What is the flu shot?

This may seem like a silly question at first glance. Of course we know what a flu shot is, it's a shot so we don't get the flu right? Well, that's what we've been told. I'm going to quote the answer directly from the Center for Disease Control (CDC). "The flu shot is an inactivated vaccine (containing killed virus) that is given with a needle, usually in the arm. It contains three influenza viruses. The three vaccine strains – one A (H3N2) virus, one A (H1N1) virus, and one B virus – are representative of the influenza vaccine strains recommended for that year. Viruses for the flu shot are grown in eggs."

Ok, did you all see that? Not one, not two, but THREE viruses are contained in the flu shot! I don't know about you, but it concerns me that folks are being injected with 3 viruses.

The assumptive reasoning behind giving flu vaccines is that, since the vaccine contains a "dead" virus, you won't get the flu from it and your body will build up an immunity to the virus once it's in your bloodstream so you'll supposedly never get the flu. And...you need to do this every year. I always assumed our immune systems had a lifetime guarantee!

Here's the next interesting question and answer from the CDC, How effective is the flu shot?Answer: "With the flu shot, when the "match" between vaccine and circulating strains is close, the vaccine prevents influenza in about 70%-90% of healthy persons younger than age 65 years. Among elderly persons living outside chronic-care facilities (such as nursing homes) and those persons with long-term (chronic) medical conditions, the flu shot is 30-70% effective in preventing hospitalization for pneumonia and influenza. Among elderly nursing home residents, the flu shot is most effective in preventing severe illness, secondary complications, and deaths related to the flu. In this population, the shot can be 50%-60% effective in preventing hospitalization or pneumonia and 80% effective in preventing death from the flu." (If you read this closely, you;ll notice a lot of conditional and noncommittal words used: "if", "when", "can be", etc.)

Next question and answer from the CDC, What are the risks from getting a flu shot?"The viruses in the flu shot are killed (inactivated), so you cannot get the flu from a flu shot (keep this in mind as you read). The risk of a flu shot causing serious harm, or death, is extremely small. However, a vaccine, like any medicine, may rarely cause serious problems, such as severe allergic reactions. Almost all people who get influenza vaccine have no serious problems from it."

And finally, the side effects as listed by the CDC:

• Soreness, redness or swelling where the shot was given
• Fever (low grade)
• Aches

Now, I'm no rocket scientist, but aren't those some of the exact symptoms of the flu?!

Please read on...

I don't want to downplay the potential health problems from a flu shot so I've included more possible side effects:

Possible serious allergic reactions: breathing problems, hoarseness or wheezing, hives, paleness, weakness, a fast heartbeat, or dizziness.

Another possible result of flu vaccinations is Guillain-Barré syndrome, an illness characterized by fever, nerve damage, and muscle weakness. According to Dr J Seal, of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases: ‘any and all flu vaccines are capable of causing Guillane-Barre.’ In 1976 over 500 people in the US were paralysed by the disease, with thirty dying, after being injected with the vaccine, which is concocted from material taken from influenza victims and then cultivated on mashed chick embryos.

Here's something pretty scary - if you didn't already know, the majority of flu vaccines contain mercury; specifically the mercury-containing preservative Thimerosal. Although there have been efforts to have thimerosal removed from vaccines, it is still quite common. Now for the first time, recommendations have been given to 6- to 23-month-old children to get annual flu vaccines and the recommendations didn’t include mercury-free forms of vaccines!

The CDC's reasoning behind this was that they felt the risk of contracting the flu and facing health complications greatly outweighed any of the potential risks from thimerosal in the vaccines.

Since the 1930s, thimerosal, which is filled with 49.6% mercury, has been used in vaccines to control bacteria and fungi.

Both parents and watchdog groups have shown increasing concern over the risks of autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders as a result of being exposed to mercury.

It's interesting to look back over the last several decades and see the statements made by the medical society that we have "conquered" certain diseases such as smallpox and polio through the use of vaccines. Truth be told, the pharmaceutical scientists knew this was false information. To use a war analogy - the enemy was not gone, it simply could not be found. The reason is that the responsible microbes simply mutated over time into a more resistant microbe. It makes one wonder if this may be one of the reasons for the rise of new diseases like Aids, Lupus, Alzheimer’s, Autism, Tourettes and the host of what is now known as “auto immune diseases”. One must know his enemy to defeat him, but this war on germs seems to have no end and will never be won by present day medical science. The reason? They simply don’t know their enemy.

I read recently that sometimes medical science intensifies the war by giving names to diseases that conjure up fear in the people. For example: the Swine Flu, the Asiatic Flu, the Russian Flu and others, all have names having nothing to do with their origins, except that they can be seen as foreign invaders that we must take action against. This is not the U.N. we are talking about!

In my research for this newsletter, I came across an interesting and disturbing interview by a vaccine researcher. If you would like a copy of this interview, please email me at Dr_Mike@juno.com when you get a chance and I'll be happy to send you a copy of this eye-opening conversation entitled: "Confessions of a vaccine researcher"

Ok, after all is said and done, here's the bottom line: getting a flu shot is not only risky, it most likely is ineffective. I haven't had a flu shot since I was a little boy. In all those years since then, I've had the flu maybe twice and did, in fact, recover from it after several days. I guarantee that my own body's immune system is much more armored against more flu attacks than it would be from a dead virus injected into my body. The best way to combat the flu? Exercise, proper nutrition and supplementation will give your body a fighting chance if and when the flu does come. As a chiropractor I do have to mention the importance of spinal adjustments to keep the body's immune system in top notch form as well.

I hope this information will help you to make informed decisions for you and your loved ones during the "cold and flu season"!

Have a wonderful, healthy and happy holiday!

Yours in good health,

Dr. Mike