[Closed] Flu Jab - worth considering ?

do your bit.. you might probably shrug flu off but people you may transmit it to may not so do yourself and them a favor.. and no i doesnt make you ill i ve had one for the last 5 years and i ve not being ill in the slightest following and i ve not had flu either.. result.. for £7 proper bargain..

Most people who I have seen get it feel a bit crap for a day or so, but they are the vulnerable groups who get it through the NHS. If you come into contact with a lot of people etc. it may be worth it. Those who have it seem to miss the worst of the winter flu going round.

Though there will be someone round in a bit telling you it's a government conspiracy to make your head explode and your balls fall off.

Been having it years through the NHS and it has have made me ill or feel crap.

I have been having them for years at work. They have never made me feel ill but I sometimes get a sore arm for a day or two (varies year to year).

For 7 quid it hardly needs discussion.

Been having it for years through work feel slightly ill after for 24 hours then am fine.

Been having them for about 7 years now and issue them to staff. No one has been Ill with it because it doesn't unless you have an egg allergy.

I had flu about 14 years ago and never want it again it felled me for weeks and took months to fully recover.

My head exploded and balls fell off once but I'm cured.

For 7 quid it hardly needs discussion

Yes it does, you could get a Chinese several thousand lumen light for that, surely?

and balls fell off

Been having it for years. Occasionally feel a bit crap for half a day or so, sore arm normally for a bit, but nothing earth-shattering.

As an asthmatic who got hospitalised with pneumonia a few years back, it's a no-brainer for me.

Yes it does, you could get a Chinese several thousand lumen light for that, surely?

Good point. I'm cancelling my flu jab.

I've had one (my first) this year. No side effects for me.

I've had one for the last couple of years due to having asthma. Zero side effects here bar a sore arm for a day.

Had for 4-5 years in a row at work as they were giving it away for free, each time about 10 days later I felt like shite.

Work is still giving it away free but I would rather take the risk of getting flu every now and then, than guaranted getting sick every year.

I'm getting it for the first time this year, like you say for a few quid it's worth a go. Don't need my balls anymore anyway.

im with saccades - work gives it away free but having seen how my dad gets after his on NHs vunerable peoples scheme ill take me chances with no jab.

i'm asthmatic, flu's a proper bastard.

i get a jab every year, it does seem to leave me a bit sniffly for a few days, but it's no big deal.

Getting my top up on Saturday, it was offered for the first time last year because of asthma.

Went very briefly light-headed a few minutes after but nothing heavy.

Does the jab help against the common cold too? I haven't been ill once since...

Does the jab help against the common cold too? I haven't been ill once since...

No.

£7? Dammit, I paid £9 at Tesco for mine.

Yes, it's worth it. Get it.

Haze - Member

Does the jab help against the common cold too? I haven't been ill once since...

it doesn't even protect you against all forms of flu - which is why a new batch of vaccine is brewed up every year, the boffins involved make their best educated guess as to which forms of flu they should include in the jab.

next year, the 'ingredients' will be different.

I get it every year since I'm officially a vulnerable group. I always feel a bit weird and disjointed for the rest of the day/sometimes day after, like running a mild fever, but it could all be psychosomatic tbh, who knows?

Look at it the other way round, if on day 3 of the flu someone said you could pay £7 to make it go away you'd be mad not to, right?

As nurses/health workers so generally healthy but also excellent 'pathogen vectors', we get it for free each year. HR/occy health are of course at pains to remind us how safe it is, but seeming to be belt and braces about the alleged risk (which they hotly deny) of it making you poorly the next day, they also always schedule all the 'drop in and get jabbed' on a friday. 😆

I'm in the 'vunerable group' as it was put earlier in this thread and been having it for years. I got the slight sniffles afterwards for a day or two once, but this was probably coincidence.

it doesn't even protect you against all forms of flu - which is why a new batch of vaccine is brewed up every year, the boffins involved make their best educated guess as to which forms of flu they should include in the jab.

Thought not, must be down to the healthy living then 🙂

I always take it, would be silly not to. That said this year they seem to have either missed a strain of flu out of the jab, or I have a rather uncommon cold at the moment - I'm an aching, shivering font of snot today.

