I was going to see if he had a disciplinary record at the FDA but his About Me says


Oh yeah. He's not a practicing doctor, hasn't been for a few years, and doesn't seem to be even working in the field any more.

As with any vaccine for viruses, there are many factors that may or may not influcnce the effectiveness of a vaccine. There are enveloped viruses and non-enveloped viruses, there are RNA viruses and DNA viruses, some viruses can have an almost immediate effect such as the flu virus and there are others like the slow viruses which can take 20 years or more to cause disease, these as well as whole of other factors can add significant challenges in making an effective and safe vaccine. Some commentators will use the failures or complications of past vaccines in support of their anti-vaccination point of view. Bottom line - Although it is not possible to prove a negative effect, I think I am safe in saying: Vaccinations have prevented more deaths than any other protective measure including the use of seat belts.

Pete

Excellent response, thanks for the clarifications and corrections Arney!

Since squalene in the H1N1 vaccine is a hot topic in alternative health circles as a reason not to get the shot, I thought I would mention that the four vaccines that were just cleared by the FDA for use in the US do NOT contain squalene as far as I have been able to determine from press releases. GSK's vaccine should be approved shortly. So regardless of what you think about squalene, it's not an issue here in the US.

Novartis and GSK do have versions of the H1N1 vaccine with squalene, but those are not the versions that were just approved. Other countries may use the versions containing it, but since early clinical trials show unexpectedly good immune response to just a single dose of the non-squalene version, it's possible that those countries may switch to a non-squalene version, too.

I find it somewhat ironic that squalene from shark liver has been touted as a beneficial nutritional supplement (fairly large doses) to stimulate the immune system and as a powerful antioxidant by many who use alternative or nutritional therapies, but then condemn it when used in vaccines (relatively small doses when compared to nutritional supplements) because of purported over stimulation of the immune system leading to autoimmune conditions.

Pete

I know that Mercola doesn't do much for you guys, but here is his take on squalene and may answer the question of why it can be both beneficial and dangerous. FWIW.

It is a highly personal choice when it comes to vaccines. When I retired from the military I decided that I would no longer get the seasonal flu shots; 26 of them was enough for me. I only got/get "sick" about once every three years for about 3-4 days. I will not be receiving any vaccinations unless required by law. I HAD (NYS law) to get an MMR shot to attend college because I could not prove I had two of them in my life of 47 years. Either way, no voluntary vaccinations for me.

I'm currently just days away from turning 40. It's safe to say I've had the flu a few times. It's never been the end of the world before, and I only get it about every 5-10 years or so. So I prefer not to bother with the vaccine.

As of right now, H1N1 has nothing on the regular yearly flu season. If there is tested, proven, scientific data out there to prove that H1N1 is worth me worrying about, I'd like to see it.

"As of right now, H1N1 has nothing on the regular yearly flu season. If there is tested, proven, scientific data out there to prove that H1N1 is worth me worrying about, I'd like to see it."

First, it all about you. Getting immunized also helps protect others and while it may not be "worth [you] worrying about" just about everyone has friends and relatives and part of living in a civilized society is protecting others.

Second while the overall rate of death from H1N1 is not greater than the average seasonal flu it has some unique characteristics. In addition to attacking the normal risk group it also seems to disproportionately effect young adults and overweight people. Interestingly it doesn't seem to have as much effect as is typical of flu on people with HIV.

But that is just half, or a quarter of, the story. Because while while half of the people ending up in ICUs are in the expected vulnerable group for this strain; half are not. Half of those who end up in the ICU with it have no known risk factors. In a few cases people who appeared perfectly healthy and with no known risk factors essentially keeled over and died in a few hours. Too rare to track effectively the question as to how and why some people react this way remain unanswered.

Worth worrying about?

Depends on how much you value those around you, any sense of duty you may have toward the surrounding society ... and, perhaps, how much you value your life and health.

It's true that the numbers on H1N1 are not particularly scary compared to seasonal flu, but we haven't even been through a full flu season with H1N1 yet. I'm not saying this to be alarmist, but the potential impact from H1N1 does seem worse than seasonal flu, though. It has traits like:

• It's more infectious than seasonal flu. Even if H1N1 stays mild for the rest of the flu season, it will likely cause more hospitalizations and deaths than seasonal flu simply because more people will get infected than usual, even if any single person's risk of hospitalization or death is lower than with seasonal flu.
• People stay infectious longer with H1N1 which also increases everyone's chance of catching it (I cited the article in Art's H1N1 thread)
• The age distribution of deaths or cases with severe complications is more like past pandemic influenza's rather than seasonal flu. Instead of killing the elderly and very young children, it is hitting older children and adults younger than 50 the hardest. If H1N1 infects enough people, history will be recounting how H1N1 struck the young.
• H1N1 causes lung damage which seasonal flu cannot inflict. This story describes one expert's experience after 90 autopsies of H1N1 deaths and likens the damage he has seen with avian flu, and this article describes the mechanism of why H1N1 can directly attack deep lung tissue that seasonal flu cannot do. If we're lucky, H1N1 will not develop a stronger affinity for lung receptors later on. If it does, then it will be sending a lot more younger adults to the ICU.
• The fact that H1N1 stuck around during the summer months and is causing fresh outbreaks in August and September is pretty unheard of for the flu, and suggests the possibility of a long, tough flu season ahead.

Overall, we're lucky because not a whole lot has happened. At least so far. The typical flu season is not usually even considered open until at least October and most years, the peak months are January and February.

And even for people who don't catch H1N1 directly, it could still affect them. For example, maybe you need to go to the ER for something else like a car accident, but all the ones closest to you could be swamped with flu patients and they turn you away. It's already happening right now in places with fresh outbreaks. (Not that getting a flu shot can prevent car accidents. Wish we could develop a vaccine for that!)