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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 9 of 9. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Phillipa on December 28, 2012, at 10:01:15
I don't seem to be able to find discussion on flu shots but remembered that a medline article said that more than five of them and it could lead to Alzheimers. Any truth you think of this? Thanks Phillipa
Posted by gadchik on December 28, 2012, at 10:47:07
In reply to Flu Shot Discussion From Different Thread, posted by Phillipa on December 28, 2012, at 10:01:15
I remember reading something about that too. My worry with flu shots is that they will activate an immune system disorder,or cause one to flare up. The shot definately affects my anxiety disorder.
Posted by Phillipa on December 28, 2012, at 11:49:54
In reply to Re: Flu Shot Discussion From Different Thread, posted by gadchik on December 28, 2012, at 10:47:07
Gadchick that's right you did say this. I know I got a news letter saying 5 or more made one more likely also to get Alzheimers. I posted the link on facebook. I wonder if can retrieve it? I just heard from a neighbor his Mother is in assisted living and on lock down. No one allowed in or out due to I guess the flu. Others have brochitis the docs are saying is antibiotic resistant. And then Lar said it takes months for the antibodies to build up and if they miss one strain you arent protected. Let me see if can find it on my page. P
Posted by Phillipa on December 28, 2012, at 12:07:51
In reply to Re: Flu Shot Discussion From Different Thread, posted by gadchik on December 28, 2012, at 10:47:07
Found it P
Although aimed for infants interesting readMedscape Medical News
Thimerosal for Vaccines: AAP Endorses WHO Statement
Larry Hand
Dec 17, 2012
Editors' Recommendations
Parental Fears Over Childhood Vaccination Must Be Addressed
Delaying or Forgoing Childhood Vaccines Offers No Neuropsychological Benefit Down the Road
Immunization News & Perspectives
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has endorsed the World Health Organization's (WHO's) Strategic Advisory Committee (SAGE) recommendation that thimerosal, a preservative used to prevent contamination in multidose vaccine vials, be exempted from a pending international treaty aimed at reducing global health hazards by limiting exposure to mercury, according to a statement published online December 17 in Pediatrics.The Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society and the International Pediatric Association have also endorsed the WHO SAGE recommendation.
In 1999, the AAP, in a joint statement with the US Public Health Service, advocated for elimination of mercury in vaccines but retired that recommendation in 2002. Three commentaries published simultaneously in Pediatrics support the AAP endorsement, provide perspective, and advocate for the continued use of thimerosal in vaccines.
At this time, the United Nations Environmental Program is developing an international treaty that would call for elimination of any controllable mercury pollution and exposure around the world. Under consideration, in addition to removing mercury from thermometers and other medical devices, is the removal of thimerosal from vaccines.
Such an action, according to WHO's SAGE document and the current commentators in Pediatrics, would severely limit current vaccine programs, particularly in developing countries, primarily because of limited manufacturing capacity to eliminate thimerosal and switch to single-use vials. In addition, no consensus alternative preservatives currently exist.
Thimerosal contains ethyl mercury, which has not been associated with any of the toxic effects linked to its relative compound, methyl mercury, a known neurotoxin. Studies since the late 1990s have found no evidence of harm from using thimerosal in vaccines, and the WHO endorsed the use of thimerosal in vaccines in 2008.
Overwhelming Evidence
In one of the commentaries, Walter A. Orenstein, MD, from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, and colleagues write, "Overwhelmingly, the evidence collected over the past 15 years has failed to yield any evidence of significant harm, including serious neurodevelopmental disorders, from use of thimerosal in vaccines."
They add that increases in manufacturing costs in switching from multidose to single dose would "vary greatly from country to country, ranging from 200% to >500%. Single-dose vials would reduce manufacturing capacity and increase the amount of transportation and storage space required more than threefold. The resulting cold-chain requirements would be untenable in many areas of the world because of programmatic challenges and increased workload."
Although thimerosal is not generally used in the United States, where vaccines are now single-dose, it is still used for seasonal influenza vaccines, Dr. Orenstein and colleagues write. "Even in the United States, thimerosal could be critical for dealing with emergencies and the need to rapidly increase vaccine supply and delivery, such as during a serious pandemic of influenza."
In another commentary, Louis Z. Cooper, MD, a pediatrician with the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University, New York City, and Samuel L. Katz, MD, a pediatrician with the School of Medicine at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, write that the 1999 recommendation was a quick response to a US Food and Drug Administration review of mercury content in biological products after passage of the Food and Drug Modernization Act of 1997. The review authors at that time concluded that the cumulative amount of mercury from vaccines given to young infants "could potentially" exceed US Environmental Protection Agency guidelines, which had wide safety margins.
At the time, no studies had evaluated whether thimerosal was safe, so the AAP and the US Public Health Service "were obligated to full public disclosure," Dr. Cooper and Dr. Katz write. "Data were not sufficient to explain the pharmacology or toxicology of this product or to compare it with that for the other mercury compounds," they add, explaining that "[t]he priority to 'first, do no harm' guides all [US Public Health Service] and AAP recommendations."
Had they been working from today's knowledge base, they continue, "it is inconceivable to us that these organizations would have made the joint statement of July 7, 1999."
