Vaccines for the Flu?

Lately I've been getting a lot of questions about whether or not I think the flu vaccine is a good idea. So, I am posting here an email I just sent to a friend on this topic.

But, be warned! I am not a doctor. I'm just a reasonably well educated person who reads a lot.

So follow my advice (or not) at your own risk!

"Well, I'm against the vaccine. What I've read, is that it typically doesn't stop people from getting the flu, just lessens the severity a little. With all the anecdotal evidence out there that the adjuvants in the the vaccines, like thimerosal and squalene, can cause lots of damage in some kids, I'm dubious.

I'd rather my kids get immunity the good old fashion way without the mercury additives. That's my very biased and "non medical degree" view of it. I know vaccines have done lots of good in general, but I think the "disease theory" focus of our medical system is profit motivated. Did you hear about the doctor at Penn, Dr. Paul Offit, who is on the board of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (and other organizations like that) who also holds the patent on one of the vaccines he oversees on the board? He reaped something like $30 million in royalties. How can that guy be unbiased? Here are some links to info on him:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Offit

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/06/25/vaccine-doctor-given-at-least-30-million-dollars-to-push-vaccines.aspx

http://www.wellnesschiropractic.com/news.php?subaction=showfull&id=1254770291&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&

I think a better plan is good education about nutrition, supplements, etc. and taking time out from our busy, stressful lives to get some rest when we get sick (and before we get sick!). As long as we focus people's attention on the boogaboo germs and the magic bullets to treat them, then folks don't have to deal with their own habits regarding their health. Of course then people like us who seem to be doing a good job in that regard still get sick. So, I don't know in the end, what the right answer is. It would be great to never get sick, but the data I've seen is that over the last decade, in spite of the fact that flu vaccination rates are way up, the rate of infection with flu has not gone down. It's actually gone up. So, how can it be helping? In the end, I think flu shots are bogus. I've had many patients tell me they got the flu shot and then got sick any way."

And this from Failblog sums it all up:

http://failblog.org/2009/10/06/innoculation-fail/

And finally, this from About.com on why the flu shot is not always effective in the first place:

http://chemistry.about.com/cs/howthingswork/a/aa011604a.htm

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN COLD, SEASONAL FLU & H1N1 SYMPTOMS

This is some really helpful information to help discern what kind of bug you might have if you get sick this fall. Keep this info handy to help you decide what the best course of treatment might be. And remember, healthy eating, exercise, hand washing, acupuncture treatment, 5,000 IU vitamin D3, vitamin C, and LOTS of fresh water are the best ways to stay healthy and avoid getting sick in the first place! If you start getting a cold, "Cold Snap" is a great way to beat it quick! I sell it in the office for $20 a bottle. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN COLD, SEASONAL FLU & H1N1 SYMPTOMS
SYMPTOM		COLD		SEASONAL FLU		H1N1
FEVER		Fever is rare with a cold.		Fever is common with the seasonal flu.		Fever is usually present with H1N1 in up to 80% of all flue cases. A temperature of 101°
COUGHING		A hacking, productive (mucus-producing) cough is often present with a cold.		A dry and hacking cough is often present with the seasonal flu.		A non-productive(non-mucus producing) cough is usually present with H1N1 (sometimes referred to as dry cough).*
ACHES		Slight body aches and pains can be part of a cold.		Moderate body aches are common with the seasonal flu.		Severe aches and pains are common with H1N1.*
STUFFY NOSE		Stuffy nose is commonly present with a cold and typically resolves spontaneously within a week.		A runny nose is commonly present with the seasonal flu.		Stuffy nose is not commonly present with H1N1.
CHILLS		Chills are uncommon with a cold.		Chills are mild to moderate with the seasonal flu.		60% of people who have H1N1 experience chills.
TIREDNESS		Tiredness is fairly mild with a cold.		Tiredness is moderate and more likely referred to as a lack of energy with the seasonal flu.		Tiredness is moderate to severe with H1N1.*
SNEEZING		Sneezing is commonly present with a cold		Sneezing is commonly present with the seasonal flu.		Sneezing is not common with H1N1.
SUDDEN SYMPTOMS		Cold symptoms tend to develop over a few days.		Symptons tend to develop over a few days and include flushed face, loss of appetite, dizziness and/or vomiting/nausea. Symptoms usually last 4-7 days, depending on the individual. Diarrhea is common.		H1N1 has a rapid onset within 3-6 hours. H1N1 hits hard and includes sudden symptoms like high fever, aches and pains. Symptoms usually last 4-7 days, depending on the individual. Diarrhea is common.
HEADACHE		A headache is fairlyuncommon with a cold.		A headache is fairly common with the seasonal flu.		A headache is very common with H1N1 and present in 80% of cases.*
SORE THROAT		Sore throat is commonly presentwith a cold.		Sore throat is commonly present with the seasonal flu.		Sore throat is notcommonly present with H1N1.
CHEST DISCOMFORT		Chest discomfort ismild to moderate with a cold.		Chest discomfort is moderate with the seasonal flu. If it turns severe seek medical attention immediately!		Chest discomfort is often severe with H1N1.
PREVENTION TIPS:
ücough & sneeze into your elbow
üwash hands with soap and warm water for a minimum of 15 -20 seconds. Sing your abc's or happy birthday to you
üuse hand sanitizer when soap & water are not available
üavoid touching eyes, nose or mouth without washing or using hand sanitizer first

