The annual flu vaccine scare has reached a new level of  frenzy this year with the media and official fear blitz about the swine flu. The pressure to vaccinate has never been greater. Yet, while the issue is still the same – a flu shot – there are special risks and concerns about the vaccine this year.

Every person and parent must make their own choice on whether to vaccinate.

I do not vaccinate and believe there are many many good reasons for that choice. As a mother of four grown children I faced the decision as a parent, which can be very difficult in our vaccine culture. I have four very healthy children, young adults, who have never been vaccinated. They do not have the allergies, asthma or other chronic diseases that are epidemic in children these days, and they all have terrific immune systems with lifelong immunity to childhood diseases, and yes, once-in-awhile they get the flu and they get over it.  It was my belief, that given the vaccine load placed on children and infants (a still growing load),  the  compositions of the vaccines, and the unknowns, that the risks of vaccines were not worth an arguable benefit.

As you consider your choice to vaccination or not, think on these good reasons not to vaccinate this year.

Mild Flu: The swine flu has not mutated into a virulent and dangerous strain as predicted by so many in the medical industry.  The flu  is mild for all but very small percentage and for people over 60, many may already have a natural immunity from contracting similar strains of flu in the past.  I am now seeing patients with swine flu and the symptoms and severity are often milder than the usual winter flu.  Children and adults are getting the flu and getting over it,  just as millions do every year.

Limited Testing of the Vaccine: Because of the early fear and hype, the vaccine is being rushed to market with  limited testing.   The vaccine has been tested for just a few weeks on a few thousand adults and children, and a very few pregnant women.

Unknowns Mean a High Risk Vaccine: Because of the limited testing of the swine flu vaccine, there are more than the usual unknowns about the true risks of this vaccine.  On open question is how effective the vaccine is in preventing the swine flu.   Of special concern is the potential for vaccine reaction in pregnant women and children.

Children at special risk include those with with chronic illness such as  asthma, allergies, diabetes, or who have had a previous vaccine reaction.

Notwithstanding the emphasis on the safety of  vaccines in the media and from the medical industry, all vaccines carry risks, which can be devastating.  It cannot be honestly  said  that vaccines are 100% safe.   The risk of a vaccine reaction depends on a number of factors, like; medical history, the vaccine itself, whether one is ill when receiving the vaccine, other vaccines one has recently received, medications one is taking, potentially genetics, and the skill of the person administering the vaccine.  While the medical industry claims they got the  “science”, there is way more not known about how vaccines, with all the toxins, effect the immune system and the body both in the short and long term.   If the immune system was really that well understood,  one might expect we would have a cure for cancer and that vaccine reactions would not happen.

For example, according to a recent small study conducted at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota researchers found that children that got the flu “who had received the flu vaccine had three times the risk of hospitalization, as compared to children who had not received the vaccine. In asthmatic children, there was a significantly higher risk of hospitalization…”

Special Risks This Time: In addition to the limited testing there are other risks this year.

For the first time officials will be pushing the public to take both a seasonal and a swine flu vaccine, possibly administered in as many as 4 shots;  two for the seasonal flu and two for the swine flu.  The risks of this number and combination of shots has never been tested.  Unknown is the impact of this combination on children, or how the new combination will interact with vaccines children are already receiving.   A very new study under review from Canada suggests “that people vaccinated against seasonal flu are twice as likely to catch swine flu.” The study is causing some health officials to rethink  flu shot recommendations in Canada and has “convinced several provincial health agencies to announce hasty suspensions of seasonal flu vaccinations, long-held fixtures of public-health planning.”

Because of the push to mass vaccine, the roll out of non-medical vaccine “clinics” will likely be unprecedented.  The shot could  be give in shopping malls, stores, schools, drug stores,  and perhaps drive-by kiosks.    This leads to greater risk of poor administration of the vaccine.  It goes without saying that correct administration of any medical injection is crucial.  There will be greater  risk of poor screening of children and adults at high risk of reaction.  There will be greater risk of potential dosing problems, particularly if there is a two-shot vaccine.  This places responsibility squarely on the consumer, if your are sick or taking medications, or your child has special health concerns, you must take the initiative on the potential for vaccine reaction.  This cannot be overemphasized.

