have kids and have learned a lot . I choose to boost my children's immune systems naturally and opt out on the shots. Check out Super Immunity for Kids by Dr. Leo Galland...easy, healthy ways to boost immunities thru essential fatty acids in their diet. My toddler is never sick, even her pedi is amazed. Here's a link for the book on Amazon...
http://www.amazon.com/Superimmunity-Kids-Children-Healthy...

Also, before getting the vaccine, check out this 60 Minutes story from 1976 concerning the swine flu vaccine the government scared people into getting back then. Don't take anyone's word for anything these days, DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH, especially when it concerns your children's health!! A link for the video clip..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpLF5UwUDoo

2 moms found this helpful

the way to get rid of the desease is to irradicate it, just like the small pox's! I got the shot and my children will too. I feel if I don't do my part now then my children's grandchildren will have to deal with it.

2 moms found this helpful

Absolutely NOT, my child will NEVER receive a flu shot!

Don't just take advice from others, everyone has an opinion and everyone has a different bias for their opinion. I highly recommend reading online on both sides of the flu shot, look into the specific ingredients of it, the politics surrounding it, and the number of incidents or injuries from it.

Start with Dr. Sears Vaccination book, he isn't on one side or the other, it's just information and it's easy to understand and pretty up to date, this way you can see what's in the shot. I think the best way to handle these things is break them down completely and look at your child completely and then decide what's best for you.

2 moms found this helpful

My sons are 14 and 9 and they have NEVER had the flu shot nor have I. My husband has to get it every year thanks to being enlisted. Anyway none of us have ever had the flu. I get asked every year by their drs to get them the shot and I refuse every year. The reason being two fold. They have never gotten the flu in the first place. Both my husband and I come from very healthy families that are rarely sick. The second reason being is I have two friends that every year(again thanks to being enlisted) have to get the Flu vaccine. Every year without fail they wind up sicker than dogs with the Flu. It is without fail within two weeks of getting their vaccine. Every year they hear the same response you can not get the flu from the vaccine. Before they were enlisted neither one had ever had the flu.
I knew then I would rather run the risk of not getting the vaccine. So far it has paid off. Knock on wood.

2 moms found this helpful

nope. i agree that the autism debate has no conclusive evidence on either side, but to me it's just common sense not to overload a body with foreign substances, and there are some vaccines that ARE a necessity in my book. yes, people die from the flu (and allergies and riding in cars and taking baths) but not every disease can or should be handled with yet another sketchy vaccine. the people who develop serious problems, up to and including death, from vaccines needs to be factored into the stark equation 'how many people die from the flu?'
i've had a pretty dire flu. it was awful. so now i'm very careful to eat well, keep my immune system macho, and to have mitigating medicines on hand. i've had the polio vaccine, and i'll keep tetanus current. but there are a lot of bad medicines on the market today (gardasil!!! gah!) and i don't trust the drug companies to keep anything but their bottom line healthy, and the USDHHS has let us down and sold out too often to keep my trust.
for most people the flu is not unavoidable, and if you get it, it's not the end of the world.
khairete
S.

2 moms found this helpful

This year the flu shot does include the H1N1 as well and yes me and both of my kids got it and didn't have any reactions to it. I"m a sahm and daycare provider and during the winter time I try to keep the kids away from as many crowds as possible to avoid getting sick as well! The shot is not going to prevent you from getting the flu it just helps to make it not as bad if you do get it so they say! Good luck!

1 mom found this helpful

I never get the flu shot for myself. I have only had it once when I was pregnant with my first child. As for my kids, I don't get it for them either. They have never had the flu shot. I feel that kids are over vaccinated and they just don't need the flu shot. I will let them build up their own body resistance to it and be done. Since my kids were born (over 7 yrs ago) we have all had the flu once and that is it. They both go to public school and are frequently in public situations. We rarely get all the little colds, viruses, etc. I don't feel the flu shot is necessary, let the body build up it's own immunity.

1 mom found this helpful

Yes we will all get it, which reminds me to call and make an appt for the whole family! I could go into the whole debate, but I won't. But we get the flu shot every year.

1 mom found this helpful

Yes. We get the flu shot every single year. Well we get it because we seem to get respitory infections sooner than other people.

1 mom found this helpful

Nope, no flu shot for us. We got it last year (both regular and H1N1) because we were travelling by air internationally and I didn't want us to get the flu abroad.
My dd and I are not high risk, so we only get the flu shot, if there are any circumstances were I think it would be important (like when you can't afford to get sick). My hubby has allergic asthma, so he will be getting a shot, since he's considered high risk for flu complcations.
I don't believe in the Autism/Vaccine thing, but that still doesn't mean that I will take any shot there is, just because I can. In the end you just have to make an informed decision about what is best for YOU and your family.
Good luck.

1 mom found this helpful

I don't believe in flu shots because it seems as though every time I've gotten one or my kids have gotten one, it's given us the flu and we got it worse than if we would have allowed nature to run its course. I get my girls the absolute minimum vaccinations necessary for them to be in public school and then allow their own bodies to fight the rest off on their own.

As for the autism thing--it was a hoax. There is no proof that autism and flu shots are linked in any way, shape or form. As a matter of fact, there is another post on here somewhere where a poster lists a link with the article stating that fact.

Add on:
I do believe you can request a preservative-free version of the vaccination. If such is the case, then I believe that lowers the risk of side effects, but please check w/ a health care provider to be sure.

