Influenza (“the flu”) is a respiratory illness that affects millions of North American’s every single year. There are a variety of strains of influenza that circulate world wide throughout the year, and in North America, the flu season generally runs from November to April. It’s estimated that up to 25% of the population get the flu each year.

Flu vaccines have been available since sometime in the 1940’s and it’s made from fragments of inactivated influenza viruses. Since the flu virus is capable of changing from year to year it is very important that the vaccine is updated on an annual basis.

The term flu is often used to describe illnesses that may be a cold or a case of food poisoning. True influenza begins with a headache, chills, cough, and are accompanied by loss of appetite, a general achy feeling, fatigue, fever, runny nose, sneezing, watery eyes and an irritated throat. Although uncommon in adults, children can also experience nausea, vomiting and diarrhea as well.

There are certain classes of people who are deemed to be high risk and, according to the experts, should get the flu shot regularly. They are as follows:

People over the age of 65
Residents of nursing homes
People with serious illnesses such as HIV, cardiac illnesses, asthma, diabetes, and cancer
Those traveling to destinations where influenza is prevalent
Anyone who work or come into contact with those listed above
Children between 6 months and 23 months of age

It is not recommended that children under the age of 6 months or those with egg allergies get vaccinated.

Although getting the flu shot can reduce your chance of contracting the virus by 70-90% in healthy adults, there are some groups of thinking that believe that we should avoid receiving the flu shot.

The vaccine does contain mercury from Thimerosal which is a preservative that is added to the vaccine to prevent bacterial contamination. One of the problems associated with Mercury is the toxicity to the brain and the link to Alzheimer’s disease, memory loss and birth defects. In fact, according to one immunogeneticist, if an individual has had five consecutive flu shots the chances of getting Alzheimer’s disease is 10 times higher than if they had no shots.

Another reason that people avoid vaccinations is the list of toxic ingredients that are found in them such as ethylene glycol (antifreeze), formaldehyde, and aluminum.

Regardless of which side of the fence you sit on, there are things you can do to reduce your chance of contracted the flu this year. Strengthen your immune system by eating a healthy diet including lots of fruits and vegetables, wash your hands frequently, exercise regularly, get adequate sleep, and increase your intake of Vitamin C.