Kids and I are asthmatic so we have it every year. Having had one of the kids hospitalised 4 times this year, it would be bonkers for us not to try and eliminate another potential cause of being unwell.

I've never had any side-effects following a flu-jab.

I had mine on Sat. No ill effects, no surprise there. I had influenza once, didn't take it seriously (traditional MTFU attitude), it led to pneumonia. I shan't go there again.

IIUR if you have the shot, you're helping those most at risk by reducing the likely spread. It's called the herd effect.

I had flu last winter - there are about three days of which I have no recollection and the rest was just grim. This year I'm getting a flu jab.

I get flu 2 times a year through the change of seasons but I am not into jab even if it's free. Usually last for two weeks feeling lousy and can't smoke etc, sleep a lot just to recuperate. Drink lots of water and sweat it out. Then pass the flu onto everyone around me ... 😯

I think I am getting better with flu now as I used to have it 4 times a year and now down to 2 ... seasons. Early summer and early winter.

Just booked myself in for the jab for the first time. Risk/reward seems worthwhile.

Flu is horrible, and until you have had it you have no idea just how bad it is. If you had it now you wouldnt be wanting to post on a bike forum, in fact you wouldnt want to move a muscle out of bed.

I had it 3 years ago, thought I was over it and went back to work only to get Pneumonia which took nearly a year to get over.

Any one who doesnt have it is stupid IMO

I had flu in the spring, possible 1st time ever, decided then to get the jabs in future; those that get a cold and say they have the flu should be given the flu so they know what it is.

I get flu 2 times a year through the change of seasons but I am not into jab even if it's free. Usually last for two weeks feeling lousy

That'll be a cold

I was out for 3 weeks at the end of last winter. The roughest part was horrendous, only Dengue fever was worse. It's been on my mind to do it.

Yep, it's worth bearing in mind that it doesn't protect you from "the flu that's going around" because that's basically never the actual flu, it's just some random, relatively minor bug.

It's also no protection against the far more dangerous Manflu, so be careful out there.

Just re-read my post and noticed I left 'Never' out. Thats what I get at posting at 6:00am.

Also in the vulnerable group, so I've had the jab for the last 4 years. Never had any issues afterwards.
Interestingly, out of the blue, I was offered a pnemonia jab at the same time. Wasn't aware there was a jab for this but declined until I asked the wife (pharmacist).
She said 'as I was an old bugger what have I got to lose' 🙄 pnemonia jab booked for early November.

Had flu once. Had the jab once. I won't have the jab again.

The jab was worse than the flu?

coincidence?

i have it through work, if more than 70% of staff have it we get a huge bonus

i usually feel like i'm getting a cold for 2 days after (achy limbs, mild head ache etc) but itnever amounts to anything

i had flu when i was a teenager, proper flu where you can't leave your bed for days and constantly throw up etc, the jab is infinitely better

Been getting the shot for the past 20 years or so and no reactions at all except a mildly sore spot where they give the injection that last a day or so. Doesn't always guarantee protection, but I'll take the odds and have the shot.

Busydog where do you get yours done? Don't really feel like getting it at a target or walmart but they seem the cheapest.

coincidence?

What coincidence is that?

I got it this year (my GP did it whilst I was in for an appointment, I just assumed that was normal?) and it was fine.

Had my jab two days ago and no problems. Do not want flu again, only had it once and once is enough. I came home from work feeling fine half an hour later started shivering and five minutes after that I could hardly crawl upstairs to bed. Have the jab if you are not allergic to eggs or chickens!

Busydog where do you get yours done? Don't really feel like getting it at a target or walmart but they seem the cheapest.

I'm in the US and I usually get mine at a Walgreens pharmacy, but sometimes at the doctors office. Location probably not an issue as long as it is a nurse, pharmacist or med tech doing it---might want to shy away from the local bicycle shop or auto garage. 😀

I get the jab for free, have done for some years, with little or no affect. I'm currently suffering from some virus that's attempting to make me feel utterly miserable, and largely succeeding; I spent Tuesday night unable to sleep, wrapped in bath towels to stop the sweat from soaking my bed. But it's not flu. I had it once, around thirty years ago, and it resulted in me being off work for a week, of which I have no clear recollection. The only longer time I've ever taken off work in the last forty years was two weeks with chickenpox, which was a nice holiday after being back at work for a week after Christmas/New Year.
Jab or flu? Seriously? Flu kills people, the jab might make you a bit uncomfortable for a bit, certainly no worse than I'm feeling at the moment, but I know how utterly, unbearably ill I was for a week, so no contest.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Influenza

I'm in the US and I usually get mine at a Walgreens pharmacy

I'm in Denver, I may well give Walgreens a go then. Thanks.

