(and others like her)
My mom is 79 years young. She was married to my dad, a medical virologist, for 45 years before his death in 2003. She made a bold decision to skip the flu vaccine this year but wanted some information to help her explain her decision to those who are encouraging everyone to get a flu shot.
Dear Mom, I care a lot about you. I want you to enjoy good health for as long as you live. I wish we could live closer so that we could spend more time together. I would love to stop over every week for a regular date.
Since that is not our current reality, I thought I would share some really important information on the flu shot. If I were closer I would be able to give this information bit by bit. But I’ve been collecting credible sources of information on the flu and flu shot and want to share some of the best. It’s hard to say how many hours of research I have done, but I feel like I am getting close to having at least a Bachelor’s Degree in vaccine information!
Firstly, Something VERY IMPORTANT: Compensation for Vaccine Injury
Something really important to consider in this whole debate is that if you do get a flu shot (or any vaccine), the manufacturer is not liable to pay for any damages or injury it might cause. If you get GBS and are paralyzed (nurses and doctors see this condition frequently in emergency rooms and one of the first questions they ask is, have you recently got a flu shot?) or if you need extensive medical treatment for any injury, there is no recourse with the pharmaceutical company. There is a process where you can make a claim to the government Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP), but only about 2% of all injuries are reported and only about 25% of all claims considered receive any compensation. There has been $2.6 Billion (update as of 11/2018 $4 Billion) paid out to 3000 claimants since this system began, and a large percentage of the claims have been paid out for flu vaccine injury.
Video 1: “You need to become vaccine educated.” Barbara Loe Fisher
This video is a great place to start. It is a 20 minute explanation by Barbara Loe Fisher. [She is introduced by Dr Mercola whom you might not like, but keep watching because after his introduction, he doesn’t say anything else.] She started the NVIC (National Vaccine Information Center) almost 30 years ago after her son was injured by vaccines. She is a very calm rational voice and in this video she explains the current flu shot options (in 2013 there are 12 different flu vaccines made by 7 companies), how to find out what is in each one, and what the contraindications for each one are. She recommends that if you are thinking about getting a flu shot, the very least you should do is get the information sheet on it and read it thoroughly in advance.
Video 2: Think Twice
This is a short video (<9 minutes) with many facts and figures on the flu, how the flu vaccine is made, all the ingredients, some possible reactions to the flu vaccine, the effectiveness of the flu vaccine in all age groups, and other ways to protect against the flu.
Video 3: Dr John Bergman, Chiropractor in California
Dr Bergman has very strong views and has a hard time not being passionate about his views. I can relate completely! So, this is a warning, don’t watch the next video unless you are ready to hear someone who has a very strong negative opinion about the flu shot! He claims 0% effectiveness in elderly. He lists some of the suspect ingredients in many flu shots – like aborted human fetal tissue and other toxic substances and have been shown to cause cancer. I think most of the elderly people I know would not be too excited about that.
Video 4: Dr Sherri Tenpenny
I’ve saved the best for last! In this calm video explanation, Dr Sherri Tenpenny uses a lot of statistics from the CDC itself. She also describes what is the flu, what is the flu shot, what is in the flu vaccine, what the scientific research says regarding the effectiveness of the flu shot, and what can you do to treat and prevent the flu. This is a very worthwhile watch, it will take about 50 minutes. So, fix a cup of tea, relax and listen.
If you don’t have time, bottom line, the flu shot doesn’t even significantly prevent flu! “In the Cochrane study done in 2006 which was a review of 48 reports including more than 66,000 adults, “Vaccination of healthy adults only reduced risk of influenza by 6% and reduced the number of missed work days by less than one day (0.16) days. It did not change the number of people needing to go to hospital or take time off work.” Reference: “Vaccines for preventing influenza in healthy adults.” The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 1 (2006)
I’ll stop with that for now. I think I will write another blog post that might give you some insight on “What to say when pressured to get the flu shot“.
Author: Becky Hastings, wife, mother, grandmother, passionate follower of Jesus Christ and truth seeker, especially in the areas of health and children. Facing a world quite different from the one in which I grew up, I seek to research and understand the true route to health, freedom and joyful family living!