For the first time this year the FDA allowed mock vaccines for approval of the swine flu vaccine.  This meas that the vaccine distributed may not be the exact vaccine that was tested.  To allow for faster vaccine manufacture, a “mock” vaccine with a similar strain of the virus being targeted is used for approval of the ingredients and manufacturing method.  Shortly before actual manufacture of the vaccine to be distributed, the prevalent virus strain in circulation is added.

Vaccine Toxic Additives: Most people now know that all vaccines contain additives, as preservatives and to help the vaccine boost anti-body response. The first thing to consider about these additives is that they are injected directly into the bloodstream bypassing all the bodies natural safety mechanism when confronting toxins. For children, this happens with every vaccine. While scientist and vaccine manufactures may debate the “safety” of these toxins, ask yourself from a common sense perspective, does injecting them into your body or your the body of your child make sense?   How many times has the public been told that science says some drug or chemical is “safe’ only to find out later that the science has changed, or was wrong, or poorly done,  and opps, it is not safe?

The toxins will depend on the vaccine and there are many of them. For example, the flu vaccines can contain such lovely toxins as ethylene glycol (antifreeze), formaldehyde, phenol (carbolic acid), mercury (thimerosal), aluminum and squalene.

Mercury is one of the most toxic substances known. Aluminum has long been suspected in nerve toxicity and Alzheimer’s Disease. Squalene studies have linked it to arthritis and MS in rats.

No Vaccine Reaction Compensation: Because of the recognized risk of childhood vaccines there is a government compensation fund to pay vaccine victims, with ceilings on potential damages. and to prevent lawsuits.  For the swine flu, Congress has shielded  vaccine manufacturers and any person giving swine flu shots from lawsuits if people are harmed by the vaccine, yet there is no funded government vaccine injury compensation program for the swine flu vaccine.

You Can Do it Better Naturally: The best prevention for the flu is natural. The important thing is to put your body in the best position to allow your immune system to deal with the flu.

The video below is from The National Vaccine Information Center, their website www.nvic.org is a wonderful place to find information on vaccines.

in health
DrL

New and compelling research no longer leaves doubt that sodas, both diet and regular, are a serious health risk, especially for children. The latest research is a large study by researchers at the University of California Los Angeles Center for Health Policy of 4,000 adolescents and 43,000 adults that directly links consumption of soda and other sugar-sweetened beverages with obesity. Which can be added to a list that includes diabetes and heart disease. That Americans drink an excess of these drinks, especially children, there is also no doubt. I cringe when I see young mothers come into my office with children drinking sodas, or drinking them themselves. We are a Coke culture. the medical cost of our soda habit (and I include all mass marketed sweet laden beverages) runs in the tens of billions, much paid for through tax dollars.

So kudos to the mayor of San Francisco for taking a small step in the right direction by proposing a tax on retailers that that sell the beverages. While I think a better approach is to tax the drinks directly, even this small first step is welcome.

While the idea of such a tax, like any new tax, gets people fired-up there are good reasons for this tax, and the chorus for it is beginning to swell. Of course, we can expect the beverage industry to fight with millions against any tax and the ads have already started running.

The reasons for a soda tax are many, and the issue recalls the smoking and trans fats battles, and there are arguable points on both sides.

Here are five good reasons for a soda tax.

Like any sales tax, a tax on soda will hit the poor hardest. Soda is cheap, being mostly a chemical brew of water, preservatives, flavorings, and sweetener. On the other hand, it is the poor who can least afford the empty calories and health results of reliance on soda as a “food”.

There are many unhealthy and sugary non-foods on the market, soda is the most advertised and prevalent, with enormous personal and social costs. Which is why it is well studied. While someone drinking a soda does not impact those around them directly like a smoker does with secondhand smoke, the long term health effects are a huge cost to taxpayers. This is a cost that should be addressed to those making the soda choice.