Drac - Moderator

I get flu 2 times a year through the change of seasons but I am not into jab even if it's free. Usually last for two weeks feeling lousy

That'll be a cold

Even with body arching? Not all the time but sometimes ...
❓

Even with body arching?

Body aching!!! When you have the flu proper, you don't just get body aches, you are absolutely fubared. If you were in bed with a bad cold and somebody left £100k on your doorstep, you'd struggle out of bed, crawl down the stairs and grab the cash. If you were in bed with the flu, you'd leave it and let it blow away in the wind. Until you've had it properly it really is difficult to explain, but once you've had it you sure as heck don't ever want it again.

http://www.undergroundhealth.com/10-reasons-why-flu-shots-are-more-dangerous-than-the-flu/

Ah. anti-vaxxers, always good value.

1.) There is a total lack of real evidence that young children even benefit from flu shots. A systematic review of 51 studies involving 260,000 children age 6 to 23 months found no evidence that the flu vaccine is any more effective than a placebo. Also the shots are only able to protect against certain strains of the virus, which means that if you come into contact with a different strain of virus you will still get the flu.

Assuming this is the case all it shows is that the vaccine doesnt' work for young kids. It's not proof of danger. In actual fact it shows how important it for others to get vaccinate to reduce the risk of infecting a young child. The vaccine only being good for one strain is well known and is not a danger.

2.) Medical journals have published thousands of articles revealing that injecting vaccines can actually lead to serious health problems including harmful immunological responses and a host of other infections. This further increases the body’s susceptibility to the diseases that the vaccine was supposed to protect against.

Vaccines are not risk free, however on balance the protection they offer is far greater than the risks they present.

3.) Ever noticed how vaccinated children within days or few weeks develop runny noses, pneumonia, ear infections and bronchiolitis? The reason is the flu virus introduced in their bodies which creates these symptoms. It also indicates immuno-suppression i.e. lowering of the immunity. The flu vaccines actually do not immunize but sensitize the body against the virus.

Wow! Kids get running noses and ear infections all the time. Confirmation bias is what this is not proof of danger.

4.) Its a known fact that Flu vaccines contain strains of the flu virus along with other ingredients. Now think about the impact such a vaccine can have over someone with a suppressed immune system? If you have a disease that is already lowering your body’s ability to fight a virus, taking the flu shot will put your body in danger of getting the full effects of the flu and make you more susceptible to pneumonia and other contagious diseases.

This really doesn't make much sense and is only applicable to people with suppresed immunity, not the population as a whole. Again not a danger.

5.) The Flu vaccines contain mercury, a heavy metal known to be hazardous for human health. The amount of mercury contained in a multi-dose flu shot is much higher than the maximum allowable daily exposure limit. Mercury toxicity can cause memory loss, depression, ADD, oral health problems, digestive imbalances, respiratory problems, cardiovascular diseases and many more such serious health ailments.

This is just wrong on every concievable front.

6.) There is mounting evidence that flu shots can cause Alzheimer’s disease. One report shows that people who received the flu vaccine each year for 3 to 5 years had a 10-fold greater chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease than people who did not have any flu shots. Also with age the immune system weakens, thus lowering your ability to fight off infections. Introducing the flu virus in the bodies of elderly could have dangerous consequences.

Hmmm no link to any actual studis? I'd call bull on this until proven otherwise.

7.) The Center for Disease Control appoints a 15-member Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). This committee is responsible for deciding who should be vaccinated each year. Almost all the ACIP have a financial interest in immunizations. It’s all about the money and may have very little to do with your health and well being. The very people pushing these vaccines stand to make billions of dollars. This itself creates a doubt on how effective these flu vaccines really are?

