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03-10-2009 - Why I Got the H1N1 Swine Flu Vaccine (and other flu related information)

My mood while writing this blog: concerned

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As many of you already know, I was initially completely against getting the H1N1 vaccine. After extensive research, I changed my position and received the vaccine on Tuesday October 20th. I thought I would share my reasoning here.

First, let me preface by saying that I am not a person who is big on vaccines. I believe in the disputed/ controversial argument that there is a link between vaccines and autism/ ADHD/ and autoimmune disorder in children. In general, I am not a person who takes medications. I have a drawer in my house that contains prescription bottles filled but never taken. I don't take antibiotics, pain medication, or anything else, even when the doctor prescribes it. Instead, I am a big proponent of alternative medicine. I visit my acupuncturist and Chinese herbalist on a regular basis. My medicine cabinet is stocked with homeopathic and herbal remedies -- which unlike the alopathic prescriptions, I actually use!! As a woman 6 months pregnant, I am especially cautious about EVERYTHING I put into my body. From food to water (and water bottles) to chemical exposure, I am extremely cautious and careful, and began this "hyper-vigilance" 4 months before conception in order to ensure that my body was an ideal vessel for gestation!

Given my super consciousness around health and protecting my unborn child, I have spent more hours than I would like to admit conducting extensive research on both seasonal flu, H1N1 flu, and their respective vaccines. I have read CDC studies, reports in the Journal of American Medicine, & current studies out of the US, Australia, and Canada. I have followed the new H1N1 flu as it has traveled through the southern hemisphere winter and have watched its effect on populations in Australia, South Africa, and South America. I have researched vaccine manufacturers and their respective processes and additives. I have watched the news with a most critical lens and done my utmost to decipher between "media hype" and actual causes for alarm. I have spoken with epidemiologists at the CDC, the lead researcher conducting H1N1 vaccine trials on pregnant women at Duke, and representatives of two of the vaccine manufacturers. I have consulted with my midwives, obstetrician, primary care physician, acupuncturist, Chinese herbalist, massage therapist and my own inner wisdom. This is what I have determined.

1) While I personally have not had the flu in over 10 years (despite working for many years as a public school teacher), and have not taken the flu shot since 2002, I decided that this year both my husband and I would get the seasonal flu shot. The reason for this decision is that when our baby is born in February, the height of flu season, we will be his/ her primary caregivers. We are both teachers working in university, high school, and middle school settings. While the likelihood of either of us getting seasonal flu and bringing it home to our baby is slim, it is a risk I did not want to take, especially after reading the heartbreaking story of a 6 month old who died last year of seasonal flu. His mother was a flight attendant who did not get the seasonal flu vaccine, and after returning to work after her maternity leave, she caught the flu and brought it home to her baby. While seasonal flu is not deadly in otherwise healthy adults, it can be fatal in infants and the elderly. My husband and I both felt that getting the vaccine would help to protect our baby when s/he is born. In addition, while seasonal flu is not typically fatal in pregnant women, it certainly can be much more severe than in the general population. I am a teacher who is generally exposed to a lot of illness, and my immune system is presently compromised by the pregnancy. Therefore, I felt it was important to be vaccinated and not get seasonal flu while pregnant. That being said, I resolved that I would ONLY get the vaccine if I could find a thimerisol free version (mercury free). The theory that autism and other childhood disorders are linked to vaccines surrounds the notion that vaccines contain thimerisol, a mercury derivative. It took 5 weeks to find it, countless phone calls to my various care providers, Department of Public Health, State CDC, and a multitude of CVS minute clinics and Walgreens. I finally found it at a Walgreens on September 18th. I went and got it that night. The manufacturer of the thimerisol free single dose flu shot that I got is CSL laboratories. The other manufactuere of seasonal flu shot without mercury is Sanofi Pasteur. More information on the mercury content of seasonal flu vaccine by manufacturer can be found at: http://cdc.gov/flu/about/qa/vaxsupply.htm

2) The H1N1 flu is not simply another flu. While thankfully H1N1 has been mild in most cases thus far, it is a serious flu that can have a devastating effect on otherwise healthy individuals. Yes, it is true that more people die annually from seasonal influenza than have succumbed to H1N1. But consider this: otherwise healthy children and adults do not typically die of regular seasonal flu. Regular seasonal flu predictably strikes worse with higher mortality rates in elderly populations, in individuals who are severely immune compromised (such as those living with AIDS or undergoing chemotherapy treatment), and in some cases infants whose immune systems are unaccustomed to the flu. Otherwise healthy people do not typically die of flu. Now consider the multiple cases of otherwise healthy young adults, children, and pregnant women with no underlying health issues who have died in the H1N1 pandemic. Earlier this month I spent half an hour consoling one of my students whose otherwise healthy 18 year old friend died of the H1N1. He was a member of the lacrosse team, an athlete in excellent physical condition who spent much of the last summer doing humanitarian work in Peru. He had no underlying health issues. He took Tamiflu (an anti-viral) within 24 hours of becoming ill. He was dead in 3 weeks, his otherwise healthy lungs ravaged by H1N1. This is not an isolated case. This has been the pattern of mortality in H1N1. Most hospitalizations have been among otherwise healthy 20 somethings. The average rate of mortality is 37. Over 50 otherwise healthy children have died of H1N1 in this country alone. This is very different from regular seasonal flu.