Back to school, a touch of cool to the evening air and we realize that autumn is on its way and another season of colds, flu and other winter ailments is knocking at our door. This year we have the additional awareness of an impending new flu on horizon and many are very concerned. Continuing on the theme I began last week, I would like to begin addressing pro-active approaches to staying healthy in the change of season and the coming year.

Good health and the prevention of flu start with each of us as individuals. I do not like the vaccine prevention or the “pop a pill” approach to health which many feel absolves them from the personal responsibility to do the basics for their good health.  Just keep in mind that the drug companies are not in business for your health.

I recently had words of wisdom come from the check- out counter at the grocery store when the clerk stated that she was of the opinion that you either pay the cost for a healthy grocery cart up front or, you pay on the back end with poor health and the doctor bills. As she said, “It’s much more fun to pay up front for healthier food.”

Getting sick, contracting the flu or any other virus is part of the human condition.

Modern drug based medicine cannot prevent illness. Our bodies are constantly exposed to invaders that can cause illness. The goal is to have a healthy uncompromised immune system that can fight off the “would be” invader and maintain good health.

We only produce symptoms of illness when a system is compromised by one of the following:

• pre-existing health issues
• dehydration
• lack of sleep
• excess stress
• poor diet
• and poor nutrition.

We have control over all but one of these influencing elements; our health is in our own hands.

We all know that we should drink more water, avoid sodas and sugary drinks, we all know that we need 8 hours of sleep a day, exercise daily reduces stress and healthy meals provide good nutrition. The dilemma remains, how do we follow these basic fundamental principles with our already overloaded lifestyles?

Five Simple Steps That Will Make a Difference

1: Start every day with a large glass of water and never leave home with- out either a glass or stainless steel water bottle. If you start your day with a glass of water you will reset your thirst mechanism and flush the system of toxins that build up over night in the digestive tract.

2: Try to go to bed about the same time every night. Studies show that people who go to bed and get up at the same time every day have healthier sleep patterns and better quality of sleep. Finish your evening with stretching and relaxing music. Shut off the TV, work you have brought home or any other stimulating input to your senses at least one hour before bed. Give your body a chance to shut down for the night so that even if you do not get 8 hours the time you do have will be more restful.

3: Plan a walk into your schedule every day, at lunch, after dinner in a break whenever it will fit. If you walk 20 minutes per day and stretch before bed you will have achieved some exercise every day. Of course, it would be better to get more aerobic exercise every day, but for so many of us that just doesn’t happen. This 20 minutes and daily stretching is a solid foundation for health.

4: Upgrade your diet by planning healthy snacks because so many of us, in this busy word, don’t eat rergulary. This is so important because low blood sugar equals low immunity. Write a shopping list for the week including snacks, buy prewashed vegetables and lettuce, bring your fruit home and wash it before you put it away. Pre-pack raw nuts and snacks to carry in your bag or brief case so that when you are starving you do not make poor choices but instead have a healthy food option available at the moment you need it.

5: Take good quality supplements daily. In the world of supplements you get what you pay for. Just like buying cheap processed food. Don’t waste your money on low quality. Again, pack them for lunch if you are not going to have time in the morning.

Add These 5 Supplements to Your Daily Multiple Vitamins

1. Vitamin D: A recent study found higher vitamin D status enhances your immunity to microbial infections, and that individuals with vitamin D deficiency had significantly more days of absence from work due to respiratory infection. There is a growing body of new research showing the importance of vitamin D in our health.

2. Zinc: Zinc lozenges—Use lozenges containing zinc gluconate, zinc gluconate-glycine, or zinc acetate, providing 13 to 25 mg every two hours, to help stop the cold virus and shorten the illness.

3. Vitamin C: So good for so many things. A higher-than-normal dose of 1,000 to 4,000 mg per day may make your cold shorter and milder.

