Still, influenza (the real one, not the various minor illnesses that people tend to call “the flu”) is serious enough that it is quite unpleasant, and can seriously disrupt your school, work, or other activity for several days or more. While the vaccine is not perfect (in some years, not all of the influenza viruses are covered by the vaccine), getting it does reduce the risk of being out for several days or more.
No offense taken. I disagree with you, that’s all.
First of all, if I got the flu, I would stay home, not go around infecting people. Secondly, every vaccine, including the flu, has potential side-effects. Thirdly, flu vaccines do have additives/preservatives that (in batch form, things like mercury), while considered safe at that level, is not something I would want to put in my body (just like, no, you won’t die from eating at McDonald’s, but I still don’t want to put food like that in my body). Finally, for ME (at my age, health, etc.) flu would NOT be a life-threatening disease most likely, so no, the benefits do not outweigh the risks. And I do believe that there are other ways to prevent the flu (not full-proof, of course).
And I have had actual influenza when I was very young - granted, it was a long time ago, so I don’t remember it that well, but I do know how serious the flu can be. But again, a life disruption of a few days/a week is not the end of the world to me (again, everyone’s situation is different - I have sick days and the ability to stay home).
@acollegestudent - remember the H1N1 (swine) flu? It was a strange and scary one in that it struck, and sometimes killed, young people who would not normally be considered in the high risk population. That can happen any year with the flu, although it usually doesn’t.
Complicating matters was that it struck so early that most people weren’t protected yet.
I do remember H1N1. There was also the flu of 1918. There was also some sort of respiratory infection that was very serious last fall, I think. My only point is this - I think it should be up to the individual to assess their own risk. Do I think that not vaccinating a child is crazy? Yes, I do. (I have a dog, and you better believe he is always entirely up on his vaccines, not just the required rabbis - I am not anti-vaccine) Does that mean that I think the government should tell every adult all vaccines to get, as determined by what? A government committee? They can’t even get nutrition in schools right. The answer is no - I think it will create more problems than it solves. If anything, a public education campaign is more effective.
That’s not true. Without the mandate, overall vaccination rates are near CDC goal,
Not lucky.It’s called healthy. Some people are heathier than others and can fight off. Last time, my kid missed school due to illness was in the first grade about 15 years ago.
Overall vaccination rates may be near the goal but in many areas rates are below. Mississippi is picking up the slack. 
But Iglooo, many people consider the current “mandatory” school vaccination laws to be just that – mandatory. It was when people started asking for “philosophical exemptions” and not getting vaccinations just because they didn’t want to – based on nothing —that measles, etc. has had these pop-up outbreaks. I thought you were suggesting that vaccinations for children be entirely optional. There is some large subset of vaccinated children who only have theirs in order to attend school, as per state laws. Otherwise, parents wouldn’t be bothered. We see it every year in school – kids arrive with no vaccinations, and parents just shrug and say “oh, okay, we’ll have to do that after all”
I agree, federally mandated health requirements is not going to work. All I want to say is that people who claim they aren’t risking anyone but themselves and their own children are wrong. They are wrong. And as they have a right to feel indestructible and invulnerable, I have a similar right to worry. When my fragile child was in school, he missed an average of 14-15 days a year, and that was with vigilance and compassion on the part of his school. And yes, if he were even more vulnerable, we would not have him attend – which in fact, was the case when he was first stricken.
(I’m trying to not take offense at “It’s called healthy” like you have some superior DNA…fragile children and adults are not lesser because their body systems have betrayed them. As you are not anything other than lucky because yours hasn’t. Yet.)
There is a bill in the Mississippi legislature to all parents to opt out of vaccines for personal reasons. It is Bill 130. I can’t believe that it is even being considered with the current outbreak of measles.
acollegestudent, I’m going to pick on you a little more.
You can be infectious before you get sick. CDC says for one day. You could infect a lot of people in a day, depending on where you go.
The side effects of the flu vaccine are unusual and usually mild; serious side effects are rare. The flu, on the other hand, can make you very sick.
This isn’t really a different point from the previous one; the real issue is whether those materials pose a risk that outweigh the benefits.
[/quote]
Finally, for ME (at my age, health, etc.) flu would NOT be a life-threatening disease most likely, so no, the benefits do not outweigh the risks.