Well this isn't the case in the UK is it. Oh and vaccinations don't actually make the pharmaceutical companies money, neither do they make doctors in the US money. In the US doctors will make more money from treating patients with the actual disease than they will in preventing it.

8.) Research shows that over-use of the flu-vaccine and drugs like Tamiflu and Relenza can actually alter flu viruses and cause them to mutate into a more deadly strain. Couple this with drug resistant strains and you have virtually no benefits with much risk.

Again no links to any reasearch showing this. Also viruses mutate all the time without any help from us so it's hardly relevant.

9.) There is enough evidence that shows that the ingredients present in the flu vaccinations can actually cause serious neurological disorders. In the 1976 swine flu outbreak, many who got the flu shots developed permanent nerve damage. Flu vaccines can contain many harmful materials including detergent, mercury, formaldehyde, and strains of live flu virus. Is this what you want to put in YOUR body?

There are some risks involved in vaccinations and there are some potentially significant side efeects, but overall the balance of benefit to risk is such that they are worthwhile. There is no mercury in any vaccine!

10.) Trying to guess what strain to vaccinate against each season has proved to be no more effective than a guessing game. This has been very true in recent years with the H1N1 strain. Moreover getting multi-shots will only prove more dangerous as different strains of viruses and harmful ingredients are introduced into your body.

It is indeed a best guess althouh I'd wager that it's better than random guessing and again this isn't proof of any danger. What you should bear in mind though is that the Influenze can and does kill.

So that's those dealt with got any more? As for me, my company might be offering a vaccine free and if so I'll take it, however I've always been a bit concerned about getting a private prescription for fear of taking a dose away from someone who needs it

Vaccines are a total fraud.
http://www.infowars.com/secret-government-documents-reveal-vaccines-to-be-a-total-hoax/

£7 would be better spent on proper food instead of lining the GSK and Merck coffers

Antivax + Infowars = Perfect thread.

Umm Alex Jones? Do you really expect people to believe what he says? I appreciate that it's a bit of ad hominem but I'd rather take the word of the Daily Mail than him!

Doctors was dishing them out so had mine last week. Might as well I thought. Interestingly they are brining in the nasal version for all kids soon. As that doesn't need to be administered by a nurse I wonder how long until they dish then out to the majority of the population as it must be much cheaper to administer.

Even with body arching? Not all the time but sometimes ...

Yeah it's a virus you get aches when you body is fighting an infection of any kind.

As for the no proof that vaccines work. I'll just say when was the last time you had small pox?

gonefishin - Member

Umm Alex Jones? Do you really expect people to believe what he says? I appreciate that it's a bit of ad hominem but I'd rather take the word of the Daily Mail than him!

Yeah it's a virus you get aches when you body is fighting an infection of any kind.

As for the no proof that vaccines work. I'll just say when was the last time you had small pox?

This.

I am in the vulnerable group and have it every year. Getting the flu could put me out of work for months, never mind weeks, so I'll take the risk thanks.

I was given a jab a few years ago and didn't get flu, I did get it this year and hadn't had a jab.... Flu is really rather horrid; spent the weekend on the sofa, tried to go to work on the Monday as felt a bit better but fainted on the train so that was a mistake. Struggled on though, was off the bike for a few weeks which annoyed me the most!

I've never had flu and never had a cold which lasted more than a couple of days, so personally don't see the point.

Which is fine footflaps as it's personal choice. For me as I get introduced to so many people with it and if I catch I'll be off work again for at least 2 weeks last time was 3. It costs me £120 a week to be on the sick unless it's industrial illness. Proving I caught it work is impossible so I'll take the jab.

I would anyway as I said having had it I'd not wish it on anyone or want it again.

Alex Jones didn't write that article.

I stand corrected on that point.

People shouldn't believe in anything, they should continually evaluate evidence.

Oh I couldn't agree more. The wealth of evidence of benefit of vaccines is huge.

People shouldn't believe in anything, they should continually evaluate evidence.

They do constantly for it's effects and success. They adjusted the meningitis vaccine and added boosters for certain age groups as they noticed a all rise in cases. They don't just bring them out and forget about them. That's why they're are so effective and in some cases have wiped out an illness altogether.