4: Echinacea: At the onset of a cold or flu, 3 to 4 ml of Echinacea in a liquid preparation or 300 mg of a powdered form in capsule or tablet can be taken every two hours for the first day of illness, then three times per day for a total of seven to ten days.

5: Homeopathic Remedies: Remedies such as Oscillococcinum can decrease severity and duration of flu symptoms. I use homeopathic remedies both for prevention and for the symptoms of flu virus with great results, when your MD sends you home to suffer through symptoms a homeopathic remedy will take the sting out.

I cannot promise that you are immune from the flu with the information above, but I know that if you do succumb, you will recover more quickly and completely and you will be healthier on the other side because your body will have built a healthy natural resistance to the virus that invaded your body.

In Health
DrL

In this age of high tech medicine, highly specialized physicians and corporate managed medicine, we the patient are left to the mercy and wisdom of a specialist we just met and records that may or may not be following our care and then ultimately are not closely reviewed. The horrifying evidence of this is the new report showing a minimum of 200,000 deaths in the U.S. every year from medical errors. Making medically caused deaths the highest cause of accidentally deaths in the U.S., by far.

If the truth were told we are in fact, “our own doctor”, responsible for our own health and healing.  At some time in history we lost sight of this responsibility and surrendered our power to the medical professionals. Who like ourselves are only human (not the all knowing God they would lead us to believe).  As contradictory as it sounds, in this age of specialized medicine for profit, it is so important that we reclaim our power and become our own doctor. We should not wait until a life threatening illness motivates us into action and research.

A perfect example of this occurred in my office this week when a patient re-tells the story of the medical treatment saga surrounding and acute infection that included a sore throat, fever and swollen glands. Her pediatrician put her on a broad spectrum anti biotic and took a throat culture. While she was in the office the doctor recommended the young women receive her final vaccine for the prevention of HPV, the young women’s mother responded-“whatever you think is best doctor”.  Hearing the story, I was outraged by the indifference shown by the doctor and staff to the prime directive of, “do no harm”.

Besides the issue of some many reports of serious adverse reactions to this vaccine, and it’s questionable usefulness, vaccine packaging contains clear risk warnings to the use of any vaccine, one of these includes an active infection, which this young woman was clearly showing the signs of with the presence of fever and swollen glands.

That the doctor ignored this well known fact about vaccines is, in my opinion,  nothing less than malpractice, especially with a vaccine that can produce serious injury. Unfortunately, this is a story I hear again and again in my office.

We are the most vaccinated country in the world. There is a new vaccine put on the market every year. NO VACCINE IS MANDATORY, in a country where vaccine clinics are set up as drive through or walk by in your local supermarket, it becomes the consumer’s responsibility to do the research on the vaccine, determine the necessity and to avoid the use when suffering from an active infection. A great place to start is at the website of the National Vaccine Information Center.

Sometimes the safest health decision is to “JUST SAY NO” to standard drug-based medicine protocols, and seek treatment information using non-drug based medicine. There are often so many better choices to health than drug-based therapies.

As I thought about my first blog, the basics seemed a good place to start.

This year there has been a great deal of focus on health care. As a health care practitioner I think there is no more important place to put ones energy than in to taking care of your health. For the past 50 years we have been fast tract to convenience by the large food manufacturer and the advertising agencies that promote their products, all concerned looking for financial gain. On a daily basis I remind people that all businesses have one mission-to make a profit. Too often we believe what the advertising company wants us to believe in order to sell a product.

I challenge you to question authority remembering that the companies who make and sell boxed foods are self appointed experts in your health.

I do not believe good health is complicated or particularly difficult; it requires mindfulness and responsibility.
Responsibility to be: Your own advocates, listen to your body, and do the basic common sense elements to health.

Mindfulness that: health is a journey and we each walk a unique path to health.

By taking responsibility for our personal health we connect with and influence a much broader scope as we touch the world by being healthy we affect the broader community health starting with home and family, to workplace, to community and finally the world and environment.

Lofty goals are achieved one small step at a time, set your health intention today.

In Health
Dr L