Flu Shot - Chesterfield,MO

This is a little bit of what I just posted on someone else's post.

Don't get any vaccine! They don't work! I highly recommend you become a fan of Dr. Tenpenny on Facebook and post this question. You'll get tons of info on the flu vaccine from educated people.

My work offered it last year, and so many people got sick from it, they're not going to offer it again. I work in a very nice hotel and we need every person there when they are scheduled (although, we understand and can work around the occasional sick day), but, starting the day after they offered it, more than half the staff was out at one point or another for about 2 weeks. I chose not to get it then (I was one of the lucky few who had to work 2 weeks straight with no days off), and I don't believe I will ever get it.

Many people will tell you what they did and their reasons. When it comes down to it, you have to trust that you can gather enough sound information upon which you can make a confident decision. I did my own homework and relied upon my own intelligence to sift through all the scare tactics and propaganda when I had to make this decision for my son. I learned enough to know I made the best decision possible for my child. My son is 24 y/o and I have absolutely no doubt whatsoever. Not because my son is healthy, because many apparently healthy children survived when their parents made other choices. But because I independently investigated the truth and the real science beyond the hype. Like it or not, the government may push you toward deciding to vaccinate your child, but knows better than to take the ultimate responsibility of making the decision for you. It is your legal and moral responsibility to make this decision. It isn't even the doctors responsibility to report adverse reactions caused by vaccines to the CDC. It is the parents' responsibility. So, we, as parents, have got to learn as much as we can about the truth on this issue.

Most people who have accepted the shots are doing so on the basis of information provided by the people who are selling them and by agencies that have been proven to provide misleading information on vaccine issues. Both the CDC and the IOM have openly stated that there is no relationship between mercury injected into infants and children and neurological developmental disorders. As reported in congress, mercury is the most neurotoxic substance known to man. As stated by the president of the IOM on Face the Nation, after reviewing the data provided by various studies they conducted, the panel of scientists decided to "set aside the biological data" and instead conducted an epidemiological study which included children in other countries who received 1/4 the amount mercury and were not vaccinated until after age 2 and were far more neurologically developed. Congress found the CDC guilty of destroying records containing hoards of information about adverse reactions to vaccines. As Robert Kennedy Jr explained, the public can no longer put blind faith into these agencies in regard to vaccine safety. There are many other harmful and toxic properties to vaccines other than mercury. If they withheld the truth about mercury, I do not consider their admonitions about vaccines to be trustworthy about the rest.

This is not a matter of a handful of uneducated or paranoid people creating irrational conspiracy theories. There are honest doctors, such as Dr. Mercola, Dr. Tenpenny, and Dr. Mendelsohn, research scientists, such as Vera Scheibner, respected journalists, such as David Kirby, environmentalists, such as Robert Kennedy Jr. and the EPA, itself, who have been sounding the alarm for years, even decades. You can go to the website of the University of Calgary and watch a video demonstrating how an actual developing nerve cell responds to the presence of just a couple of mercury ions. So, if agencies like the IOM, the AMA, and the CDC were willing to tell us that the mercury was safe for decades after science had proven otherwise and millions of children were permanently damaged, we have to admit that we cannot trust them to provide sound guidance in regard to the topic of vaccines.

I cannot provide here all I have learned after 25 years of personal research on this subject. Even if I did, you would need to verify it in order for you to make you decision about what is reasonable and what is not. As Dr. Mendelsohn pointed out in one of his books, it is very easy to frighten a mother about her children. Anyone who uses scare tactics to manipulate a mother is not someone I trust. I trust the ones who openly provide and publicize sound information. Dr. Mercola published this just recently: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/1.... There is also a National Vaccine Information Center website hosted by Barbara Loe Fisher, who is often consulted by the news media and recognized for her sober and intelligent insights about the damages vaccines can cause.

So, all I can tell you is what worked for me. Pray for guidance and trust the mind and the instincts God gave you. You seem like an intelligent person. Don't let others intimidate you. The more you know, the more the hype becomes obvious and the easier it is to make decisions confidently. Your children are lucky to have a mom that cares enough to investigate.