1 mom found this helpful

I learned a lot about vaccines when I was pregnant with my second child. Because of a medication I was on, he wasn't allowed to get LIVE vaccines for 12 months. He is now 2 years old and I still gap out the live vaccines (versus the dead ones).

As for the flu: the SHOT is a dead vaccines, but the nasal spray is LIVE. I always opt for the shot version for my kids and I stagger vaccines, waiting on any that are LIVE until they are 2 years old.

Hope this helps :)

1 mom found this helpful

The link between vaccines and autism was debunked YEARS ago, as a matter of fact, in the peer review process. (The original study was flawed... it included a *school for autistic children* in it's base. If it had included a school for gifted kids the "results" would have been that vaccines cause giftedness. Following studies were done as badly, for personal profit. Like I said, debunked YEARS ago in the medical community, it's an untold relief that it's finally public knowledge.)

That said... we don't get the chance to... because we get the seasonal flu every summer, 3-6mo ahead of the rest of the country. We have friends who work in the middle east and eastern europe that visit or come home in the summer time. They bring the flu with them, we catch it, end up staying in our house 1/2 quarantined for 7-10 days. (The flu typically starts 12 mo ahead of when we get it, in China, typically as an avian or swine flu and then it travels west (no idea why, it's just what happens... year after year... decade after decade. What was scary about H1N1 is that is started in mesoamerica and traveled north and then in all directions, which is NOT what the flu normally does. Immunologists wait for the dominant strain to show itself, culture it, and the race to produce vaccines ahead of it begins. The companies race, not to make it before WE get it, but to stay just ahead of the wave as it travels west. So they produce and vax, produce & vax.)

Would we get it IF vaccines were available in this country before we were exposed to it? Yup.

The common flu kills over 50,000 people in this country alone every single year, but no one bats an eye. Most of the deaths are infants and the elderly. It's a good thing to keep in mind when the news is freakin' out about 12 deaths from some bug. 50,000 vs 12.

We all have gotten the flu shot this year. We are all fine. No one has Autism.

You can get the flu shot w/o mercury in it that is all our pediatrician gives plus at over 2 you can also give flu mist. Oh and the theory behind vaccines being linked to austism was recently disproven.
My boys get their flu shots every year. My oldest has asthma and ended up with h1n1 and a stay in the hospital because the h1n1 vaccine did not make it to our area soon enough and I will do anything I can to prevent that from happening again. My youngest gets quite sick from just a cold even though he does not have asthma and I would hate to see what would happen if he got the flu. Also both of my parents who we see quite often have health issues that don't allow them to get the flu shot and I would feel terrible if we shared the flu with them.
Edited: I can tell you that if it weren't for the health issues my answer might be different.

I have myself already gotten this years Flu shot... the one with no preservatives. I have Asthma... so it is crucial for me, to get it.

Both my kids, have gotten it in the past and will this year as well. They get the nasal spray version.
They and me, have NEVER EVER gotten and side effects from it, NOR did it make us sick.

all the best,
Susan

I don't normally, but my husband does. I am SAHM so am not exposed to much, except what the kids bring home. My son (12) got his this year already. He had pneumonia in both lungs last spring, developed exercise induced asthma a few months afterwards. Also has respiratory allergies and is on maintenance allergy immunotherapy. His system has been all out of whack since he had pneumonia and I don't want him having to fight off the flu when still possibly weakened from the previous pneumonia. The office where he got his (his doctor/allergist) said that they have given the shot to many already this year, with no reported illness or side effects from their patients. Our daughter (9) won't get one. She is very healthy with a great immune system.

yes, they're six, but they always get the mercury free shot (not the mist either).
our pediatrician knows of our mercury-fear so he doesn't make a fuss.

my daughter got hers a couple of weeks ago. She gets one every year.

I know that a lot of people link autism to vaccines. Honestly, I don't know one way or another, but do they consider the flu vaccine to be one of them? It's been around for a long time. I am getting my 10-month-old the flu shot simply because it can be dangerous for an infant to get the flu because of dehydration and such. I realize that it isn't full-proof, but I prefer to be safe than sorry. The only downside is that they are combo-ing the H1N1 with the regular flu shot and I am not quite sure how I feel about that.

Are any of you in the high risk category for getting the flu? Work in medical clinics? Is your 2.5 yr. old in daycare, therefore has a high exposure?

My husband gets the flu shot every year, has to. I have never taken my kids in for it. My husband wants us to get it, but I just haven't had the time to, I know, an excuse, and we are exposed to my husband and his patients, (he sees really sick kids) and we have not had the 'bad' flu. We will all come down with some type of flu over the winter, but it lasts it's normal course, and we eat lots of homemade chicken soups, green teas, fresh fruits to help us over it.

I recommend you assess your exposure. And I also ditto Jamie F., there is not causative link between autism and vaccinations.

No. I don't get the flu shot, my kids are grown and they have made the decision not to. As far as Autism, my son and my daughter inlaw used to be TA in a school in Arizona, they worked with children with autism, they were told in their training that Autism has been linked to imunizations, that children are not born with it and in most cases it is detected around the age of 3, I look at all the shots my daycare kids get compared to when my children were small, and it is disturbing to me as a mom how many shots kids are actually getting now. I say get what they need for school and that's it. J.