Flu

MrKotter

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Aug 22, 2012
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Check out the average life span in the Middle Ages (around 25) and the incredible infant mortality rate up until the age of the germ theory of disease. Look at the millions of Amer-Indians who died of childhood diseases introduced to the New World. Human beings have always had immune systems but not modern medical advances.
Was speaking on flu/covid vaxes. Not how medicine has evolved from the dawn of time. Relax
 

She Mate Me

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Dec 7, 2008
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There are bad doctors out there, trust me I know. That being said, the vast majority of us work very hard every day trying to make people better. All of the conspiracy theories about doctors being linked up to pharmaceutical companies and trying to do things to actually keep their patients sick and hurt them has been extremely counterproductive to healthcare. I am not asking for anyone to kiss my ring, but being treated like I’m the devil after I was up all night on call, throwing myself against the wall trying to keep someone alive is not easy to deal with. After a while, you just want to give up.And it’s getting worse. I know plenty of doctors that are retiring earlier than they planned just because it’s getting more and more miserable to deal with.

This “do my own research” stuff is very dangerous too. I’m not saying you shouldn’t stay educated on your current health issues. I’m not saying you shouldn’t get a second opinion. But I have patients refusing chemotherapy for lung cancer And instead taking ivermectin because of what they read on Facebook. That isn’t a joke.

I'm sorry for what you're experiencing. I reread your post three times and I agree with everything you typed.

When I say I do my own research it's just because I've received a lot of bad advice in my life, so I'm careful. I'm not an anti medicine or even an anti vaccine person. I just think the powers that be in the medical and pharmaceutical industries have made themselves worthy of being questioned extensively. They are to blame for creating an environment of distrust.

It makes me sad that some people make decisions detrimental to their health when they don't have enough information (or maybe the ability to process it well).

But I don't think shutting down discussion and debate is the right answer. I know you weren't making that point.
 
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Podgy

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What's interesting is that anti-vax attitudes were more prominent on the political left than right until quite recently. RFK, jr. is a lefty but anti-vax attitudes weren't popular with the Dem establishment. Also, extreme skepticism of authority, power and expertise is a foundational component of postmodernism, a left-wing intellectual, philosophical and cultural movement. Hearing about someone's lived-experience, I never took the vaccine and look at me, that is, the idea that personal experience matters more than truths derived from the scientific method, is also dominant on the cultural and political left. But not anymore.
 
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Podgy

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I think the issue for a lot of folks regarding the advertising is you have a massive industry that is very intertwined with our government for public health and other reasons.

When that industry is allowed to spend so much money on advertising that they have a clear outsized influence on how news is reported at the outlets they are paying, it's worthy of a discussion.

That seems a reasonable question to discuss and the more forceful the opposition is the more I personally question their motive. It's a reasonable thing to talk about calmly.
It is and it shows that, as in college football, money matters.
 
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L4Dawg

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WTF are you talking about? Where did I say I say I don't want him dealing with respiratory problems I might have? Where did I say anything negative at all other than apparently, I think about things differently from you?

Take your ridiculous straw man and your political crusade somewhere else. I'm just having a discussion.
You said you weren’t going to take an experts advice. You were going to do your own “research” and make your own decision. My post had absolutely nothing to do with politics. It had everything to do with common sense.
 
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Podgy

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your car if you let me repair it:

View attachment 1084983
Just realized that read as a threat. Simply meant it more as I know not jackshit about cars
That reminds me of the time I tried to repair a lawnmower and watched a country boy not unlike my lovable relatives in Arky show how to fix it. Well I fixed it so well I had to take it in for even more repairs.
 

Dawgbite

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Why do they need to be stopped? This is America isnt it?
First of all. 99% of the time I don’t even know what they are trying to cure. I don’t need to hear someone try and cram two minutes worth of side effects into ten seconds. I need to hear those side effects from my Dr. I’ve never asked a Dr about some drug that I’ve seen advertised on TV. The money spent on adds could be better spent on further research to reduce the anal leakage side effect or lower the price of the drug. Yea, I know that last one ain’t happening but I can dream.
 

mstateglfr

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I've gotten 1 shot 4+ years ago and I haven't had Covid. I guess it worked.
That also tracks.

Covid shots don't last forever. Covid shots don't totally prevent covid. People get covid despite getting shots. People don't get covid despite not getting shots.

All those are possible. All those are reasonable experiences.
That was the point of my previous post.
 

Podgy

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After watching the commercials on Hulu and I'm scared to death over the country's ongoing battle with eczema and plaque psoriasis.
The local morning show I watch is full of ads for personal injury attorneys. A different type of plague, I guess.
 
Nov 16, 2005
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I'm sorry for what you're experiencing. I reread your post three times and I agree with everything you typed.

When I say I do my own research it's just because I've received a lot of bad advice in my life, so I'm careful. I'm not an anti medicine or even an anti vaccine person. I just think the powers that be in the medical and pharmaceutical industries have made themselves worthy of being questioned extensively. They are to blame for creating an environment of distrust.

It makes me sad that some people make decisions detrimental to their health when they don't have enough information (or maybe the ability to process it well).

But I don't think shutting down discussion and debate is the right answer. I know you weren't making that point.
Doing research is fine but as always be careful with the sourcing and also if it is some sort of study check to see where it is in the research hierarchy. A lot of people fall for the “it caused tumors in rats” alarmism when in reality it has to go through ALOT more research to reach a more reliable conclusion. If you can find meta analyses it’s much better.

IMG_5862.jpeg
 

She Mate Me

Heisman
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You said you weren’t going to take an experts advice. You were going to do your own “research” and make your own decision. My post had absolutely nothing to do with politics. It had everything to do with common sense.