Acupuncture for Kids?

Here's a video from ABC News about the use of acupuncture for kids:

Scientific evidence of Acupuncture Meridians

Here is a fascinating article in Acupuncture Today that explains the exciting discovery of what are called Bonghan channels. Bonghan channels, named after their original discoverer, appear to be the first physiological structures that correlate to the acupuncture meridian pathways that have been used by acupuncturists for thousands of years.

The article is very technical, but explains in fascinating detail several theories about how acupuncture works....and why it works so well with so few side effects.

Acupuncture Today
April, 2009, Vol. 11, Issue 04

Bonghan Channels in Acupuncture
By David Milbradt, LAc

As a practicing acupuncturist, I find that I continually wonder how a few well-placed needles can have such transformative results in my patients. Over the past 10 years I have read explanations that vary from the vague and mystical idea that the needles move qi in the meridians to scientific explanations where the effects of acupuncture stimulus are explained entirely by its influence on the nervous system. I read all of these theories with interest, but somehow they do not quite explain the day-to- day changes that I see in my clinic. Most of these theories seem limited and tend to restrict or underestimate the diversity of healing responses that I see in my patients.

Recently, however, a number of scientific papers have been published that have the potential to revolutionize our understanding of how acupuncture works. A group of Korean researchers have rediscovered threadlike microscopic anatomical structures that correspond with the layout of traditional acupuncture meridians or channels. Acupuncture channels are no longer imaginary lines, but specific anatomical structures that, until now, have not been recognized by current theories of anatomy. These channels have been found inside of blood and lymphatic vessels and they also form networks that overlay internal organs.

The channels are called Bonghan channels after Kim Bonghan, a North Korean who published papers describing them in the 1960s, a decade before acupuncture was introduced to the American public. Although his discoveries were confirmed by the Japanese researchers Fujiwara and Yu in 1967, his work was discounted by other scientists because he never revealed his formula for the staining dye that revealed these structures. Almost 40 years later, Kim's discoveries have been confirmed by a variety of studies with rats, rabbits and pigs. Stereo-microscope photographs and images from transmission electron microscopy in the research papers show assemblies of tubular structures 30 to 100 mm wide (red blood cells are 6-8 mm in diameter)........
click here to read the whole article

Senate Hearing on Preventing Disease, not just Treating it

Here is a link to some senate hearings regarding health care. Mehmet Oz, Dean Ornish, Mark Hyman and Andrew Weil were talking to the senate about changing the US health system. They want to swicth from treating disease to preventing them. Treatments like teaching people to eat right are endorsed. This is really good news!
 
 
http://help.senate.gov/Hearings/2009_02_26/2009_02_26.html

Female Heart Attcks

This info may come in handy and may even save your life (or the life of someone you love).  Please feel free to share it!

NURSE'S HEART ATTACK EXPERIENCE

This has been  passed on from an ER nurse and is the best description of this event that she had ever heard. Please read, pay attention, and send it on!
                                                        
                  FEMALE HEART ATTACKS

I was aware that female heart attacks are different, but this is the best description I've ever read.