You are going to get a lot of conflicting and heated reports. Most people go with their doctor's recommendations, but most doctors only know what their drug reps and the CDC tell them. I did a LOT of research on this topic last year when I was pregnant, and decided I would never again vac myself or my children for the flu. The death rate for the flu for children actually went up after the recommendation to vaccinate every child over the age of 6 months, and there are no studies showing that the flu vaccine works in children at all. The whole H1N1 thing was just a hype for what was a very mild sickness. The numbers were fudged to make everyone get the vaccine ($$$$$) but they stopped testing people because very few of the people thought to have H1N1 actually had it (or the flu either for that matter. You can actually find the data on the state by state testing. It varies by region, obviously, but you can't refute the numbers. Only about 20% of the people thought to have influenza actually have it...the rest are all illnesses the flu vaccine (assuming it works at all) won't prevent. Some theorize that the reason for the flu "season" is lack of sunshine, so increase your vitamin D. There's a lot of info on mercola.com, and he quotes other sources and studies. Unfortunately, big pharma rules in this country.

YES!!!!!! You should get the flu shot for your children. PLEASE read reputable sites before making your decision. Here is one to try...
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/flu-shots/ID00017

My daughter is 8 and my son is 4. They've gotten a flu shot every single year and have NEVER had any problems or side effects.

You CAN NOT get the flu from the flu shot. Those who got sick after getting a flu shot were either already exposed to the flu OR don't even have the flu (inFLUenza). They have a virus or some sort of something else. I've heard people saying they have the "flu" because they were throwing up. Well, that's not the flu. Someone is sick? Well, it's the flu! Not always the case!!!

I could go on and on about my frustration with this. Please don't believe everything some people post. They are over dramatic and have not truly educated themselves. Like I said before, please educate yourself with reputable sites. Seriously, you can find anything you want on the internet to back up your case, whatever that case might be. And talk with your pediatrician. Complications from the flu, including death, are more likely to happen than a very rare complication from a flu shot.

Good luck with your decision!

Please don't do it. There are some really bad side effects with this one! I believe Dr. Mercola has an article he recently posted to his site (mercola.com). Or maybe it was Dr. Tenpenny (google her). One of the known side effects is narcolepsy (where you fall asleep in moments of stillness, like at a red light). Another is Guillian Barr syndrome. It is also showing to be no more effective than non-vaxing. Same rates of illness, including hospitalization. Are you nursing? That is the best way to ensure health for your baby. If you are worried about your boys bringing home disease, can you just skip preschool for the few months. You can easily provide that for your children. We never get the flu shot. It is so not worth it!

Hi J.---Just posted this for another mom. I do have another opinion for you to consider, and this is based on reputable information. I have more to share with you, if you'd like. Good luck. D.

Hi Farinaz---The flu vaccine simply does no good. Please visit www.nvic.org to learn about the pros and cons of vaccines. Here is an article from a Naturopath that I work with. Note the part that I have capitalized:

Questions about Flu Vaccines
Recorded on 06/30/2010

I have been sending cautionary messages about flu vaccines for many years. These vaccines are not tested for safety; there is no evidence of efficacy; and there is little evidence that getting the flu increases the risk of hospitalization or death.

Dr. Larry Palevsky is a new addition to our teaching staff at The Wellness Forum Institute. He is a board-certified pediatrician in New York who is quite outspoken about vaccines. The Spring 2010 issue of Health Science featured an article by Dr. Palevsky addressing his concerns about flu vaccines and specifically the H1N1 vaccine. I'll share some highlights here, but encourage you to read the entire article if you have been getting flu vaccines or are considering getting one this coming season.

Dr. Palevsky starts his article by addressing a common misunderstanding; people do not get the flu because they are exposed to a virus. WE ARE ALL EXOSED TO VIRUSES EVERY DAY; WHETHER OR NOT WE GET SICK IS A FINCTION OF OUR OWN HEALTH STATUS, NOT EXPOSURE.