Global Justice
In the third commentary, Katherine King, PhD, from the Keenan Research Centre, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and colleagues write that some nongovernmental organizations oppose exempting thimerosal from the treaty, saying it would be "unjust to allow thimerosal to be used in [low- and middle-income countries] when its use has been all but phased out in wealthier nations." Quite the contrary, Dr. King and associates write, the nongovernmental organizations' "critique is misplaced. There is no injustice in allowing the use of thimerosal in vaccines. Rather, the real threat of injustice comes from considering the removal of this currently necessary and irreplaceable compound from the global vaccine supply, and the avoidable increases in morbidity and mortality that would inevitably result from disruptions to vaccination programs targeting already marginalized populations."
Eliminating thimerosal would effectively eliminate multidose vaccines such as tetanus toxoid, diphtheria-tetanuswhole cell pertussis, and hepatitis B vaccines, they explain.
"Currently, multidose vaccines containing thimerosal are used in >120 countries to immunize ~84 million children every year, saving the lives of ~1.4 million people annually," they write.
Dr. King and colleagues are members of the Ethical, Social, and Cultural Program for Global Health, which receives funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Authors of the other commentaries have disclosed no relevant financial relationships.
Pediatrics. Published online December 17, 2012. Statement,Orenstein commentaryCooper and Katz commentary, King commentary
Posted by larryhoover on December 28, 2012, at 13:02:10
In reply to Flu Shot Discussion From Different Thread, posted by Phillipa on December 28, 2012, at 10:01:15
> I don't seem to be able to find discussion on flu shots but remembered that a medline article said that more than five of them and it could lead to Alzheimers. Any truth you think of this? Thanks Phillipa
I didn't find anything like you recall seeing, but I found this. Vaccine exposure is clearly protective against Alzheimer's.
Lar
CMAJ. 2001 Nov 27;165(11):1495-8.
Past exposure to vaccines and subsequent risk of Alzheimer's disease.
Verreault R, Laurin D, Lindsay J, De Serres G.
SourceLaval University Geriatric Research Unit, Centre d'hébergement Saint-Augustin du Centre hospitalier affilié universitaire de Quebec, Beauport. Rene.Verreault@msp.ulaval.ca
AbstractBACKGROUND:
It has been suggested that changes to the immune system could be a factor in age-related conditions such as Alzheimer's disease. Our objective was to examine the association between past exposure to conventional vaccines and risk of Alzheimer's disease.
METHODS:
We analyzed data from a representative community sample of subjects 65 years of age or older participating in the Canadian Study of Health and Aging, a prospective cohort study of dementia. Screening and clinical evaluations were done at both baseline and follow-up. Past exposure to vaccines was assessed at baseline by means of a self-administered questionnaire.
RESULTS:
Of the 4392 eligible subjects who were cognitively unimpaired and for whom vaccine information was available at baseline (in 1991-1992) and who completed follow-up 5 years later (in 1996-1997), 527 were diagnosed as having cognitive impairment or dementia other than Alzheimer's disease and were excluded from these analyses. Of the remaining subjects, 3682 were cognitively unimpaired at follow-up and 183 were newly diagnosed as having Alzheimer's disease. After adjustment for age, sex and education, past exposure to vaccines against diphtheria or tetanus, poliomyelitis and influenza was associated with lower risk for Alzheimer's disease (odds ratio [OR] 0.41, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.27-0.62; OR 0.60, 95% CI 0.37-0.99; and OR 0.75, 95% CI 0.54-1.04 respectively) than no exposure to these vaccines.
INTERPRETATION:
Past exposure to vaccines against diphtheria or tetanus, poliomyelitis and influenza may protect against subsequent development of Alzheimer's disease.
Posted by larryhoover on December 28, 2012, at 13:04:47
In reply to Re: Flu Shot Discussion From Different Thread » gadchik, posted by Phillipa on December 28, 2012, at 11:49:54
> And then Lar said it takes months for the antibodies to build up and if they miss one strain you arent protected.
It takes about two weeks for the antibodies to build up after vaccination. What I said earlier was that a case of the flu two months later had nothing to do with the shot. You caught a sickness that wasn't covered by the specific vaccine you received. As jono pointed out, what made you sick might not even have been influenza.
Lar
Posted by larryhoover on December 28, 2012, at 13:15:45
In reply to Flu Shot Discussion From Different Thread, posted by Phillipa on December 28, 2012, at 10:01:15
> I don't seem to be able to find discussion on flu shots but remembered that a medline article said that more than five of them and it could lead to Alzheimers. Any truth you think of this? Thanks Phillipa
There is no such medline article. The source of that "factoid" is an anti-vaccine wingnut who lost his medical license many years ago. He claims to have done a study to prove his claim, but no such study exists.
BS detectors at 10 out of 10.
Lar
Posted by Phil on December 28, 2012, at 15:07:42
In reply to Re: Flu Shot Discussion From Different Thread » gadchik, posted by Phillipa on December 28, 2012, at 12:07:51
The CDC if I'm not mistaken, says *get a flu shot*
There are a few exceptions but very few.Everyone who is at least 6 months of age should get a flu vaccine this season. Its especially important for some people to get vaccinated. Those people include the following:
People who are at high risk of developing serious complications like pneumonia if they get sick with the flu. This includes: ◦People who have certain medical conditions including asthma, diabetes, and chronic lung disease.
◦Pregnant women.
◦People 65 years and older
Posted by Phillipa on December 28, 2012, at 20:03:40
In reply to Re: Flu Shot Discussion From Different Thread » Phillipa, posted by Phil on December 28, 2012, at 15:07:42
A & B safe on them C a different story. Intersting. Thanks Phillipa
This is the end of the thread.
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