By now everyone has heard of the Swine Flu and thousands are racing to get vaccinated, and thousands more have already received the vaccine. If you are still not vaccinated, you may want to reconsider. I will provide some important links at the end of this blog.
I personally have not received the vaccine, nor do I plan to do so. As a nutritionist and vegetarian, I’m doing all I can to keep my immune system strong by drinking lots of clean filtered, high pH water and/or organic green teas. I’m eating lots of raw fruits, berries, and vegetables, including garlic and onions, which contain anti-viral and anti-biotic properties. More recommendations, including supplementation are below.
Before I delve into this subject, I want to share with you that I recently did a segment for EXTRA TV’s Lifechangers on How Spooky is Your Halloween Candy? Although my piece was a lot longer than originally aired, I had also stated that sugar suppresses the immune system and gave some healthy tips. They did add Dr. Mehmet Oz to my piece and asked him to validate my sugar statement, which he did. I say we are not in ‘cold and flu season’ so much as we are in ‘sugar-suppressing-the-immune-system-season”. We are eating way too much of the wrong foods and not enough of the good healthy foods.
So back to the vaccine issue and the Swine Flu: What most people don’t realize is that we are not ‘vaccine-deficient’…many of our immune systems are not strong enough to deal with the virus. Our main stream medical community and our media outlets may be failing us by not providing Americans with beneficial information on how to strengthen our immune systems. We now see that up to 80% of the children that have died from this flu did have significant or severe underlying medical problems, including weakened or compromised immune systems. As a mother, this is heart-wrenching. Even if one death could have been prevented with proper dietary and nutrition advice, someone should be sharing that information with us! Your family’s health matters!
I recently attended a “healthy communities” day-long series of lectures, and not one healthcare practitioner dared mention the importance of good nutrition in preventing the diseases they were addressing. We had a ‘specialist’ MD who addressed the issue of the H1N1 virus and the current preparations and its ‘prevention’. So I sat with enthusiasm to await the part of his lecture where he was going to address the topic of prevention. My enthusiasm turned to disappointment when the “prevention slide” was basically about washing your hands, coughing into your sleeve and getting vaccinated. There was no mention on how to increase the immune system so as to fight and prevent the virus from taking a foothold. So of course when it came time for Q/A, my question began with some qualifying statements of fact about nutrition and prevention and went something like this…”So if we know that sugar suppresses the immune system, and we know that many children are consuming high amounts of sugar and processed foods, and we know that eating more fruits and vegetables increase the immune system and reduces the risk of many diseases, would it not be prudent to share this health and nutrition information with our community? Shouldn’t we be educating people on HOW to increase their immune functions and HOW to reduce their risks?” I also added some other tips like drinking high pH water, green herbals teas, getting adequate sleep, etc. were important in keeping our immune systems strong. The physician stood for a moment in silence, many in the audience were shaking their heads in agreement with me…and he finally spoke. He smiled and agreed with me, and said that basically his talk was about the current status, the state’s preparation and that he does tell his patients to ‘eat right’. That’s it for nutrition advice!?
So, here are some REAL tips to help your immune system stay strong during cold and flu season:
- Reduce your consumption of dairy and animal proteins as these cause the body to become acidic. Colds and flu viruses love an acidic environment, so do cancer cells!
- Reduce your consumption of processed meats, artificial flavors and colors, artificial sweeteners. These are known to have negative effects on the body.
- Increase your fresh, raw fruit, vegetable and berries consumption to include up to 10 servings per day. If you have a juicer, use this daily. This will help the body rid toxins, increase immune system functions, improve circulation and provide many health benefits. Fresh fruits, vegetables, berries and grapes also increase the alkalinity (which helps the immune system!) and reduces acidic environment.
- Include/increase water consumption, best to have a high pH (clean, filtered non-chlorinated too.) Add organic green teas for added phytonutrients and liquid intake.
- Get adequate rest, and reduce stress. Sleep is so vital for repair, aim for at least 7-8 hours each night. Drink some herbal bedtime teas. Take a bath in Epsom salts (good detox!) and add some lavender and/or eucalyptus oil.
- For supplementation: take at least 800 IU of Vitamin D3; take a high quality digestive enzyme/probiotics formula (a happy gut is a healthy gut!) ; add Juice Plus+ fruit and vegetable concentrate and the grapes/berries blend. Juice Plus+ contains thousands of phyto(plant)-nutrients that can never be replicated in a vitamin pill. I work with many physicians that are recommending and using it. (for medical info/ordering http://www.thequeenofjuiceplus.com )
These are only a few tips and most certainly not meant to treat, cure, diagnosis or mitigate any disease. As with starting any new program, please see your qualified healthcare professional for further information. Never stop taking medications unless you discuss with your doctor first.
For those of you considering getting the vaccine, here are some links that you might find useful.
http://www.drjaygordon.com (world-renowned pediatrician, author and guest of TV/radio)
http://www.naturalnews.com/027102_vaccines_H1N1_flu_shot.html
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19851782?ordinalpos=1&itool=Email.EmailReport.Pubmed_ReportSelector.Pubmed_RVDocSum
http://www.naturalnews.com/swine_flu.html
http://www.NaturalNews.com/026866_swine_flu_flu_vaccine_swine_flu_vaccine.html
And from Pediatricians, Dr. William, Dr. Bob and Dr. Jim Sears:
With the threat of H1N1 flu, the government is recommending everyone begin their regular flu shots earlier this year, as in right now. The available brands are virtually identical to what they were last year (and the year before) as far as manufacturing and ingredients go (including mercury).
