public_health

According to an export report, the flu vaccine may not be as effective as people would like to think.

A highly respected vaccine expert has called for an "urgent" reevaluation of vaccine campaigns related to the flu shot. According to the expert, Tom Jefferson, there is little clinical evidence that shows the flu vaccine has any effect on things like hospital stays, time off of work, death in healthy adults, and even adults suffering from conditions such as cystic fibrosis and asthma.

The expert added that flu vaccines being given to children under the age of two have about the same effect as if they were given a placebo, or some dummy drug.

According to the report by the expert, which appeared in the British Medical Journal, studying the precise effects and effectiveness of flu vaccines is very difficult for scientists to do, since influenza viruses mutate and vary from year to year. He added that most studies are of poor quality, and there is little comparative evidence regarding the safety of vaccines.

Apparently there is pressure for policymakers to be seen like they're doing something about public health, which puts policy before evidence.

This report may bring some light to a flurry of reports in the news earlier this week suggesting that flu vaccines were safe for children under the age of two. Were those reports an organized effort by big Pharma to capture the early share of mind and convince the public that vaccinating their little ones with dead virus flu serums was a safe and effective thing to do?

Related flu vaccine headlines from around the world...
CTVNews: Report casts doubt on flu vaccine effectiveness
Bloomberg: Study Finds Little Evidence to Support US Flu Vaccine Policy
Telegraph: Those flu jabs could be a waste of time, says expert

Planet Chiropractic Search: flu+vaccine

Subscribe RSS: