Three More Reasons Not to Get the Flu Vaccine

In the December issue of The Natural Path, we exposed the negative findings of the science of flu vaccines and then covered the positive findings of the science of herbs and vitamins for fighting the flu and cold. Well, here are three novel reasons why you should not get the flu vaccine that we did not discuss in that article. . . .

The More Often You Get it, the Worse it Works
Canadian researchers identified the troubling result that getting the flu vaccine each year diminishes its effectiveness. When they followed 1,939 people, they found that the ones who got the flu vaccine in the 2014-2015 season, but not the year before, had a 53% vaccine effectiveness. However, the people who got it that season and also the season before had their effectiveness rate drop significantly to -32%. If they got it that year and the two years before, the effectiveness dropped to -54%. The researchers concluded that there is a negative effect of repeated vaccination (Clin Infect Dis 2016;63(1):21-32).

No Benefit During Pregnancy for You or Your Baby
It is currently recommended that women in the second or third trimester of pregnancy get the flu vaccine. But an analysis of hospital admissions found that women who got vaccinated during pregnancy had the same risk for influenza like illnesses as women who did not get vaccinated. There was also no difference in the risk for outpatient visits. As for the babies, the ones who were born to vaccinated mothers had the same risk for influenza and pneumonia as infants born to unvaccinated mothers. There was also no benefit when it came to outpatient visits. The study concluded that there is no demonstrable benefit to the flu vaccine for pregnant women (Am J Perinatol 2004;21(6):333-9).

Children: Getting the Flu Versus Getting the Flu Vaccine
A recent study has suggested that getting the flu as a child can confer 75% protection against severe disease and 80% protection against death against that strain of flu and even against similar subtypes of flu virus you have never encountered before (Science 2016;354(6313):722-6). So, preventing your child from getting her first flu might not be the best idea.

And can you really protect your child anyway? Researchers set out to answer that question by looking at infants from 6-24 months and the flu vaccine. It found that the rate of influenza was not significantly different between infants who were vaccinated and infants who were not. They concluded that getting the flu vaccine did not reduce the rate of influenza in infants and children between 6-24 months (Pediatr Int 2004;46(2):122-5.

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For much more on preventing colds and flu naturally, see our book The Family Naturopathic Encyclopedia.