The most important thing for infants, children, and pregnant women is to MAKE SURE YOU ARE GETTING A MERCURY-FREE FLU VACCINE. Here is a list of this year’s available flu vaccines with updated info on mercury content:
FLUZONE shot
This is the only brand approved for all age ranges, from young infants to adults. It comes in four different formulations:
Pre-filled syringe for infants 6 through 35 months (contains ½ dose) – NO mercury.
Pre-filled syringe for children 3 years and older and adults – NO mercury.
Single-dose vial for children 3 years and older and adults – NO mercury.
Multi-dose vial for infants 6 months and older, children and adults – contains the full dose of mercury (25 mcg of thimerosal). Infants 6 thru 35 months would get a ½ dose of this form, all others would get a full dose.
FLUZONE is the only brand of flu shot approved for young infants and toddlers. BEWARE – the multi-dose vial has the full dose of mercury. You have to make sure you are getting a single-dose pre-filled syringe or vial, NOT the multi-dose vial to avoid mercury.
FLUMIST nasal spray
An alternative to the flu SHOT for young children is the FLUMIST nasal spray. There is no mercury in this formulation. It is approved for children 2 years and older and adults through age 49.
FLUVIRIN shot
This shot is approved for children 4 years and older and adults. It comes in two formulations:
Pre-filled syringe – has a trace of mercury (see below)
Multi-dose vial – has the full dose of mercury
FLUARIX shot
This is only for adults 18 years and older. It only comes as a pre-filled syringe with NO mercury (this is new this year: in past years, there was a trace of mercury).
FLULAVAL shot
This is only for adults 18 years and older. It only comes as a multi-dose vial with the full dose of mercury.
AFLURIA shot
This is only for adults 18 years and older. It has two formulations:
Pre-filled syringe with no mercury
Multi-dose vial with the full dose of mercury
TIMING THE FLU VACCINE WITH OTHER VACCINES
Because the flu vaccine is so reactive (likely to cause fever and flu-like side effects), I prefer to avoid giving it with other reactive shots (like MMR, Hep B, Chickenpox, or the H1N1 vaccine). I recommend at least one month between the flu shot and any of these. I would place the priority on the flu shot over the MMR, Hep B or Chickenpox; delay any of those until it’s been at least a month after the flu shot. I do think it’s ok to get the flu shot with any other vaccine on the same day. The teenage vaccines (Tdap, Meningococcal, and HPV) are also fairly reactive, so it would be better to get any flu shots at least one month apart from any of those as well.
As for the H1N1 vaccine, I won’t be recommending that anyone get it at the same time as the regular flu vaccine. So, if you anticipate that you or your child will likely be getting an H1N1 vaccine in October or November, I would get the flu vaccine now (if you are going to get it). Another option, wait until November or December, 1 month after you’ve gotten the H1N1. The flu is unlikely to hit until that time anyway.
Keep in mind that infants and children 8 years or younger need 2 doses of the flu shot the first year they ever get it. So, if this is your child’s first year of flu shots, you need to plan ahead and not get any other reactive shots during those two months.
NASAL SPRAY VERSUS THE SHOT?
The nasal spray is a great alternative for anyone who wanted the shot, but can’t find a mercury-free version. It seems that the nasal spray works a little better, but causes flu-like side effects more often. It also shouldn’t be used in anyone with asthma or a history of wheezing. The shot seems to not quite work as well, but may cause fewer side effects. I have a slight preference for the nasal spray, because it’s a more natural form of vaccination (it is given nasally, which is how the flu is naturally contracted).
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TRACE AND FULL-DOSE MERCURY?
In trace mercury vaccines, mercury is added to the manufacturing process as a preservative, but is then filtered out at the end before being put into single-dose syringes or vials. A full preservative isn’t needed because this vial or syringe is only opened and used once, then discarded. The amount of mercury in vaccines that are labeled “trace” is less than 1 microgram. I believe that this amount is completely harmless (as opposed to the full dose).
In full-dose mercury vaccines, the mercury is not filtered out. The preservative is needed for these large 10-dose vials because many doses are drawn out, and the solution needs to stay sterile during that process. The amount of thimerosal in these large vials is 25 micrograms per dose (any infants through age 3 getting a Fluzone shot from the multi-dose vial with mercury would only be getting a half dose, so each shot would be 12.5 micrograms).
WHY NOT JUST MAKE ALL FLU SHOTS WITHOUT MERCURY?
The challenge is space and money. The five different companies that make the flu shot have to scramble every year to make enough. It costs more money and takes up more manufacturing time and space to put single doses of the flu shot into syringes or single-dose vials, compared to putting 10 doses into larger vials. In order to accommodate the demand, manufacturers have to make most of their product “in bulk”. In the future I hope that more companies will change to mercury-free formulations, or the almost-as-good trace mercury formulations.
INFANTS AND PREGNANT WOMEN – JUST SAY NO TO MERCURY
The debate over whether or not mercury in the flu shot is enough to cause harm continues to rage on, with no clear resolution yet. I believe it is prudent in the mean time to avoid giving any full-dose mercury shots to children under 3 and to pregnant women. What should you do if all you can find is a full-dose version? Just say no, and tell your doctor why. Maybe if enough patients do this, doctors will order and demand more of the mercury-free version for next year. For kids 2 years and older, get the nasal spray instead (this can’t be given to pregnant women).
NEW FLU SHOT RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THIS YEAR?
The ACIP, AAP and CDC have decided that it would be beneficial for all children to get a flu shot every year until age 18. Previously the recommendation was for all children until age 5. They don’t know whether or not to push the new policy for THIS year, or wait until next year, because they don’t know if there will be enough flu vaccine to go around to immunize every child and teenager. They don’t want to make a new policy unless they have enough vaccine to cover it. But whether it goes into effect this year or next, it is now believed by medical experts that it’s best to get a flu vaccine for all children and teens every year.