Dr. David Brownstein
Fall is the time to consider whether you and your loved ones should get a flu shot. I see the advertisements in the pharmacies stating, “Flu shots given here.” So, let me present some data for you to decide if you should get a flu shot. Some of this article comes from my newsletter, “Dr. Brownstein’s Natural Way to Health.” More information about this newsletter can be found on my website homepage (www.drbrownstein.com).
The CDC recommends that all children aged six months and older should get the flu vaccine. However, a review of over 51 studies involving 290,000 children reported, “…no evidence that injecting children 6-24 months of age with a flu shot was any more effective than a placebo. In children over two years, it was effective only 33% of the time in preventing the flu. Stated another way, the flu vaccine was useless for two-thirds of the children that received it. Another study found that the Flumist vaccine “…did not provide any protection against hospitalizations in pediatric subjects, especially children with asthma. On the contrary, we found a {300%} increased risk of hospitalization in subjects who did get the Flumist vaccine.”
You would think that the flu vaccine would be effective in preventing the elderly from getting the flu. A review of 75 studies found that vaccinating the elderly was ineffective at preventing the complications from the flu. In fact, the researchers commented that the available evidence supporting the use of the flu vaccine in the elderly is of such poor quality the studies provide no guidance on the safety of the flu vaccine.
Before you vaccinate for the flu, you should understand what is in the vaccine. The flu shot contains a mixture of egg proteins including bird contaminant viruses. It also contains polysorbate 80 (associated with infertility in animals), formaldehyde (a known carcinogen), Triton X100 (detergent), sucrose (sugar), and thimerisol (50% mercury by weight). The multi-dose flu vaccines still contain mercury which is the third most toxic item known to mankind. You should not ingest or inject any mercury containing products. Looking at this cornucopia of toxic ingredients should make it clear that it is best to avoid injecting the flu vaccine in any living being.
Flulaval, the most commonnly prescribed flu vaccine on the market, contains 25ug of mercury per dose along with formaldehyde. Formaldehyde, as stated above, is a known carcinogen. In fact, this dose of thimerosol exceeds the EPA’s safety limit of mercury exposure by over 250 times. Mercury is a known neurotoxin and is the third-most toxic element known to mankind. Injecting mercury into any living being should be outlawed.
How can you prevent becoming ill from the flu? Maintaining adequate vitamin A and D levels helps the immune system fight viral infections. Furthermore, ingesting daily amounts of vitamin C (2-5,000mg/day) can also help. Finally, drinking adequate amounts of water to maintain hydration helps the immune system ward off infection.