The first round of the H1N1 Swine Flu vaccines started distribution on Monday. Many are in need of this vaccine but there are just as many who fear it. While it was originally dubbed the "swine flu" the H1N1 flu is causing widespread rumors when in fact the virus had never been found in pigs. Many people have compared it to the 1976 "swine flu," which the government warned could kill millions but never arrived.
The H1N1 Flu is real and it is causing deaths. Many may not see it as a pandemic, but the fact that the people who need the vaccine fear it more than the flu itself is causing great concern. Those who don't get the vaccine who need it, such as the elderly or children, run the risk of not only contracting the H1N1 virus, but spreading it.
People who are not sure about the new H1N1 flu vaccine might wait to see the results of early vaccinations. They may not want to wait too long. A vaccine typically takes two to four weeks to work through a person's system.
A recent national poll found that only 40 percent of parents planned to get their child vaccinated against H1N1. Fast spreading Internet rumors, such as the one about seasonal-flu shots increasing the lack of resistance to H1N1, are causing more fear than good.
Scientists rapidly produced the vaccine which worries many. The fact is, however, that although this H1N1 virus is new, the vaccine is not. It was made and tested in exactly the same way that flu vaccines are always made and tested.
The bottom line is that people need to be educated. Getting their education about the H1N1 flu from Internet rumors is not going to help anyone. You might choose to see a movie because it's rumored to be really great and is a Twitter trending topic but would you care for your health based on general conversation? Hopefully not.
Pregnant women are foregoing the vaccine because they fear that there is too much mercury (thimerosal, which is 49% ethylmercury) in the vaccine, which may harm the unborn child. Reports of mercury causing autism have been made, but the amount of mercury needed to cause austism is not known for certain. With careful research and conversations with medical professionals, instead of buying into rumors, pregnant women would find out that there is a vaccine available without thimerosal.
Thimerosal preservative-free influenza vaccines are available, but in limited quantities. The total amount of inactivated influenza vaccine available without thimerosal as a preservative will continue to increase as manufacturing capabilities are expanded.
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the benefits of the vaccine, with or without thimerosal, outweigh the risk, especially in pregnant women. Case reports and limited studies indicate that pregnancy can increase the risk for serious medical complications of influenza, such as pneumonia.
Meanwhile, the virus has now appeared in a hundred and ninety-one countries. It has killed almost four thousand people and infected millions of others. The risks are clear. If you are unclear about the facts about the illness or the potential risks of the H1N1 Swine Flu vaccine, contact your physician. Rumors on this serious illness will spread as fast as the flu itself. If you are in a risk group or are unsure if a child, pregnant woman or the elderly should have the new H1N1 vaccine, get the right information before you make a proper decision before you decide to forgo the vaccine.
Cheryl Phillips
Exclusive to HULIQ.com
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