Women and heart attacks (Myocardial Infarction).  Did you know that women rarely have the same dramatic symptoms that men have when experiencing heart attack ... you know, the sudden stabbing pain in the chest, the cold sweat, grabbing the chest & dropping to the floor that we see in the movies.  Here is the story of one woman's experience with a heart attack.

I had a heart attack at about 10 :30 PM with NO prior exertion, NO prior emotional trauma that one would suspect might've brought it on.  
I was sitting all snugly & warm on a cold evening, with my purring cat in my lap, reading an interesting story my friend had sent me, and actually thinking,  'A-A-h, this is the life, all cozy and warm in my soft, cushy Lazy Boy with my feet propped up.

A moment later, I felt that awful sensation of indigestion, when you've been in a hurry and grabbed a bite of sandwich and washed it down with a dash of water, and that hurried bite seems to feel like you've swallowed a golf ball going down the esophagus in slow motion and it is most uncomfortable. You realize you shouldn't have gulped it down so fast and needed to chew it more thoroughly and this time drink a glass of water to hasten its progress down to the stomach. This was my initial sensation---the only trouble was that I hadn't taken a bite of anything since a bout 5:00 p.m.

After it seemed to subside, the next sensation was like little squeezing motions that seemed to be racing up my SPINE (hind-sight, it was probably my aorta spasming), gaining speed as they continued racing up and under my sternum (breast bone, where one presses rhythmically when administering CPR).

This fascinating process continued on into my throat and branched out into both jaws.  'AHA!! NOW I stopped puzzling about what was happening -- we all have read and/or heard about pain in the jaws being one of the signals of an MI happening, haven't we?  I said aloud to myself and the cat, 'Dear God, I think I'm having a heart attack!'

I lowered the footrest dumping the cat from my lap, started to take a step and fell on the floor instead. I thought to myself, If this is a heart attack, I shouldn't be walking into the next room where the phone is or anywhere else ... but, on the other hand, if I don't, nobody will know that I need help, and if I wait any longer I may not be able to get up in moment.

I pulled myself up with the arms of the chair, walked slowly into the next room and dialed the Paramedics .. I told her I thought I was having a heart attack due to the pressure building under the sternum and radiating into my jaws. I didn't feel hysterical or afraid, just stating the facts.  She said she was sending the Paramedics over immediately, asked if the front door was near to me, and if so, to unbolt the door and then lie down on the floor where they could see me when they came in.

I unlocked the door and then lay down on the floor as instructed and lost consciousness, as I don't remember the medics coming in, their examination, lifting me onto a gurney or getting me into their ambulance, or hearing the call they made to St. Jude ER on the way, but I did briefly awaken when we arrived and saw that the Cardiologist was already there in his surgical blues and cap, helping the medics pull my stretcher out of the ambulance. He was bending over me asking questions (probably something like  'Have you taken any medications?'' but I couldn't make my mind interpret what he was saying, or form an answer,  and nodded off again, not waking up until the Cardiologist and partner had already threaded the teeny angiogram balloon up my femoral artery into the aorta and into my heart where they installed 2 side by side stents to hold open my right coronary artery.

I know it sounds like all my thinking and actions at home must have taken at least 20-30 minutes before calling the Paramedics, but actually it took perhaps 4-5 minutes before the call, and both the fire station and St. Jude are only minutes away from my home, and my Cardiologist was already to go to the OR in his scrubs and get going on restarting my heart (which had stopped somewhere between my arrival and the procedure) and installing the stents.

Why have I written all of this to you with so much detail?  Because I want all of you to know what I learned first hand.

1.  Be aware that something very different is happening in your body not the usual men's symptoms but  inexplicable things happening (until my sternum and jaws got into the act).  It is said that many more  women than men die of their first (and last) MI  because they didn't know they were having one and commonly mistake it as indigestion, take some Maalox or other anti-heartburn preparation and go to bed, hoping they'll feel better in the morning when they wake up ... which doesn't happen.   
My female friends, your symptoms might not be exactly like mine, so I advise you to call the Paramedics if ANYTHING is unpleasantly happening that you've not felt before.
 It is better to have a 'false alarm' visitation than to risk your life guessing what it might be!

