It appears this seasons flu vaccine is not that effective against the most common virus strains. Experts don’t want us to go all antivaxx so they remind us this vaccine may offer some protection; they know how to cover their ass, I guess.
I never go out of my way to get the flu shot although I did get one at a doctors appointment back in the fall. My take on the flu vaccine is that it is overrated for people not in the high-risk groups, but there isn’t really any downside to getting one either.
It does help lessen the severity of the flu if you do get it, even if it’s not a perfect match. Even if you get influenza A, which wasn’t covered in the vaccine and is going around also, they say you won’t get it as bad. That said, the way they make our flu vaccines is by looking at what goes around during the winter south of the equator. So they are working on this during our summer. It’s not perfect, but it’s the best means we have to help us figure out what flu viruses maybe going around in the northern equator during their winter (most of us are here I think are north of the equator).
I don’t believe in modern medicine. It’s better to rely on the immune system. If we really believe we are apes, we ought to take our chances like they do. If an ape gets the flu, he lies in the sun and take it easy. We have to get to work. This is why we take the flu shot to deal with the symptoms.
We’re developing a whole new approach to viral infection. It’s called “quorum sensing” where we use viral language to confuse the viruses from becoming virulent and preventing resistance to antiviral drugs.
I never get the flu vaccine. I’m not prone to getting sick, for the most part. I don’t work with high-risk people either, or know anyone with immune system issues. Essentially, since I don’t have anyone else to worry about I’m not worried enough about getting it myself to bother playing roulette with the vaccine every single year. For me the vaccine is more hassle than the disease, which I remember having twice in my entire life.
EDIT: I would like to point out, I don’t have anything against the vaccine. It’s not that I don’t trust it or I don’t think it’s effective. It’s just that I don’t feel that I need it to reduce what I see as my already very low risk of infection, given my history of almost never catching it. AND I have noone else to protect from it. That’s a big one. If there were anyone else who needed protection from my illnesses then I would definitely get it.
I don’t believe in modern medicine. It’s better to rely on the immune system. If we really believe we are apes, we ought to take our chances like they do. If an ape gets the flu, he lies in the sun and take it easy. We have to get to work. This is why we take the flu shot to deal with the symptoms.
It’s good to be skeptical of modern medicine but it’s not all bad. Flu shots are promoted mainly as a public health measure, not as something to help you get through the day while you’re sick like Tylenol. The thing is it’s only moderately effective for most people, but there’s no harm in getting vaccinated either so health care practitioners have to advise everyone to get the shot.
As for apes, they’re lucky they don’t have to live in overcrowded cities where disease can easily spread.
