Biz, there's no doubt that when they get the right mix of viruses in the flu vaccine, it can offer protection. However, this year they didn't guess correctly and they say that they are expecting less than 10% efficacy for the vaccine. I think that if I worked in a hospital or doctor's office where I was exposed to a lot of sick people, I'd get it, but it's not worth the risk of side effects to get it for someone like me who isn't around sick people much. By the way, the population that they are most insistent on getting vaccinated -- people over 65 -- do not respond well to the flu vaccine and get very little protection. Less active immune systems don't have a good enough response to get protection from the vaccine. That's why the flu can sweep through a nursing home even though everyone was vaccinated.

As far as getting the flu from the flu shot -- no, you can't get it IF the vaccine is manufactured properly. The scientist that I mentioned who got a terrible case of the flu the night after getting the flu shot checked with the clinic. Lots of other people who got the shot reported the same thing, and they concluded that the virus had NOT been attenuated -- so they got a nice big dose of live virus.

That's another reason that I wouldn't get the shot if the efficacy isn't a whole lot better than 10%.

I'm not going to bother posting it, but there was another article today about how the government of the Philippines has issued an emergency STOP order on the Dengue Fever vaccine. Sanofi had repeatedly been warned by scientists that the vaccine was not safe, and that it could cause death for those who had not already had Dengue Fever (when those inoculated were exposed again). Sanofi's defense? "Only a small percentage" of people have died. Great. Thanks, Sanofi, way to build confidence in vaccines.