Related to this issue is the fact that most viruses contributing to flu-like symptoms are not members of the influenza virus family. This is why studies continue to show that vaccines are not effective for reducing flu - the vaccines contain viruses that are not making most people sick. Yet our health authorities continue to insist that the general public should get shots for these viruses, even though they are not the cause of most people's illnesses.

In order to "sell" vaccine programs, the CDC manipulates data concerning deaths from the flu. According to the CDC, 36,000 people die from the flu each year due to seasonal flu virus. But the CDC also states that they "don't know exactly how many people die of the (influenza) flu each year because most people who die from seasonal flu are not tested for the flu (influenza flu) virus." The CDC states that their estimate of deaths comes from a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association that used a statistical model to estimate the numbers of deaths by flu for nine seasons for people who died from respiratory or circulatory diseases. These people were not tested for flu, and there was no evidence linking their deaths to the influenza virus.

The bottom line is the CDC does not know how many people are dying from the flu every year, and is simply making up this number.

Dr. Palevsky is also concerned about the groups targeted for vaccines. Children with asthma are advised to get the vaccines. Yet at the American Thoracic International Society Conference in May 2009, it was reported that the vaccine did not protect children with asthma against hospitalization; in fact there was a three-fold increased risk for hospitalization for children who received the vaccine.

He has the same concerns for pregnant women. The package insert for both the seasonal vaccine and the H1N1 vaccines states, "animal reproduction studies have not been conducted with Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine or the flu vaccine. It is also not known whether Influenza A (H1N1) Monovalent Vaccine or the flu vaccine can case fetal harm when administered to a pregnant woman or can affect reproduction capacity. Neither the flu vaccine nor the Influenza A (H1N1) Monovalent Vaccine have been evaluated for carcinogenic or mutagenic potential, or for impairment of fertility." In spite of this information, pregnant women are encouraged to get the vaccine.

Palevsky asserts that there has been no cause and effect relationship established between testing positive for H1N1 and the flu; like many of us, he is appalled that the medical profession sees correlation and automatically assumes a cause- and -effect relationship. When sick people test positive for H1N1, it is assumed that H1N1 caused their illness. But this might not be the case. There are large numbers of adults who test positive for H1N1 who do not have the flu. There has never been a study comparing the number of people with the flu who test positive for H1N1 (remember that most people are not tested) with healthy people to see how many in each group test positive for H1N1. It is quite possible and even probable, based on the evidence, that H1N1 is not the cause of the flu in people who carry the virus or antibodies to the virus.

Last but not least, Palevsky addresses safety issues related to the additives in the vaccine, which include egg proteins, gelatin, formaldehyde, detergent, antibiotics, and thimerosal. He states that there are no studies showing that these ingredients are safe when injected individually, let alone in combination.

Dr. Palevsky makes a concise and well-documented argument against anyone getting any type of flu vaccine ever. Palevsky L. "Swine Flu Vaccines, Viruses and Fear." Health Science Spring 2010

If you would like, I can share what Dr. Pam teaches is an optimal diet. To learn more about Dr. Pam, visit www.wellnessforum.com. I wish you luck in your investigation and decision making. Be well, D.

The flu kills people. Maybe not you, or your kids, but every single year, year in, year out, people die, in numbers MUCH larger than any possible side effect, and there is no "feeling" no "opininon" and no "fear" implied in any of those numbers, they are real. If it happens to you, your grandmother, your mother, father, husband, son, daughter...or you, it will happen to somebody, and you could be the person who walked through the grocery store incubating the virus that killed them, without even knowing what happened. Wouldn't you feel horible if you knew? Wouldn't you want the person who carried the virus into the grocery store (that later killed your child or grandma) to have gotten the shot instead? I would. I have had mine. My kids have had theirs. Everyone is fine. Not a single, solitary side effect, not one, not from any vaccine, ever. You are not hearing confilcting reports, you are hearing fear mongering and popular myth. Go to your doctor, ask them how many confilcting reports there really are. They are your resource, and if you don't like their medical advice, find a new doctor you can trust.

M.

