Hi michael156,
Yes, I know the flu virus is very varied in strains and also the vaccine isn't 100%. But it just seemed weird that over 20 years I had only 3 flu vaccines and I only got the flu on those three years. I still feel funny getting the vaccine even knowing what I know. It is probably coincidence. Or else I am extra careful on the years I don't have the vaccine and lax on the years I get the vaccine.
thanks for you reply.
mkh9
Hi,
do you mean you think you got the flu from the vaccine? It is a killed virus. So, I think you got if from someone who appeared to not be sick (you can be a carrier for a day or two without symptoms).
mkh9
I am generally pro-vaccine, and I had the exceptionally horrific experience of having H1N1, and I would still not let anyone near me or my children with a flu vaccine. Ever.
I dont recall which years.One year may have been 1998 (worst flu I ever got) That vaccine was given to me by the military as I was contracted to work for them for 4 years. They did take a nasal swab and throat swab but told me they couldn't type it. But the shots were given in the Fall and the flu came on later during peak flu season (around February-March).
mkh9
which years precisely did you take the vaccine shot? which time of the year?
Each year each flu is slightly to significantly different from the previous year's versions, so your immune system has to adapt to different viral antigens.
Your best bet? Stay healthy through proper nutrition, fluids, cleanliness, exercise... it's an old recipe, and it works.
There are things we must cut down- processed foods, overcooking, sugar, breads, dairy.
There are things we must eliminate from our diets - artificial flavors/colors, chemical preservatives, genetically modified crops/animals (GMO), High Fructose Corn Syrup (the worst of contaminations from conventional & GMO farming - HFCS is the most dangerous product we call "food"), chemical sweeteners... much much more...
Vaccines only work if your immune system is working. There are people that can't receive vaccines because of immune problems or sensitivity to the vaccine ingredients or contaminants. The only way they can be protected from common diseases is if the rest of us are vaccinated.
So the usefulness of vaccines is not for the people who are healthy enough to get them... but for the protection (through herd immunity) of people who can't be vaccinated.
The flu vaccines' effectiveness are low.(at best they are effective 51-67% of the time), so it's the most useless of our vaccines and worth skipping.