A cardiac surgeon and Professor of Surgery at the University of Washington recommends avoiding the flu shot and taking vitamin D instead. Donald Miller, MD, says “Seventy percent of doctors do not get a flu shot.”

Health officials say that every winter 5–20 percent of the population catches the flu, 200,000 people are hospitalized, and 36,000 people will die from it. The National Vital Statistics Reports compiled by the CDC show that only 1,138 deaths a year occur due to influenza alone, and more than 34,000 of the “36,000” flu deaths are what officials estimate are “influenza-associated” pneumonic and cardiovascular deaths.

There is also a lack of evidence that young children benefit from flu shots. A systematic review of 51 studies involving 260,000 children age 6 to 23 months found no evidence that the flu vaccine is any more effective than a placebo (Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2006;1:CD004879).

A randomized trial found that the incidence of influenza in infants whose mothers had a flu shot during their pregnancy was 4%. The incidence of flu in infants whose mothers did not have a flu shot was 10%. (NEJM 2008;359:) In the study, flu shots reduced the relative risk of influenza illness in infants by a seemingly impressive 63%, yet only 6 out of 100 infants actually benefited from the shot. The other 94 received no benefit – 4 got influenza anyway – and all are at risk from being harmed by the vaccine, particularly from the mercury, aluminum, and formaldehyde in it. – Donald Miller, MD

Flu shots contain a number of substances which may have adverse effects on health, especially for children:

Mercury : Two-thirds of the vaccines made for the 2008–09 flu season contain full-dose thimerosal, an organomercury compound, 49% mercury by weight. It is used to disinfect the vaccine. Each of these flu shots contain 25 micrograms of mercury, a mercury content of 50,000 part per billion, 250 times more than the Environmental Protection Agency’s safety limit. Mercury is a neurotoxin , with a toxicity level 1,000 times that of lead.

: Two-thirds of the vaccines made for the 2008–09 flu season contain full-dose thimerosal, an organomercury compound, 49% mercury by weight. It is used to disinfect the vaccine. Each of these flu shots contain 25 micrograms of mercury, a mercury content of 50,000 part per billion, 250 times more than the Environmental Protection Agency’s safety limit. , with a toxicity level 1,000 times that of lead. Formaldehyde, a known cancer-causing agent is used to inactivate the virus.

a known cancer-causing agent is used to inactivate the virus. Aluminum, added to promote an antibody response,is a neurotoxin that may play a role in Alzheimer’s disease.

added to promote an antibody response,is a neurotoxin that may play a role in Alzheimer’s disease. Other additives in the flu vaccine include : Triton X-100 (a detergent) Polysorbate 80 carbolic acid ethylene glycol (antifreeze) gelatin various antibiotics such as neomycin, streptomycin, and gentamicin that can cause allergic reactions

in the flu vaccine include

So why does the CDC push the flu shot every year?

The CDC’s 15-member Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) makes recommendations each year on who should be vaccinated. Almost all the ACIP members who make these recommendations have financial ties to the vaccine industry. The best anti-aging serums for 30sare one of the most effective weapons against aging skin. Understand which are the best ones that’ll give you efficient results.

Hmmm… Big money influencing public health policy.

The CDC put out a 7 part Recipe to increase demand for the flu vaccine:

Influenza’s arrival coincides with immunization “season” (i.e., when people can take action) Dominant strain and/or initial cases of disease are:

– Associated with severe illness and/or outcomes

– Occur among people for whom influenza is not generally

perceived to cause serious complications (e.g., children,

healthy adults, healthy seniors)

– In cities and communities with significant media outlets Medical experts and public health authorities publicly (e.g., via media) state concern and alarm (and predict dire outcomes)–and urge influenza vaccination. The combination of ‘2’ and ‘3’ result in: Significant media interest and attention, Framing of the flu season in terms that motivate behavior (e.g., as “very severe,” “more severe than last or past years,” “deadly”) Continued reports (e.g., from health officials and media) that influenza is causing severe illness and/or affecting lots of people – helping foster the perception that many people are susceptible to a bad case of influenza. Visible/tangible examples of the seriousness of the illness (e.g., pictures of children, families of those affected coming forward) andpeople getting vaccinated (the first to motivate, the latter to reinforce) References to, and discussions, of pandemic influenza

Vaccination demand, particularly among people who don’t routinely receive an annual influenza vaccination, is related to heightened concern, anxiety, and worry. For example:

A perception or sense that many people are falling ill

A perception or sense that many people are experiencing bad illness

A perception or sense of vulnerability to contracting and experiencing bad illness.

Some component of success stems from media stories and information that create motivating (i.e., high) levels of concern and anxiety about influenza.

Great… more fear selling more vaccines.

Dr. Miller’s stance on Vitamin D and health:

The U.S. government and its citizens currently spend $2,000 billion dollars ($2 trillion) on “health care,” i.e., sickness care, each year. The cost of taking a 5,000 IU supplement of vitamin D every day for a year is $22.00. The cost for 300 million Americans taking this supplement would be $6.6 billion dollars. The number and variety of diseases that vitamin D at this dose could prevent, starting with a 50 percent reduction in cancer, is mind-boggling. If everyone took 5,000 IU/day of vitamin D, the U.S. “health care” industry would shrink. It would no longer account for 16 percent of the gross domestic product. The increased number of deaths that occur in winter, largely from pneumonia and cardiovascular diseases, are much more likely due to vitamin D deficiency than to an increased prevalence of serologically-positive influenza virus (which also results from vitamin D deficiency).

Read the full flu vaccine article at LewRockwell.com

And another doctor is against everyone getting the flu vaccine:

P.S. Due to the large number of comments accusing me of being irresponsible, I am adding this caveat: Ask your health provider (MD, Naturopath, or other professional) about flu shots, and make your decision based on that. This blog does not dispense medical advice. The point of the article is to show that there are conflicting opinions about vaccines, flu shots, and other medical treatments.

Image: NathanF at Flickr under Creative Commons License