It is all so scary.... but the flu is real and many kiddos die from it each year.
I just got my 2 year old and 1 year old done last week.
It was easy and they didn't have any reaction at all.

Trust me I get your fears. We are on a delayed schedule for vaccines, so I am not a mom that takes this stuff lightly. But since our 2 year old is in preschool we wanted everyone to be protected from the nasty germs best we can.

As for the H1N1.. you have to remember the reason that got so much play was because it was a new strain AND it was so deadly. The flu shot has 3 or so forms of the flu in it each year. They try and predict the new seasons strain each year. The H1N1 is just now another one they will add to the list.
It is a nasty virus that can take little ones down fast. Don't let all the fears and hype get to you. If your kids have had vaccines then most likely they will not have an issue with the flu shot.

Good luck....

I have gotten a flu shot already. I am 20 weeks pregnant. My son turns 3 on Wednesday, and I will get him a flu shot as soon as I can.
I know that many people are worried about the H1N1 vaccine, but I'm not one of them. H1N1 is a strain of influenza. The seasonal flu vaccine is a trivalent vaccine (a three component vaccine) with each component selected to protect against one of the three main groups of influenza viruses circulating in humans. We just happen to know the name of this particular component (H1N1), one-third of the vaccine because of media coverage of H1N1 flu. Would it worry you to know that this year's vaccine also contains a deadened H3N2 virus? Would you be worried about that the same way you are about H1N1? What about a B/Brisbane/60/2008–like virus? Are you nervous about that? Why or why not?
The fact is that the H1N1 vaccine is really not different than the seasonal flu vaccine. They both inject dead viruses, which CANNOT INFECT YOU. They are both designed to protect against strains of the influenza virus, and there is nothing new about the way they designed the H1N1 vaccine that would require more testing. It is a strain of the flu and should be treated as such in terms of vaccine information.
I am personally much more worried about my family contracting the actual flu than I am about the infinitely more rare chance that there are complications from a vaccine. I am especially concerned to have a newborn in the house at the tail end of flu season.
My recommendation is to get the shots, but whatever you decide please get your information from a reputable source.

I won't get it for any of us! My grandma just passed away after getting hers and getting really sick. She has had flu shots in the past but I think the h1n1 in this one made her really sick. Everyone I know who got the h1n1 shot last year got sick. We got swine flu and were sick for one day. Everytime we get a flu we take oscilloscoccinum and are better within a day. We also don't sterilize every surface religiously, wash with soap and water, and get adjusted regularly. There's some good information available through dr. Tenpenny and at www.thedoctorwithin.com and in dr Stephanie cave's book. If you're nursing that should help prevent the baby from getting it. Also probiotics and vitamins!

repost reply from similar question...

I find it interesting how people post "thousands of people have died from the flu" and yet to put it into perspective, thousands to millions of people have died from other common infectious diseases (just google common infectious diseases). Also, the person who said "not to base it on other people's experience." Well, I researched the effectiveness/pros/cons of the flu shot (which I would hope most people would do, and then make their own decision) - especially with the H1N1 outbreak last year and opted out of it for myself and my LO. I've never had the flu shot and have only had the flu once in the last 20 years - granted I'm pretty healthy, but I attribute my great immune system on eating right, exercise and good clean living and not on a bunch of shots. Now if myself or my LO had other underlying health issues, I would probably reevaluate, but for now I would rather continue to build up my immune system than to use a crutch in the hopes that they come up with the right formula from year to year. I've also mentioned this before, but if you ask three different doctors/professionals you will get three different variations of what they think is best and why - that's probably what bothers me the most.

Of course the APA and the CDC and most doctors recommend it, but we as parents need to question everything. Do your own research and know exactly what ingredients you would be putting into your child, then decide if it's the right thing for your family or not. I too have a 7 month old and a 2.5 year old in preschool. We don't do flu shots. We boost our immune systems naturally and we're hardly ever sick. Probiotics, flaxseed, good vitamins, fruits and vegetables, little sugar and lots of exercise, it's that simple.
Also 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. Again, 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

This is such a touchy subject, you just need to educate yourself and make the decision you're most comfortable with. That being said, I am a firm believer in vaccinations and get the flu shot every year. I also vaccinate my two sons (3-years and 1-year) every year. I worked in schools long enough to know that hand-washing just isn't going to cut it! The kids sneeze and wipe and cough all over everything, put their mouths on things or things in their mouths, and are just generally not hygiene-minded (and I worked in middle schools!). My first son I vaccinated when he was 6-months old. No one in my family has ever had a negative reaction to any vaccine.

