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 October 2009. Vol. 1, Issue 6 SAVE THE NEEDLES FOR THOSE WHO NEED THEM; WORK TO BUILD YOUR HEALTH INSTEAD. Aaron Lerner, NASM - Performance Specialist Another summer is in the books. It is noticeable now: The days are shorter; the biting autumn air has replaced any remnants of August, and drug manufacturers are gearing up for what they anticipate to be another record-breaking year of profits. That’s right folks, it’s “flu-season.” Let the misinformation begin! A recent headline from the website of the American College of Physicians states that “ Influenza is the sixth-leading cause of death for older Americans, and infects 5 to 10 percent of elderly Americans every year.” Another headline states that “. . . the flu leads to 300,000 hospitalizations, and kills 30,000 to 40,000 Americans every year." [1]  This, my friends, is bull. And yes, “bull,” in this context, is half a word.You see, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) compile yearly death rates, and categorize those deaths by cause. For the year 2008, the actual number of deaths attributed to influenza was only 753 [2].The author of the APC review may have mistakenly reported the number of deaths associated with pneumonia for that year, which wouldn’t be unheard of considering there are a good many who may get the flu, and ultimately succumb to pneumonia; this does not, however, justify the claim that all pneumonia-related deaths were caused by the flu! People must realize that many of these deaths occur in people with pre-existing conditions andweakened immune systems; primarily among the elderly. In 2001, when only 257 people died from the flu, 59 percent of these deaths occurred in people aged 75 years, or older.To put these numbers in perspective, 3,454 Americans died from malnutrition that same year. That is 13 times more than the number of reported flu deaths. [3] "The real travesty here is that we are not immunizing the poor for malnutrition. "Not to mention the number of not-so-poor people who are not willing to help themselves by getting all the vitamins and minerals they need to keep themselves healthy throughout the so-called “flu season.” Recently, there was a study done by Lone Simonsen, Ph.D. and his team at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, which concluded that flu shots had no impact on the death rate from flu complications in people over age 65 years from 1980--when 20 million people got shots--to recent years, where about 80 million people shoot up annually.Here is some breaking news: Flu shots appear to be failing to achieve their major objective of lowering the death rate. [4]The reality is this: The average person has the flu—fever, chills, runny nose, sore throat, cough, headache, fatigue, decreased appetite, etc.—for about three days. Of course there are certain “high-risk” groups that may have complications (such as pneumonia). However, the primary reason these people are considered “high-risk” in the first place is because they suffer from immune deficiency and nutritional compromise. Has anybody seen the food they’re serving in nursing homes lately? Most meals come in colors such as blue, yellow and brown, and I’m guessing it might be safe to bet that they might be lacking some “nutritional value.” Nevertheless, the same “blue and yellow” cuisine that is served to the elderly might as well be considered fine-dining when compared to the slop that so many younger, “healthier” folks are opting for these days. Look, I’m an amateur when it comes to the “swine flu,” but I’m somewhat certain that the growing number of humans who look like pigs has far less to do with a vaccine shortage than it does the prevalence of “swine food” that is voluntarily being consumed on a daily basis. As has been my position with many pharmaceuticals on the market today, there are adverse affects associated with the flu vaccine that can often times be worse than having the flu itself. It should also be noted for any injectee who does turn out to be one of the unlucky ones, don’t bother calling that attorney you saw advertising during the commercials of The Price Is Right. It’s been made nearly impossible to file a lawsuit against any vaccine manufacturers for injuries sustained as a result of the vaccine.You see, when a person receives some type of illness or injury as a result of medical care, it is referred to as an iatrogenic (adverse) event. It happens…a lot. Anyone notice the paradox here? A reporter once asked Patrick Ewing, former New York Knick, whether professional athletes were overpaid, and he responded with this: “We (athletes) make a lot of money, but we spend a lot of money.” How’s that for logic? And if you don’t see the similarities in thinking here, don’t worry about it; I simply had to find a way to get that classic Ewing quote in here somehow.What I am saying though is this: Given the right tools, your body, with its infinite power and wisdom, has the ability to build its own health. Unless you really need it, skip the shot this year and work on keeping yourself healthy instead. TEAM VEMMA: Kansas City
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