Nasal flu vaccine "FluMist" approved - but not for everyone!
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From Health Sciences Institute...
There is a brand new way to get the flu vaccine: A squirt up the nose.
FluMist is the name of this new delivery system. The idea, of course, is to
provide a pain-free alternative to a needle in the arm.
But before you call your doctor to schedule a snort of
FluMist, there are a few things you need to know.
1) It's expensive. At $46 per dose, it's more than twice as
expensive as a normal flu shot.
2) Your extended insurance might not cover it because a typical flu
shot usually costs only $15 - $20.
3) Kids aged 5-8 years (the very age group that hates needles
the most) are advised to get two doses of FluMist to be
effective. Total cost: Over $90 (not counting the cost of the
doctor visits).
4) The United States FDA hasn't approved FluMist for kids under 5 years of
age because trials have shown it increases the risk of asthma
attacks for that age group.
5) The FDA hasn't approved FluMist for adults over 50 because
trials have shown it's neither safe nor effective for that
age group.
6) For people between 5 and 50, typical side effects of
FluMist include sore throat, coughing, nasal congestion, and
runny nose. (So FluMist may prevent the flu, but you might
feel like you have it anyway.)
7) Clinical trials show that it's only effective in half the
people who take it.
8) Unlike traditional flu vaccines (which use dead flu
viruses), FluMist will contain three live flu viruses. That's
right: 3 strains of living flu virus squirted directly into
your head. But don't worry. The viruses have been "modified"
so they won't grow at body temperature. That's how
manufacturers (MedImmune/Wyeth) described the process last
summer. Now they're describing the viruses as being "killed."
Whatever!
9) Here is the best of Gullible's Travels: FluMist should only be taken
by healthy people because people with compromised immune
systems may have negative reactions. In other words, those
people who need a vaccine the LEAST (healthy people with
uncompromised immune systems) are the only ones the vaccine
has been approved for.
Can you imagine if an herbal product was introduced to the
market with all those drawbacks? The mainstream medical press
would be in an uproar!
Meanwhile, the sales drive for FluMist (and the
flu vaccine in general) is in full gear. According to a
report from KABC in Los Angeles, the World Health
Organization (WHO) is urging people to get vaccinations
because they fear a possible winter return of the SARS virus.
WHO officials admit that the flu shot won't prevent SARS. But
they reason that that keeping the cases of flu low will
decrease the chance that doctors might mistake a case of flu
for SARS. That seems like paper-thin logic to me, but if it's
the best you've got, I guess you have to go with it.
A little more fear is added to the flu vaccine sales pitch by
Dr. William Schaffner, an official with the National
Foundation for Infectious Diseases. Noting that the last two
flu seasons have been mild, Dr. Schaffner warns that it would
be "very unusual to have three mild seasons in a row." Dr. S.
is a big fan of the flu shot. He told KABC that he hopes in
10 years "we are recommending annual influenza immunization
for everybody."
Contrast that statement with this e-mail I received from an
HSI member named Leo last week:
"Just want you to know that my wife and I took the flu shot
in Nov. 02. She had a very bad reaction to the shot. Called
the doctor and they told me, 'There's nothing we can do for
that.' Great, they can make it but if you get sick you must
stay alive for 5 to 6 months so the body can get rid of it.
She was a very sick person. We will never take another flu
shot."
Ten strikes and... yer OUT!
To Your Good Health,
Jenny Thompson
Health Sciences Institute
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