Each year, at the onset of the cold and flu season, I warn my readers against getting the extremely ineffective — and even deadly — influenza vaccine.
For one, it doesn’t work. Plain and simple.
In fact, as you’ll recall, last year’s flu vaccine was particularly ineffective — only protecting about 10 out of every 100 people who got it.
But even in the vaccine’s best years, the chance of it protecting you from the flu is about 50:50 — no better than flipping a coin. Plus, you’ll never know if you’re in the “lucky” half until it’s too late.
So, you might as well flip a coin, skip the vaccine’s nasty side effects, and just practice good hygiene (which I’ll touch on more in just a moment).
Secondly, the vaccine is fraught with dangerous — even deadly — complications.
In fact, as I told you two years ago, a study found that children who get the flu vaccine are six times more likely to develop respiratory infections compared to children who don’t get it. Another recent study found that repeatedly getting vaccinated every year makes the latest shot even less effective than the last.
One of my biggest issues with the flu vaccination propaganda is that older people are often coerced into getting the flu vaccine. Especially since this vaccine is particularly useless and harmful for men and women older than 65…
Vaccine fails to protect elderly
Sharyl Attkisson was one of the first mainstream reporters to cover the flu vaccine’s failure to protect the elderly.
About 15 years ago, I worked regularly with Sharyl taping some shows for HealthWeek on Maryland Public Television (MPT). I would stop by the MPT studio in Owings Mills, Maryland, while commuting between Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
Sharyl now works as an independent investigative reporter. And according to her most recent report, many mainstream physicians still push the flu vaccine on older people even though there’s evidence showing that it hasn’t worked for that “target” group for at least 15 years.
It’s rather ironic…
Over the past 20 years, the percentage of older people getting the vaccine has climbed from 15 percent to 65 percent. Yet, today, more than 90 percent of people killed by the flu are 65 years or older. So, clearly, the vaccine isn’t helping this part of the population — despite aggressive vaccinating.
And my friend Sharyl isn’t the only one spotting the problem…
JHU researcher calls flu vaccine all hype
In 2013, Peter Doshi, Ph.D., at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, issued a searing critique in the British Medical Journal of the science used to support the widespread promotion of the flu vaccine.
Dr. Doshi said the CDC’s policy of routinely recommending the vaccine is based on hype — not science. He also said the CDC overstates the threat of the flu.
Furthermore, he said the vaccine isn’t as beneficial — or as safe — as proponents claim. And like Sharyl, he says there’s no evidence the vaccine reduces death rates among the elderly. In fact, some studies show deaths among the elderly increase post-vaccination…
Flu vaccine results in deaths among older people
Sanofi Pasteur, the maker of Fluzone® (a brand of the influenza vaccine) funded the two of the most damning flu vaccine studies in recent history…
In the first study, 2,573 adults 65 and older received a high-dose of Fluzone® and 1,260 received regular Fluzone® doses. And here’s what happened…
- 156 high-dose and 93 regular-dose recipients had a severe adverse event (SAE) within six months post-vaccination.
- 16 high-dose and 7 regular-dose recipients died between 29 and 180 days post-vaccination.
In the second, larger Sanofi-funded study of Fluzone®, the results were pretty much the same, just on a larger scale. For this study, 15,992 adults ages 65 years and older received high-dose Fluzone® and 15,991 received regular-dose Fluzone®. And then:
- 1,323 high-dose recipients and 1,442 regular-dose recipients had a SAE within six to eight months post-vaccination.
- 3 high-dose and 84 regular-dose recipients died within six to eight months.
- Worse yet, six high-dose recipients died within 30 days post-vaccination.
It’s really rather tragic…
Older adults and children are most at risk of experiencing dangerous complications from the flu — such as pneumonia.
But none of this disturbing evidence gives any pause to the government “experts,” doctors, pharmacies, hospitals and big, bureaucratic employers. In fact, it seems as the writing on the wall gets worse and worse, they just double down on their propaganda and coercion. Even threatening your employment.
Bottom line?
Forget the flu shot.
Instead, as I reminded you yesterday, start your vitamin D regimen right now (if you haven’t already).
You can also follow some common-sense approaches for avoiding viral infections —whether from the flu or common colds — found in a recent Daily Dispatch article, “9 tips for surviving winter’s worst.” Plus, I’ll give you even more details in my upcoming September Insiders’ Cures newsletter.
Sources:
“A Study of Fluzone® High-Dose Vaccine Compared With Fluzone® Vaccine In Elderly Adults,” U.S. National Library of Medicine (www.clinicaltrials.gov) 4/20/2015
“Immunogenicity of High-dose Inactivated, Split-virion Influenza Vaccine Versus Standard Fluzone Vaccine in the Elderly,” U.S. National Library of Medicine (www.clinicaltrials.gov) 4/14/2016
Impact of Influenza Vaccination on Seasonal Mortality in the US Elderly Population,” Arch Intern Med. 2005;165(3):265-272