3. H1N1 has been particularly virulent in pregnant women. At last count (9/8/09) 58 pregnant women had died of H1N1 in Brazil, over 30 in South Africa, over 10 in Australia, and at least 6 in Europe. Currently 28 pregnant women have died of swine flu in the United States. Pregnant women are also four to seven times as likely to require hospitalization with H1N1 than other segments of the population. H1N1 is not something to be taken lightly, particularly in pregnancy. The risk of mortality to the mother and fetus is higher than the risk of complications from the vaccine. Furthermore, the primary concern with the vaccine in pregnancy is not the antibodies (which pass through the placenta to the fetus and have a 63% rate of providing much needed protection against flu to the baby in the first 6 months after birth). The primary concerns with the vaccine in pregnancy, in terms of risk to the fetus, are the mercury derived preservatives and the adjuvents. As previously discussed, it is possible to find thirmerisol free H1N1 vaccine. It is being produced by CSL laboratories and Sanofi Pasteur and should be available in the US for pregnant women. The Sanofi vaccine is also approved for children. Novartis makes a vaccine with less than 1 mcg (micrgram, or millionth of a gram) of mercury. While this is less preferred than the CSL or Sanofi, it is currently in greater distribution, while the Sanofi and CSL thimerisol vaccines will not be in distribution until mid November. Adjuvents are chemical additives in a vaccine that produce a stronger immune response. Adjuvents have been banned in the US for some time due to questions about their safety. They are still widely used in vaccines in Europe where they are believed to be safe. Canada has ordered adjuvent free vaccine for pregnant women, though it has not come in yet. The H1N1 vaccine in the US is reported to currently be adjuvent free, though adjuvanted vaccine has been ordered by the US government from Novartis. This adjuvanted vaccine may go into distribution sometime laster this flu season, and it does contain the adjuvant squalene. Squalene was used in the Anthrax vaccine administered to Gulf War veterans, and there is some belief that it was this adjuvent that lead to the autoimmune disorder known as "Gulf War Syndrome". Squalene is also used in another vaccine patented by Novartis that is meant to sterilize livestock. It seems that this particular ingredient should be contraindicated in pregnancy, though the Canadian government is now claiming the adjuvanted vaccaine (from Glaxo Smith Kline, with squalene) is OK for pregnant women. I do not believe this statement and would not personally take a vaccine with the adjuvant during pregnancy. There is a website similar to the one posted on seasonal flu vaccine that details the additives and preservatives used by the different manufacturers of H1N1 vaccine http://vaccinesafety.edu/thi-table.htm. I do believe it is essential for me, as a pregnant woman, to receive vaccine that is thimerisol and adjuvent free.

There are some practicle things that all of us can do to limit our exposure and stay healthy:

1) Limit your exposure, or practice social distancing. This means doing things like calling the local supermarket and finding out when their LEAST busy time is during the week. Do your shopping then. It also means avoiding places that will be heavily crowded, such as a concert or major community event. You need to be able to keep a distance of 10 feet from anyone who is coughing or sneezing. You also need to be strict about who you allow into your home and in close contact with your children. That friend who thinks they just have a cold? Maybe that was ok in July, but it's not ok now. A lot of people with swine flu have symptoms that at first seem to just be a cold. Great for them. Not so great if they pass it on to someone vulnerable who would develop a more severe case. You need a full out house ban on anyone with a sniffle.

2) Hand washing can not be stressed enough. You should do it as often as possible and encourage family members to do the same. You should wash your hands each time before you touch your nose, mouth, or eyes, and especially before preparing or handling food. Sanitizer gels can be used in between hand washing. Be particularly vigilant around public doorknobs, railings, and other places that are likely to be heavily handled.

3) Nose and throat washing is equally as important as handwashing. This is because despite our best efforts, exposure for many of us is inevitable. But one the virus enters the nose or throat, it take about 3 days to proliferate (spread) and make you sick. The nose and throat should be flushed with saltwater each night to rinse away virus particles, and change the PH of the nose and throat just enough to make proliferation more difficult. Use a neti pot for the nose and gargle with salt water.

