What is the difference between swine flu vaccine and regular flu vaccine in terms of your immunities?
I am 26 going on 27 and can honestly say I've never had "THE FLU" stomach virus? yes, cold? Yes, even some respiratory infections
Anyway, my point is that I have never gotten a flu shot A) because Ive never needed one apparently. and B) because I heard that you should only get a flu shot if you are very young, elderly, or your health is impaired by disease such as diabetes etc. And that the reason you shouldnt get one if you are a healthy adult is because it breaks down your natural immunities and makes you rely on the shot to keep you "safe" each year.
What I am wondering (not that I think anyone would truly know at this point)
Is... would the same philosophy apply to the swine flu? I know swine flu vaccinations are a long way off at this point. But I've been thinking about it the past few days and have been wondering.
As a person who never gets the regular flu, should I even be concerned about swine flu? And... if I did get a swine flu shot would it break down any of my natural immunities to the regular flu?
Posted by The First Dragon
There is a swine flu vaccine for SWINE, to keep them from getting the regular swine flu.
There is no vaccine for the strain of flu now affecting humans and called the swine flu. It takes about 4 months I think to develop a vaccine for a new strain of flu.
The regular flu vaccine that people got will not be effective against swine flu.
The new swine flu, unlike the regular human flus, is more dangerous to healthy adults in their prime than it is to the young, the old, and the sick.
I don't know yet whether the new swine flu vaccine, when it comes, will be safe and effective. It probably will though.
If you are a person who doesn't like to take flu shots, I think we can wait a while to learn more before re-evaluating your position; at least until the new vaccine comes out. By then we will have a clearer picture of how bad this flu is.
I'm pretty sure the vaccine for the swine flu would not affect your immunity to "regular" flu.
Anyway if you get sick, you can always get medical treatment, which is usually pretty effective, if you need it.
Posted by Ishtar
Taking flu shots doesn't break down your natural immunities. They're normally given to those whose natural immunities are impaired anyway, through being young (not fully formed); elderly; or having a condition that makes it hard to resist infections (immunosuppressed, asthmatic, diabetic, etc.) A young adult has a fully functioning immune system and doesn't need a shot - they have a good chance of surviving a bad flu.
Your immune system has been exposed to flus before, even if you haven't had it, and your body has learned how to deal with it.
The problem with this version of the flu is that it's unlike previous versions and nobody's immune system is used to it. It's going to be a while before there's a vaccine for it, but you don't have to worry about it breaking down natural immunities when it is available.
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