US health study done by CDC indicated too few American adults get vaccination.

Do you guys get your shots regularly? I wonder of adults get complacent in their old age that they believe in complete invulnerability in catching influenza.

http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN2364067820080123

Sure do. I try to keep a full set of vaccinations on board and keep them up up to date. Even a few diseases which are not problems in the US. Things go south and that might change. Immunity, even partial immunity, beats even the best treatment.

Part of this is an age thing. When I was in school there were still a few kids around who were suffering the effects of polio. Most adults at the time had experience with polio stalking the summers like a deranged maniac. The polio vaccine was huge blessing that showed that medical science could do more than just stitch wounds and hold your hand while you died. Polio and smallpox showed that done well a disease could be driven off. Or even destroyed.

Fewer people vaccinated means there is an ever greater chance diseases we haven't seen for a couple of generations in the US could show up and spread rapidly.

My Uncle Sammy made me get flu shots, and a whole lot more, back in the 60's. I only got sick once in four years, figured that they must work, so I get one every year. My wifes Uncle Sammy made her get them too, in the '70's, she claims that the flu shots made her sick every time, so she refuses to get them anymore...

I've had all the recommended unless they've decided something needed a booster recently.

After 25 years of flu shots with the Air Circus I called it quits when I retired in 2006. Haven't been sick yet; of any sort. It is probably time for a tetanus or something. The flu thing (for me) was always viewed as "free Guinea pig" science. Since they could order us to have them so that we could be "worldwide-ready" they just pumped us with whatever the latest scare was. They even changed the names from "experimental drugs" to "investigational medications" to soften it up a little (thanks Bill). All that to say this..I'm done with them.

Given that the flu is a virus & will only last ~6-10 days, unless you are in one of the higher risk groups I don't see what all the fuss over getting vaccinated for it is. I can understand getting one for something that it will protect me for multiple years or longer or has long term consequences (i.e. polio, mumps, etc.) but not one that changes from year to year. Given my track record, I'll risk getting it at most three times in my life.

35,000+ flu-related deaths a year in the US.

I don't know if it's just lack of properly educating the public or just the "me" culture, but it seems that most people think that the sole benefit of vaccinations is to themself. And if they don't feel much risk of catching it themself or of suffering from a case of it, well then, "What's the point?" they ask.

That's a shame because the greatest benefit of vaccinations occurs when as much of the population gets vaccinated as possible, including healthy adults. By limiting the number of possible carriers or people who come down with the flu, you're limiting the number of chances to infect people who really need to worry about getting the flu--like the elderly or chronically ill people who are often vulnerable even after getting their own flu shots. I'm still fairly young, so I don't worry so much about getting the flu myself, but I do consider it a public service, as much as an act of personal protection, to get a flu shot every year.

By the way, it's still not too late to get a flu shot since the flu season can last well into the spring.

Flu and pneumonia shots here

I agree for diseases like MMR, polio, TB, etc. Vaccinations for these diseases will give you for immunity for decades or more. The vaccine for the flu may give you full, partial or no immunity depending on which strain you are exposed to. They can only cover IIRC three strains of it and have to make an educated guess as to which to include due to the manufacturing lead time.

Flu vaccinations would be great if - They guessed correctly and made the vaccination for the correct virus more than half of the time.