4) Be careful about supplements. There is a principle in Chinese medicine that "a robust immune system produces a robust response." In fact, this is why otherwise healthy people are dying of swine flu. Their strong immune systems produces a storm of cytokines -- immune responding cells-- which then attack the virus in the lungs causing inflammation so severe, the patients literally drown. http://femailhealthnews.blogspot.com/2009/04/cytokine-storm-and-h1n1-swine-flu-virus.html This is not the year when you want to pump yourself or your children up with echinacea, Airborn, or other herbal products that produce a more robust immune response. However, there is some evidence that those who suffer more severely from seasonal influenza and swine flu consistently also suffer from Vitamin D deficiency. It could be a good move to get your Vitamin D levels checked and see if there is any need to supplement with additional Vitamin D. Incidentally, Canadian doctors now recommend pregnant women get 2,000 IUs of Vitamin D (as opposed to the 400 recommended by the FDA in the US), and that nursing mothers take in up to 6,000 IUs of Vitamin D a day in order to be able to pass 400 IUs daily in their breast milk. More information at: http://lewrockwell.com/miller/miller27.html The research on Vitamin D is also very preliminary. While the findings are quite promising, it is not yet 100% clear what the proper dosing should be to prevent flu. Additionally, there is a good deal of evidence that taking fish oil supplements (DHA) work in the same way as Vitamin D to prevent the overly robust immune response that leads to greater infection in the lungs. Finally, daily antioxidents such as green tea or acai berry can support the body's defense against viral infection.

4) Keep some things on hand in the house that you might need in case of illness. Pregnant women can (and should) take Tylenol for fever. Robitussin or Mucinex are also import to prevent lung congestion. Cough drops, soups, bottled water, etc are all good to have on hand. Also make sure you have a digital thermometer AND a prescription of Tamiflu. There are some Tamiflu resistant strains of Influenza circulating right now, but it's still good to have on hand in your medicine cabinet.

Finally, keep in mind that everyone’s situation is different -- I am pregnant, living in the city, and working in the schools while my husband is also teaching in a university setting where many young people are quite sick with H1N1. For us, the decision is clear that we will have to be immunized. It is quite scary. I am worried about getting a vaccine that is new. I am afraid of side effects, allergic reactions, etc. But I have to counter my fear with fact based research which clearly demonstrates to me that the risk of not getting the vaccine at this time could be much worse. It is really a crash course in parenting for me, because ultimately we just have to make a decision, and cannot always know if it is/ was the right one. But we do our best to take care of ourselves and our children, born and unborn, and ultimately must leave the rest to faith. I can't tell you what to do in terms of vaccinating yourselves or your children, but I hope the information I presented is useful. It seems that there may be risks associated with either decision -- to vaccinate or not to vaccinate-- but you have to do your best to filter through all the information that is out there and make the decision that is best for you and your family. What is the lesser risk? Which choice will best protect your family?

Good luck with your decision making process, and everyone stay healthy this flu season!!

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4 Comments on Why I Got the H1N1 Swine Flu Vaccine (and other flu related information)


OverTheRainbow - Saturday, 24 Oct
What kind of research did you find that discusses the complications from the vaccine?

AnneDC - Wednesday, 7 Oct
This was a really well written editorial and I appreciate you sharing your well-researched thoughts on this topic. You bring a very balanced perspective to a subject that often has more sensationalism than facts on both sides of the fence.I am still on the fence - I, too, have never been sicker from the flu than the two times I received a flu shot. I also try to to use natural medicines when possible, but I am not completely against traditional medicines. We have quite a few folks in our family and who are close friends that are nurse practitioners and physicians, and they are mostly strongly FOR both flu vaccines but they are so consistently pro every vaccine that it can be hard to get a balanced opinion from the majority of them.Anyhow, my biggest concern is that I have a two year old, and with her exploring the world as she is right now she picks stuff up - that's what toddlers do. I never thought I would consider the flu vaccine again, nor H1N1 after reading about of the disasters the swine flu vaccine of the 1970's caused, but...having a toddler is making me reconsider a lot of things, and your opinion on the matter was well presented. Thanks for taking the time to write this all out and share.

mere-and-girl - Saturday, 3 Oct
Thank you for finding all of this information. Last night I actually broke down crying from the stress of having to make this decision. I have only ever gotten the flu shot once, last year, and got more sick than I have any year previous. This made me very hesitant to get any vaccines, as right now there's not much I can take if I do get sick. I'm glad you were able to find this information, and will be talking to my mom and sil, who are both nurses, about their opinions and knowledge, as well as talking to my doctor about us. I agree that this decision has me wondering whether I am going to be able to make the decisions necessary when the baby gets here. Good luck to you, and thank you again.

Andrea Expecting4th - Saturday, 3 Oct
Thanks for the info... As hard as the decision is, I feel like getting the shot is the best decision for me and my family... My children will get it as well... I have one daughter who is 4 who just had heart surgery this past summer and who is at a greater risk... Im hoping we can find a place that offers the mercury free shot as well... I only wish the shot was available today!