How safe are flu shots?
913166
Influenza shots are not live viruses but are called attenuated viruses.  The flu like symptoms that can sometimes accompany a flu shot are likely from the revving of the immune system as it attempts to deal with the vaccine.  You don't actually get a full bout of influenza from the shot.  I don't know enough about the person in question as to why he was told not to get one.  But I work in an oncology clinic and many of our cancer patients get them.  It is recommended by the Centers for Disease control that people that are high risk should get the flu shot such as elderly, children and people with compromised immune systems (including people that live with these people).  Like many cases in medicine it is a risk versus benefit.  If a person is not strong or well enough to survive a case of influenza and the vaccine will only make them slightly ill it might be better off getting the vaccine.  In other cases this is not so.  The long and short of it is the MD with the most patient history should make the call.
327188
Influenza, from the CDC (link, below):\nAvoid close contact.\nAvoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.\n\nStay home when you are sick.\nIf possible, stay home from work, school, and errands when you are sick. You will help prevent others from catching your illness.\n\nCover your mouth and nose.\nCover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick.\n\nClean your hands.\nWashing your hands often will help protect you from germs.\n\nAvoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.\nGerms are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.
778501
Shotys are a very political thing. Most people completely misunderstand shots.\nThey are of no benefit, except to the drug companies.\n\nDo NOT get vaccinated.\n\nA vaccinated person is MORE likely to get a disease than  a non-vaccinated person. The whole theory of vaccination is flawed. It causes a weakening of the immune system thus making those who are innoculated more susceptible to disease.\nThere are so many awful side effects to vaccination that it should be considered extremely dangerous.\nJust sit back and think for a while.\nIs there any sense in injecting a disease directly into your body.\nWe have been subjected to an awful mind control program to enable the drug manufacturers to make a fortune.\n\nThe Vaccination Hoax\nhttp://www.whale.to/b/hoax1.html\n\n\nIf you go to the vaccination liberation web page, at\nhttp://www.vaclib.org/exemption.htm\nYou will find all the forms necessary to provide exemption for your child.\n\nIf you want to study the history of vaccination, see\nhttp://dgwa1.fortunecity.com/body/vaccination.html
814406
No. It means that you are MORE likely to get sick, either immediately, or later in life.\n\nDo NOT get vaccinated.\n\nA vaccinated person is MORE likely to get a disease than  a non-vaccinated person. The whole theory of vaccination is flawed. It causes a weakening of the immune system thus making those who are innoculated more susceptible to disease.\nThere are so many awful side effects to vaccination that it should be considered extremely dangerous.\nJust sit back and think for a while.\nIs there any sense in injecting a disease directly into your body.\nWe have been subjected to an awful mind control program to enable the drug manufacturers to make a fortune.\n\nThe Vaccination Hoax\nhttp://www.whale.to/b/hoax1.html\n\n\nIf you go to the vaccination liberation web page, at\nhttp://www.vaclib.org/exemption.htm\nYou will find all the forms necessary to provide exemption for your child.\n\nIf you want to study the history of vaccination, see\nhttp://dgwa1.fortunecity.com/body/vaccination.html
358612
It reduces the risk of viral infections, some of which can be life-threatening, such as Hep B, Mumps, measles, rubella, chickenpox, and influenza.  This is especially important for children, the elderly, and those with chronic illnesses that decrease the normal immune response to disease.  \n\nThe cons are few, mostly side effects from the vaccine, in most cases minor local inflammation or flulike symptoms, and in even rarer cases, allergic reaction to the vaccine.
878528
Your vaccination should protect you for 10 years. Since you received your vaccination 6 years ago you should be fine. Just stay up to date with your immunizations and that should take care of it. They have these shots to protect you before you have a problem. If you are not comfortable, go see your doctor and have him/her check it out.
267098
There is no risk at all for your children...I am B- and my husband is B+ as well.  We are pregnant with our third baby, and everything is fine.\nNowadays they have a shot called Rhogam that they give women at around 23 weeks of pregnancy and then again after birth if the baby is RH+.  The shot falls under ALL insurances and is no big deal at all. They give it to you in the doctors office just like a flu shot.\n\nIn the olden days they didn't have this shot and women did have problems with subsequent pregnancies.  But that problem no longer exists for women who have prenatal care.\n\nReally, the Rh factor is no big deal.  Don't worry about it.\n\nGood luck to you!
735583
Anyone with asthma should definitely get a flu shot.  They usually protect against the 3 worse strains that year.\n\nThe flu shot has such a minute amount of mercury in it that it doesn't pose a problem.  You can also request a thimerosal free shot with no mercury, but since it is a preservative, they are in limited supply.  \n\nYour child has a much greater chance of a fatality from the flu than from years and years of such a small amount a mercury as we get in flu shots.\n\ngo to    www.cdc.org   for the most up-to-date information on vaccines.
906743
Yes.  The actual virus is out of your system.  As long as you are not running a fever or coughing up colored mucus, you'll be fine.\n\nRemember to take some Tylenol or Ibuprofen before your shot,  then take it as needed afterwards.  You might be a little achy.  Everyone who's gotten the shot this year has said that.  But it passes in a day.
831194
No.  The flu shot has nothing to do with cold viruses.  You've just been lucky to not have gotten a cold.  But it wasn't because of the flu shot you got 3 years ago.
867933
Despite what people say, the vaccine does not make anyone sick.  It is more likely, due to timing of flu shots that they already had a little cold coming on, or that their body had an immune system response that left them a little tired and run down, but not really sick.\n\nOr they are allergic to eggs.  They could also have an allergic reaction to the flu shot as it is grown in eggs, but that allergy is often a very serious allergy and can be life threatening.
