by Roberto Alvarez-Galloso

Created on: October 08, 2008

At the present time [which is October 2008], we are in the beginning of the Flu Season. There are hospitals and other health care institutions that require flu shots of patients and hospital staff. Where I work which is a hospital in Miami Florida, the requirements are for people to have a flu shot in order to fulfill the requisites for employment and in order to fulfill a target number of how many people had flu shots. Many people who do not receive the flu shot are terminated and the fact that a person has a low immune system does not exempt them from a flu shot. The only thing that exempts a person from a flu shot is the fact that he or she is allergic to eggs. After commenting on flu shots, we have to ask ourselves the questions about the effectiveness of flu shots. Flu Shots are counter effective instead of effective.

While my allergies to eggs exempt me from the flu shots, I could remember how I received my first flu shot in 1992. Afterwards, I felt terrible with loss of temper, headache, fever, and infection. My wife Marlene [since we were recently married] applied cold compresses and gave me acetaminophen for my fever. I could not go to work for almost a week secondary to the high fever which was 44*C and the convulsions that accompanied the vaccination for flu. The results of the flu vaccination for me were counterproductive and did not help in the prevention of flu. Instead, it affected me heavily. I was against the flu vaccination after trying eggs at a restaurant and having the same allergic reactions. My personal experience proved that flu vaccinations were ineffective and counterproductive. Imagine a patient with an immune system that is suppressed.

The myriad of reasons as to why Flu Vaccines are NOT effective besides the problems with allergies and immune systems lies within another reality. The reality is that the flu is not composed of a single virus but of multiple viruses that occur within a different time, space, and within different areas of the world. The Flu Vaccine is effective against one type of flu virus unless there are multiple vaccines for different types of viruses. If a person wants to vaccinate himself or herself against the flu, I respect the person's decision to do so. But I am against a mandatory flu vaccination in order to fulfill some criteria innaugurated by some bureaucrat who is ignorant of medicine and of the side effects of the flu vaccine. In fact, I challenge the bureaucrats and politicians who approved of such a foolish requirement to subject themselves to the flu vaccine and see if they receive the same side effects.

Learn more about this author, Roberto Alvarez-Galloso.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.