Health and Fitness Oasis

Nobody wants to get the flu and have to endure the pain and discomfort of its symptoms. So, out of fear, every time the ‘flu season’ comes around, many people do not need to be persuaded to get a seasonal flu shot. Of course, there is no guarantee that getting a flu shot will prevent the symptoms, but you always hope for the best and feel safer after getting the vaccine.

But then, every so often, after a few years or maybe a decade or two, a real baddie of a flu strain shows up, nobody really knows exactly whence it comes, that sends health agencies — especially the WHO, world health organization that is, (although maybe Dr. Who of the British series might have better solutions) — scrambling and taking control, much like much like Defcon 1, 2 etc of the cold war era. Fear and panic begins to spread about an imminent ‘attack’ of h1n1 (a.k.a swine flu), bird flu or some other feared strain. Medical clinics are on the alert and wait for Big Pharma to come up with a new vaccine that will save us all. Only Big Pharma are happy about this, since they stand to make very big bucks from the production and sale of the vaccines.

Now despite the fact that I tend to be squeamish about getting any kind of needle, I still prefer to take alternative preventive measures as a defense against the flu, rather than take the risk of getting a vaccine with possible side effects that I would rather not even think about, so dangerous are they!

Some of these preventive measures are just common sense, but others are not so common, so I will include a couple of them here. Read the rest of this entry »

The other day I was listening to a radio talk show when a controversial topic yet again came up for discussion — the concern over the possible threat of a swine flu pandemic.

What they stated next I found interesting, to say the least. According to health officials, persons who get regular seasonal flu shots are twice as likely to succumb to the h1n1 (a.k.a. swine flu) virus. Why am I not surprised!

If you had any doubts about abstaining from flu shots, the above statement should be reason enough. However, if you still are not convinced… Read the rest of this entry »