[/quote]
Probably, but not necessarily, true. It still discounts the risk of infecting others, of course. I note in passing that since you’ve had the flu, you are probably not one of those people who can shrug off the flu. (I’ve known several people who “never” get the flu who got it one year when their luck ran out.)
My point is that I think you’ve miscalculated the risk/benefit balance. I can think of no reason to believe that the ordinary person is better at calculated the risks/benefit ratio than experts. In particular, the ordinary person is quite likely to ignore benefits to others, and to overestimate personal risks. And some people just don’t like needles, etc.
For both our kids. their docs have decided after several years of giving them flu shots that it is better for our kids NOT to get the flu shot than to get it, since they get VERY ill from the flu shot, even with the dose is split up and given in smaller pediatric doses. H & I get the flu shot and hope not to give the flu to our kids. They worry that the flu shot can trigger our kids’ chronic health conditions to flare up and worsen, which has happened to some of their other patients with health similar to our kids.
I don’t see annual flu shots as similar to the vaccines for these other important diseases, which our kids HAVE been vaccinated against.
@HImom, I wonder what your kids are reacting to. Interesting. Not to seem cavalier, I’m sure it’s much more than “interesting” to them.
Keep in mind that vaccinations are developed for very few diseases/illness. Vaccinations are not going to be developed unless the presence of one is mandated extremely helpful or necessary for the overwhelming majority of the population. Contracting flu can have severe or fatal consequences for enough people that it became a priority to develop the shot.
So while it’s highly suggested now for most of the population, the consequences for some of the population not getting the shot is very real. I do understand that for some getting the shot has some very real/possible consequences itself.
Comments from 2 selective vaccinators:
http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/03/health/the-unvaccinated/
Video is short and worth watching. Very blunt—“My kids are healthy and therefore not a danger to anyone” and “I have no moral obligation to risk my child’s health for someone else’s child.”
Also some facts and figures in the article from the CDC:
26 states have not reported meeting a government target of 95% coverage for MMR
In California, there were about 1,000 medical exemptions in the 2013-2014 school year, and more than 17,000 philosophical exemptions.
Florida had less than 800 medical exemptions and about 4,000 religious exemptions. Florida does not allow philosophical exemptions.
From later in the article:
"The study was published by Public Health Reports, the official journal of the U.S. Public Health Service, in 2011. It found that among parents who delay and refuse vaccines:
• 70% say they believe the vaccines are necessary to protect the health of their children (compared with 96% of parents who vaccinate)
• 63% say they fear their children could have serious side effects (compared with 31% of parents who vaccinate).
• 57% say they have concerns about autism.
• 78% say they believe children get too many shots.
• There’s also more mistrust of the medical community among those who don’t vaccinate. While 95% of parents who vaccinate said medical professionals in charge of vaccinations have their children’s best interest at heart, 77% of parents who delayed and refused vaccines agreed."
I’d like to see religious exemptions tightened up to cover only people whose religions forbid vaccination. A garden variety Catholic or Congregationalist shouldn’t be able to get a religious exemption. Someone who wants to opt out under a religious exemption should have to submit a letter from a clergy member supporting their application for an exemption.
I don’t think even religious exemptions should be granted for attendance at public school. It still gives them the choice to home school or go private.
That is probably why we have such a thing as a personal belief exemption for those who eschew organized religion along with traditional medicine, but I still think finding someone to sign a form is not going to deter the truly determined. Even a medical exemption can be had from an anti-vax or pro-choice pediatrician.
Maybe kids with religious exemptions should attend parochial schools.
My kids have weakened immunities and are highly allergic to a lot of things. Lots of folks with chronic lyme and chronic fatigue syndrome are similar It’s really a tough road to hoe and there is not much consensus on effective treatment–comfort measures but no “cure” for most. They have to be careful when they’re doing well not to do anything that can trigger a full flare-up that will set them way back.
This is an interesting article : http://www.historyofvaccines.org/content/articles/vaccination-exemptions
Since pro-choice has been introduced into the discussion (ack), maybe Washington should make the antivaxxers watch some very upsetting mandatory video about some of the more horrific consequences of the illnesses, the way some states make women watch some disturbing videos before a TAB.