My oldest had h1n1 last year because the shot was not available in our area soon enough. It was not fun he had to spend some time in the hospital then he developed pneumonia. The flu can be deadly especially to young kids and the elderly. Children under the age of 5 are considered to be in the high risk group. How will you feel if they don't get vaccinated and they get the flu and one of them ends up in the hospital or worse when you could have helped reduce their chances of getting sick.

Updated

My oldest had h1n1 last year because the shot was not available in our area soon enough. It was not fun he had to spend some time in the hospital then he developed pneumonia. The flu can be deadly especially to young kids and the elderly. Children under the age of 5 are considered to be in the high risk group. How will you feel if they don't get vaccinated and they get the flu and one of them ends up in the hospital or worse when you could have helped reduce their chances of getting sick.

I got the flu shot last week. The shot is a requirement for my inhome daycare. I was not happy about H1N1 being in the formula, but do not want a round of flu.....as my youngest son had last year!

It's just not a case of the next few months.....he actually caught the bug at the end of March. It was a rare outbreak, late in the season. But it was a full-blown case & he was absolutely miserable. I had to shut down my daycare for a whole week!

His symptoms began on a Sat afternoon & we had a whole houseful of family & friends. We took him to Dr After Hours on Sunday morning when we realized he was just not running a fever, but had all symptoms of H1N1. Not only did we have to go on Tamiflu, but several of our guests did too. Between loss of income, medical expenses, "sick child" food supplies, & the Tamiflu.....it ran us about $1000. Yikes!!!

Lesson learned.....

I just got it, and my two boys (ages 2 and 4) will get it in two weeks when one of them has a check up for an ear infection -to make sure it's gone. I always get my whole family flu shots -including H1N1 since it's been available. I wouldn't take a chance with your baby or a small child getting a severe case of the flu. It CAN be deadly! You can read past posts of mine on this, but I had a severe case of the flu about 15 years ago. If a baby or small child had it that bad, they would definitely be in a pediatric ICU, and hopefully they would get better, but some children still die in this country every year from the flu.

Our Dr has always been fine with us getting flu shots except for last year & this year. He said no for my kids who are 5, 2 & 8 months, but said it was fine if my husband & I wanted to get one. I always go with my Dr's recommendation. Goodluck.

Updated

Our Dr has always been fine with us getting flu shots except for last year & this year. He said no for my kids who are 5, 2 & 8 months, but said it was fine if my husband & I wanted to get one. I always go with my Dr's recommendation. Goodluck.

I agree with getting the flu shot, however, the h1n1 vaccine was just developed, and has been through no clinical trials. There were only a handful of h1n1 cases last year, hardly an epidemic. In fact, an article was just published in a major journal (like the APA or something, can't remember) that stated negative effects of the h1n1 vaccine. Several health professionals I know refuse to get it. I've been advised to seek out a flu shot that does not have the h1n1 included. I refuse to be the clinical trial! Good luck!

This is obviously one of those questions you research and ask your doctor and can never really know for sure what is best. I personally think that it is something to revisit every year. I got them while pregnant, because I was worried about the outcome if I got the flu while pregnant. I have gotten them for my kids in the past, but am not this year. Last year I got the vaccine, but then got the flu and spent a week in the ICU. My husband did get the vaccine this year, as he is the one who works away from home, and in a place where people are expected to come to work even if they are sick, thus exposing everyone. Research, ask your doctor, think about your personal situation. It's also not weird to vaccinate some kids and not others (last year I had a newborn, so I vaccinated my one daughter who was in school). It's good that you're asking the hard questions.

K.