Doctor Recommends Avoiding Flu Shot, Taking Vitamin D Instead
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:
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- 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.
- Formaldehyde, 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.
- 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
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.
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
Andy
-I agree with you. Medicine is a science. And the point of science is that it is in constant flux. We have in the past engaged in medical practices that caused harm. And we certainly still do. New data emerges and improves our understanding. Medicine did not used to be practiced as a science, but as an empirical study, where new treatments were tried and evaluated. Now before trying anything new, we must have a very clear understanding of the mechanisms underlying the process we are trying to affect. Medicine does harm people. But it helps more people than in harms. The people at high risk for influenza-related death are the elderly. Vaccine use reduces the size of the epidemic, reducing the probability that any given person will contract influenza. It is very unlikely for someone under 60 or 70 with a healthy immune system to die of influenza or influenza-related pneumonia. Except for the 1918 Spanish flu of course. That preferentially killed people in the late teens through 40s.
I agree that we will look back and see this as an uncivilized world, medically. Medicine will change more in the next 100 years than it has in the last. When you think about it, that is a stupefying thought.
The live attenuated influenza virus is extremely effective, administered intranasally, and does not contain mercury. FYI.
I don’t think anyone is saying the flu shot isn’t effective. However, the question for me is. is it necessary? And the answer (so far) seems to be no. If I’m very unlikely to get the flu anyway, because I have a very strong immune system and sanitary awareness, why bother?
Derek, you have likely caused some people to die today who would have lived otherwise. Some people are going to read this and believe and not get a shot or not give one to their kids, and a few of those are going to die. 20,000 kids were put in the hospital last year because of the floor, 90-some died. Only 6% of those had the flu shot. Even more older Americans will die this year from the Flu. How many of the deaths this year will be on your hands? You should be ashamed.
5000 IU Vitamin D per day for a year - $22.00 Why don’t I believe that? This appears to be, at best, pseudo-scientific.
Alex - Again, people need to make their own decisions based on their own research and health provider’s advice. I hardly think that anyone will base their flu shot decision on the basis of this post.
As far as the elderly go, read this NY Times article http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/02/health/02flu.html
I’m not telling anyone to not get the shot… I’m just letting people know that not everyone agrees with the recommendations of the CDC.
Before I rant let me say that I am NOT a spokesperson for the American Lung Association, but a past employee.
I was employed by my local chapter of the American Lung Association as their Health Information Specialist and also to direct their Flu Vaccine Program. I worked directly with my state’s health department and with the CDC. I have stood in a medical van and in snowy parking lots giving free flu vaccines when we were the only agency in the state who had ANY vaccine, which I luckily ordered before there was a shortage with a CDC grant.
I hope that this “loose canon” doesn’t get any more publicity past this blog with his dangerous manic activities. Yes, he is right on ONE count. A high percentage of those in the CDC stats DO die from flu related illness. Duh. That’s why ya don’t want to contract influenza. The elderly, those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, their caregivers, those with immune deficiencies, on and on. I spent five flu seasons beating down misconceptions about the flu vaccines and along comes this rocket scientist.
This is already a long comment, and I am not ONCE AGAIN going to drag out the stats and tell everyone you can’t catch the flu from the vaccine, side effects are rare, blah, blah, blah. Get the vaccine. Especially if you fall into the above categories. JUST DO IT!
I am a physician with no ties to the CDC or any pharmeutical company.
The flu isn’t the biggest killer out there and the decision to take the vaccine is a personal one.
I just want to state the simple fact that there has been no scientific evidence linking any vaccine ingredient to adverse outcomes when given in the recommended dosages and to the recommended patient population. (This even applies to those claims linking infant vaccines to autism. There is ZERO evidence to support that.) There is always a small chance of an allergic reaction with any medication, but that is rare and highly unpredictable.
Also, in my professional opinion, I would not recommend taking super-doses of Vitamin D (or any other vitamin). There has been little, if any, evidence showing an advantage to these very high doses over simply getting around 100% DV. There has, however, been stronger evidence linking too much vitamin to adverse outcomes (kidney stones, etc, depending on the specific vitamin). In most parts of the world, getting about 30 mins of sunlight each day gives you enough Vitamin D.
Unfortunately, most of my references require subscription to a research journal or internet journal database, but I urge anyone concerned about any of this to do some independent research or speak to a few doctors before making drastic changes.
Sorry, but lazy thinking is not an excuse for a Dr. or a journalist. This kind of Quackery is prevalent and is effective when a large part of the population is not skeptical. Most people in our country are not critical thinkers and there are some that use their position whether it be inadvertently or overtly to make the news and get attention to create in crowd rumours.
I definitely think the FDA has oversight problems. I think they are solving some of them as well.
The danger in this article is that the majority of the people in this country in which health care is a very expensive and necessary service can’t afford it. But if you believe you can take supplements,workout,and obviously make enough money to cover your medical coverage you probably are not in need of a vaccination. However honest,truthful information,is a precursor for a healthy population who can understand the necessity and difficulty of finding out. We as reasoning skeptical people can espouse over simplifications to polarize people and keep status quo on the same track that got us here in the last place.
This way we can have; I’m right, your wrong, and not get to the truth but stay in infinite loops of perpetuating ignorance as a commodity or porn like addiction. More than not we have to make invidious judgements that may seem personal but are necessary to describe the features and characteristics of a problem and not our personal thought on it. For the better good.
Derek says: “I hardly think that anyone will base their flu shot decision on the basis of this post.”
On a single post, maybe yes or maybe no. I’d suggest that many people likely will but regardless, this post does a disservice to people doing research and looking for multiple sources of information. If they see Eco Child’s Play as a “trusted resource for information,” as I imagine the editors here would like, then this post will be seen as such and may sway people’s opinions and thus their decision.
The post lends credence to the discredited and illogical ideas of the doctor.
what an impressive statistical analysis! i guess 4% vs 10% is not a big deal.
why don’t you extend your statistical analysis to the claim of thimerosal being a harmful agent? i.e. between infants who receive thimerosal and those who don’t, what is the rate of neurotoxic effects?