FLU UPDATE
Flu Update
I can’t help but notice the leaves are turning yellow and red and are falling off the trees. I know I have certainly raked a lot of them recently. The air is also much crisper and the rains have started. The signs of fall are becoming more and more evident; and the signs for ‘flu shots’ are also popping up everywhere.
Flu shots are a recent development and very big business. The whole issue is clouded by misinformation and political involvement. The Influenza virus is constantly mutating in the population even during the course of one flu season. The vaccine contains a weakened form of virus. By the time a causative virus has been isolated in the population, cultured and distributed; it has changed to a form totally unaffected by the vaccine! According to Michael Becker, of Aventis, (flu vaccine manufacturer), “By the time you know what’s the right strain, you can’t do anything about it.”
In 2007 the flu vaccine was just 44% effective in preventing flu in the American public.
During the last two decades the flu vaccination rate among the elderly has increased from 13 to 65%, but there actually hasn’t been a corresponding decrease in hospital admissions or mortality in that population.
According to an article in the American Journal of Respiratory Critical Care Medicine, the flu vaccine doesn’t change the mortality rate of the elderly due to flu incidence. It reported on a Canadian study involving 352 individuals who were given the flu vaccine and an equal number of control subjects; 85% of all participants were over age 64. Twenty-nine percent of them came down with severe pneumonia, and twelve percent of them died. This is in keeping with other studies where there is an 8% mortality rate in the inoculated group vs. 15% mortality rate in the uninoculated group. However, these particular researchers took their analysis a bit further. Besides adjusting for such factors as age, gender, and co-existing illnesses, they also took into account what they referred to as the “healthy-user effect.”
The lead researcher Dr. Sumit Majumdar, explained the meaning of the “healthy-user effect” as applying to “good” patients – those who take a serious approach to their health by exercising regularly, not smoking, drinking in moderation, taking supplements or necessary medications, etc. When you include this factor into the evaluation, taking the flu vaccine didn’t make any significant difference in mortality rates. In other words, if someone is otherwise healthy, they probably have a better chance of surviving a serious flu infection than someone who is already frail and in ill health. The flu vaccine doesn’t change the mortality rate in either the already-healthy group, or, the already ill group (Am J Respir Crit Care Med 08;178:527-533).
The best plan for staying healthy during the ‘flu season’ that I know of is to use the homeopathic medicine Oscillococcinum (available in the health food store) once a month, and as needed, if you become run-down or are exposed to a lot of illness. In addition, taking good care of yourself can help stave off winter time coughs and sniffles. This includes eating well (whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables and moderate amounts of low-fat protein), drinking sufficient clean, pure water, getting enough rest (working in moderation, sleeping for 7-8 hours nightly, and relaxing, through meditation, etc.), and exercise (aerobic exercise 30-60 minutes at least 3 times a week). Supplements can supply the nutrients your immune system needs to fend off any of those nasty viruses. The latest buzz concerns the use of vitamin D – previously we were cautioned more about its potential toxicity, but now we are warned that we are probably not taking enough. The alternative is soaking up the sun, but, as we age, the length of exposure time necessary to produce sufficient levels of vitamin D are prohibitive: 1 hour for a 60-year old person. Plus the sun’s effects are decreased in the winter, and it is colder too. So, supplementation seems to be the ticket, at levels of 1000 I.U. up to 5000 I.U. daily.
Further Research on Vitamin D
In addition to being much more necessary for optimal immune system function than previously thought, vitamin D has several other ‘talents’ we were unaware of. Deficiency is linked with depression, heart disease, 22 forms of cancer, multiple sclerosis, and osteoporosis.
In a ten year study more than 18,000 men, initially free of cardiovascular disease and aged 40-75, were assessed. It was discovered that the men with the lowest levels of vitamin D were twice as likely to experience a heart attack as men with the highest levels. When all risk factors are considered, having a low level of vitamin D increases the risk of heart attack just as much as high blood pressure or smoking does. (Arch Intern Med 08;168:1174-1180)
So, add vitamin D to your regular multi-vitamin, mineral supplement, enjoy the sun and exercise, eat well, drink fluids, rest and get stocked up on Oscillococcinum. I will be happy to send you any of these supplements, if need be. Please feel free to call (925) 603-7300 or email (natdoc@jps.net). In the meantime, enjoy all those colored fall leaves, before you rake them up! And have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
