Is swine flu vaccine an injurious jab?
Wednesday, August 26th, 2009Americans will have some serious thinking to do as the time approaches to get vaccinated against the H1N1 swine flu, which is expected to resume its ravages here in the fall.
On the one hand, judging by the flu’s sojourn in South America, it could be getting worse. It has infected turkeys in Chile, which is not a good sign. The flu could pick up virulence if it combines with one of the nastier bird flus such as H5N1, which has been making the round of flocks in Asia.
So all we need is a bit of commerce between Asia and South America—or for that matter, simply someone coming into contact with birds in both places—and we could be seeing a nastier version of the bug coming at us once the leaves are gone.
On the other hand, the vaccine itself would appear to have little to recommend it.
In America we tend to put immense faith in these meager protections offered up by the health care industry. We just assume—until proven otherwise—that flu vaccines work and are outraged when presented with evidence that they do not. And we are all the more outraged when we or one of our loved ones winds up stricken with some unforeseen illness resulting from their use, some of which can be life changing—such as Guillain-Barré, for example.
Guillain-Barré syndrome is one of those afflictions you can live without—believe me. At its most severe, it kills by paralysis—the victim is simply unable to breathe. Given prompt care (and, if indicated, the use of a ventilator) one has the possibility of full recovery—or not. Some patients end up quadriplegics, some with the partial use of their legs—it all depends. On what, no one knows.
Unfortunately, the way the game is played, at the first sign of a possible epdemic—pandemic, in this case—the Health and Human Services (HHS) Department has the option of providing incentives to drug companies for developing vaccines. There’s the rub.
In this case, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sibelius gave it all away at the first breath of national emergency: there will be no penalities for drug firms who kill or maim either with the swine flu antigen itself or with the accompanying adjuvant. Unless you can prove they deliberately tried to kill your child or loved one, you can’t touch them.
Good luck with that.
So, the full responsibility for whatever happens will be on you. No one to sue, no recourse. And unless by some miracle the Democrats grow a sense of purpose and actually push through a single-payer healthcare package, your insurance probably won’t cover the consequences, either. So you’re on your own.
Better weigh the known severity of the flu carefully before even considering that shot. Unless it starts killing a sizable percentage of those afflicted and you happen to fall into a category that is particularly vulnerable, taking a pass may be the best option.
Even if you catch the flu, chances are it will be no worse than flus you have had in the past—an unpleasant experience for several days, perhaps even a few weeks—but then, forgotten.
At present, despite seemingly high numbers, the flu has not really been all that virulent. We’ve seen 522 confirmed deaths in the U.S. as of August 20, but given more than a million estimated cases, that isn’t a huge number.
We personally have little faith in a rapidly devised vaccine for which the manufacturers aren’t willing to take full responsibility. Most of the swine flu vaccines we’re being promised will employ adjuvants (additives designed to inflame your immune system to heighten immune response) that are either already known to be dangerous or have not been approved by the FDA for regular use. They’re permitted only under the emergency provisions of HHS/FDA regulations.
So paying close attention to your diet—lots of fresh organic vegetables, wild-caught fish and pasture-grazed meats—should keep you at your best. Make sure you take adequate vitamins A, C, D, B6, magnesium, zinc and selenium. (For men especially, don’t overdue the selenium.) A healthy immune system is always your best response to the possibility of infection.
Remember that vaccines, in the end, do nothing more than use your immune system to prevent disease.
We think nature’s way of going about that may be just as good or better.
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The Big Picture (beyond our site):
- Why You Catch the Flu in the Winter and Other Related Info...
- Is the latest outbreak of Swine Flu Serious Great Swine Flu Epidemic World Health Organization (WHO) ?
- What you should keep in mind about Swine-Avian-US flu
- Dr. Ron Paul Says Flu Hype Designed To Scare Americans
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