1077332
This is a great question.  I have worked administering these vaccinations for many years.   I have discussed this issue with many parents who are wondering about it.  There are two trains of thought.  First, allow me to say that the incidence of adverse effects from vaccinations are very, very low.  Autism was suspected to be caused from a particular vaccination that used to be used and the thought was that it was from an additive in the immunization and not the immunization itself.  This additive has since been discontinued.  \n\nThe reasons to vaccinate your kids:\n1.  Many of the illnesses that we vaccinate for (rubella, tetanus, measels, Hemophilus influenza type B, etc.) are serious illnesses.  This is why the vaccines exist.  The illnesses themself are bad enough, but the problems that exist after the illness goes away there are problems that linger.  \n\n2.  Vaccinations are required for all public and most private schools.  Unless you can document the reasons why you did not have your children vaccinated, the school reserves the right to require that they be vaccinated (you could get a lawyer to fight this).  The only acceptable reason is if it were against your religion.\n\n3.  Vaccines are safe ways to prevent certain illnesses.  There is a thing called herd immunity.  The theory is that if everyone around you has been vaccinated, then there would be no chance you could be affected by an illness because you wouldn't be able to catch it from anyone.  The problem is that we are seeing a resurgence of these illness, especially mumps, measles, and polio... polio is by far the worst.  The reason is, is that we have trended over the past 15 or so years the percentage of children receiving their childhood immunizations is decreasing.  Therefore this "herd immunity" is no longer effective.  \n\n4.  As I said, vaccines are very safe today.  There may be local reactions to the vaccine like swelling or mild muscle tenderness, but this may last a few days at most.  The illness you can get from not being vaccinated are much worse.  \n\nReasons not to get vaccinated:\n1.. It is against your religion.  \n\n2.  Your child is very sickly and has too many problems that the doctor feels immunization is not healthy.\n\n  This all being said:\nIt is a law that if a child has a serious adverse effect from receiving an immunization, it must be reported.  I am sure that if you were concerned with the rates of serious complications from vaccines, you would be able to have information given to you about the percentages of these complications.  In my many years of administering childhood immunizations, I have never had to fill out one of these forms.  Please look into this if you are concerned.  \nAlso... There are certain vaccines that are available that aren't required.  These include varicella, influenza, meningococcal, and pneumococcal.  Varicella is for chicken pox.  My personal issues with this vaccie is that it doesn't necessarily prevent chicken pox.  They say it lessens the severity of chicken pox if the child gets it at all.  Chicken pox to me isn't really a huge problem, though there are a minority of cases where they are severe enough to cause hospitalization.  Influenza (the flu shot) and pneumococcal (the pneumonia shot) are only used in kids who are at risk.  These include mainly kids with asthma problems.  Meningococcal vaccine is the one for meningitis.  Most colleges now require this vaccination if the student is staying on campus.  I had the option of having this vaccine when I started college.  I decided not to.  I figured that it only protects against one specific kind of meningitis and I have good health habit.  I figured I'd take my chances.  And I never did get meningitis.  Of course that's not to say I never will, but I'm not concerned about it!\n\nI hope this information helps.  I would encourage you to get your child vaccinated especially given the rise in these illness right now
647638
For the first part, scientists' vaccines are based on strains that we've already seen.  Each yearly flu shot is based on last year's common bug, with a couple of changes to compensate for the mutations they suspect the virus has undergone.  Since these are just guesses, the scientists may or may not have a vaccine that functions well or at all.\n\nIf we can't find a specific vaccine, the best way for communities to prepare is by doing all those things your mother said: wash your hands, cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze, and make sure you're not hanging around with people that are sick.  Many hospitals already have protocols in place for patients that would need isolation rooms, there is stockpiling of various viral medications that will at least hinder the spread of the disease if not stop it altogether, and general public awareness has been heightened.
13244
The best way to help prevent influenza infection is to get an influenza vaccination each year, usually in early November. Unfortunately, immunization (administration of vaccine) against influenza is approved only for infants 6 months of age and over.\n\nUntil your infant is old enough to take vaccinations, you should look into home remedies and try to look for baby food with some of these ingrediants.  I looked up some for you:\n\n~ GINGER = best\n~ GRAPEFRUIT\n~ BASIL LEAVES\n~ GARLIC = dont know if thats good for infant but works.\n~ for more, visit link below\n\nhope i was helpful :)
938710
No, it is a killed version of the flu that is expected to hit the US. They watch the world and see what strain is flourishing and then develop the vaccine to combat it. This is done by the US Public Health Service.\n\nIt will not give you the flu and really the only reason not to take it, is if your allergic to eggs. You can have a local reaction, soreness, slight warmth at the injection site, but you wont get the flu. This will allow your body to develop antibodies to combat the flu should you become exposed.
764754
Currently the are 15 in Oklahoma City.  I do not get one because they always make me sick for a few days.  I don't want to get sick for a few days for the CHANCE of not getting the FLU.  There are several different versions of the Flu and the shot you get is only a guess on what strand of the flu will hit this year.  If they are wrong you got a flu shot for nothing.
705911
Bird flu is not yet as bad as the media make it out to be; scaremongering sells newspapers.\n\nThere are only so many doses stockpiled because making flu vaccines is a tedious and time-consuming process, and viruses mutate quickly.  By the time 300 million does had been manufactured and administered, it would be a futile effort.  Also, there are storage and budget considerations.\n\n\nFlu shots are generally administered to heads of state and at-risk persons first; health personnel, the elderly, and those whose health would make flu a deadly risk, then the young, and then the general population.  Of course, government officials often jockey themselves ahead in the line, but that's not technically how it's supposed to work.