2.  Note that I said ''Call the Paramedics.'' And if you can,  take an aspirin.  Ladies, TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!
  Do NOT try to drive yourself to the ER you are a hazard  to others on the road.
 Do NOT have your panicked husband who will be speeding  and looking anxiously at what's happening with you instead of the road.
 Do NOT call your doctor -- he doesn't know where you  live and if it's at night you won't reach him anyway, and if it's daytime, his assistants (or answering service) will  tell you to ca ll the Paramedics. He doesn't carry the equipment in his car that you need to be saved! The Paramedics do, principally OXYGEN that you need ASAP. Your Dr. will be notified later.

3.   Don't assume it couldn't be a heart attack because you have a normal cholesterol count.  Research has discovered that a cholesterol elevated reading is rarely the cause of an MI (unless it's unbelievably high and/or accompanied  by high blood pressure). MI's are usually caused   by long-term stress and inflammation in the  body,  which dumps all sorts of deadly hormones into your system to sludge things up in there.
   Pain in the jaw can wake you from a sound sleep.
   Let's be careful and be aware. The more we know,  the better chance we could survive.    

A cardiologist says, if everyone who gets this mail sends it to 10 people, you can be sure that we'll save at least one life.

**Please be a true  friend and send this article to all your friends (male & female) you care about!**

Pro Athletes using acupuncture

More and more professional athelets are using acupuncture to stay in peak condition.

Just a few examples:

NFL:
James Harrison (Steelers)
Jeremy Shockey (NY)

CYCLING
Taylor Phinney

BASKETBALL:
Shaquile O'Neal

HOCKEY:
Jaromir Jagr

and many, many more.....

Below is some text from an article in Sports Illustrated:

Acupuncture is big on the Steelers.
One night last week, I was with an NBC crew in Pittsburgh linebacker James Harrison's home north of Pittsburgh. He was talking about staying in one piece during the physical NFL season, and he said he owed a lot to acupuncture.
Specifically, 314 needles per session, twice a week. That's how many he has stuck into his body, from his head to his feet ... and they're not pin-pricks either. "They're put in there pretty far,'' Harrison said. His story, and the story of other players in the NFL gutting out the season, will be told by Andrea Kremer on our NBC Super Bowl pregame show Sunday, between 1 and 6 p.m. ET.
Harrison said acupuncture has made a dramatic difference in his ability to play the game at a high level. He usually takes the 314 needles on Tuesday and Thursday nights and doesn't feel the full result 'til two days after the sessions. "What it does is get me back to feeling as close as I can to how I felt at the beginning of the season, before I take the normal punishment of a season," he said. He gets the treatment at his home, and several other Steelers show up to get poked along with him.
here's the whole article.... http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/peter_king/01/25/walkup/2.html

By the way, I have no idea why Harrison's practitioner feels the need to use 314 needles. That's just not necessary. I think Harrison is just saying that to scare other pro football players away from using acupuncture in order to keep a competitive edge for himself ; )

Hi all!

Here are some highlights from a fabulous article by David Wood in the Baltimore Sun December 11, 2008
Here are some highlight quotes from the article:

Military tries 'battlefield' acupuncture to ease pain

"The technique is proving so successful that the Air Force will begin teaching " battlefield acupuncture" early next year to physicians deploying to Iraq and Afghanistan, senior officials will announce tomorrow."

"This is one of the fastest pain attenuators in existence - the pain can be gone in five minutes," said Niemtzow, a physician, acupuncturist and senior adviser to the Air Force surgeon general.

"We get damaged and psychologically troubled people here, and our approach is to turn down their pain, let them relax, get some sleep, and then they can focus on their healing," said Air Force Col. Stephen M. Burns.

"God bless 'em, they've already had too many surgeries and too much pain," he said. "We can knock down that pain so they can begin to get on with their lives."

"Acupuncture has been very helpful for people for whom other treatment has failed,"

Acupuncture "is very well tolerated and there are very few side effects,"

Here is the full article:
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/health/bal-te.pain11dec11,0,7983851.story

Initial Test Blog

Hi all!

This is my first blog posting and I'm testing to see how it works.

Here's a very inspirational and moving video to watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmkc7JxCc5w

Enjoy!

Dave