I absolutely did not say I wasn't going to take an expert's advice. I can take his advice and then do further research. They are not mutually exclusive.

You jumped on this after I simply asked him for a link to the studies that back the flu vaccines. That wasn't any kind of a statement like you seem to think it was. I wanted to look further into it since I don't know as much as I want to.

You turned this into a slap fight for no 17ing reason that I can see, so I assumed a politics angle. If I'm wong just move on.
 

John Deaux VII

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What's interesting is that anti-vax attitudes were more prominent on the political left than right until quite recently. RFK, jr. is a lefty but anti-vax attitudes weren't popular with the Dem establishment. Also, extreme skepticism of authority, power and expertise is a foundational component of postmodernism, a left-wing intellectual, philosophical and cultural movement. Hearing about someone's lived-experience, I never took the vaccine and look at me, that is, the idea that personal experience matters more than truths derived from the scientific method, is also dominant on the cultural and political left. But not anymore.
The leftwing lunatic Robert Kennedy, Jr. being embraced by people on the right and given a platform by Trump might be the most bizarre thing I have ever seen.
 

HRMSU

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I would point out that not everyone makes it through medical school. I would also point out that they had to actually make it into medical school first: finally I would point out that completing medical school doesn’t mean you are done. You have to go through years of residency / fellowship before you practice. I spent a total of ten years of training after college before I was able to practice independently
Not trying to diss.....I couldn't even get in if I tried my entire life to get in. Point was you have varying levels of medical professionals. Many great and phenomenal but also a share of bad.
 

She Mate Me

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That also tracks.

Covid shots don't last forever. Covid shots don't totally prevent covid. People get covid despite getting shots. People don't get covid despite not getting shots.

All those are possible. All those are reasonable experiences.
That was the point of my previous post.

You're a very literal person aren't you??
 
Nov 16, 2005
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That also tracks.

Covid shots don't last forever. Covid shots don't totally prevent covid. People get covid despite getting shots. People don't get covid despite not getting shots.

All those are possible. All those are reasonable experiences.
That was the point of my previous post.
He actually asked a legitimate question. Don’t be a díck.
 

Podgy

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The leftwing lunatic Robert Kennedy, Jr. being embraced by people on the right and given a platform by Trump might be the most bizarre thing I have ever seen.
Trump's our first post-modernist president. He has his own truths derived from his lived experience. Or at least it seems that way to me. Not trying to ruin a thread.
 

L4Dawg

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I absolutely did not say I wasn't going to take an expert's advice. I can take his advice and then do further research. They are not mutually exclusive.

You jumped on this after I simply asked him for a link to the studies that back the flu vaccines. That wasn't any kind of a statement like you seem to think it was. I wanted to look further into it since I don't know as much as I want to.

You turned this into a slap fight for no 17ing reason that I can see, so I assumed a politics angle. If I'm wong just move on.
What kind of research can you do on pulmonary issues?
 

She Mate Me

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This has been a relatively pleasant thread and discussion. No sarcastericks. Thanks, guys.

Thanks for your contributions. Great info.

I think the vast majority of folks still have a ton of respect for doctors. I know I do.

I just think our system has become poisoned by too strong of a profit motive in healthcare (I'm not talking about individual physicians). I have no answers, but we need to be talking about it calmly.
 
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patdog

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All the best research & the advice of doctors is virtually unanimous. Get the flu shot every year. It’s really not even in question. That said, I usually don’t get one. I know I should but I just don’t. I guess I figure it’s not bad enough to bother & it usually makes me feel bad for a few days after I get it.

But one piece of good advice whether you get the shot or not. WASH YOUR HANDS. That will do a lot to limit your exposure.
 
Nov 16, 2005
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Thanks for your contributions. Great info.

I think the vast majority of folks still have a ton of respect for doctors. I know I do.

I just think our system has become poisoned by too strong of a profit motive in healthcare (I'm not talking about individual physicians). I have no answers, but we need to be talking about it calmly.
I think that’s a good point about keeping in mind about the money game but also I’d add is that oftentimes the people who are pushing back at the medical industry are in it for profit too. “Doctors are trying to kill you with this medicine. Go to my website and buy my supplements.”
 

OopsICroomedmypants

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And there you have it. Doctors are all clearly bought and paid for by the pharmaceutical industry****

My wife, brother-in-law and doc friends all recommend vaccines although a couple have expressed slight reservations about the Covid vaccine but none think it's gonna cause all sorts of health issues. My pulmonologist friend, and wife, strongly suggested I get all three, I got two already and I'm going today to get the Covid vaccine (only because I keep forgetting to get it). I have a few vaccine skeptics in my family and my wife, no fan of the behavior and policies of some insurance and pharmaceutical companies, gently and respectfully dismisses their concerns and opinions derived from their own research unsuccessfully. Medical science is amazing. The average life span in the U.S. just over a century ago was around age 50. Vaccines, especially childhood vaccines, save and prolong lives. The behavior of some of the medical community during Covid and the Great Awokening did cause some to not unreasonably question their honesty.
I'm not against all vaccines, but I will not take an mRNA vaccine. I understand why they were developed, which was to avoid egg and cell adapted mutations in flu vaccines (and SARS cov 2) and to deliver quadrivalent capabilities. Based on their mechanism of action, it is impossible to know the "dose" because we don't know how many of our cells are going to have their protein pathway hijacked to produce the target antigen. I am, however a proponent of non-vaccine therapies for Flu as they seem to be emerging as a more viable treatment for the flu. Xofluza is a great example. It "works by inhibiting the polymerase acidic (PA) endonuclease protein, an essential enzyme for the influenza virus to replicate. This novel mechanism of action (MOA) stops the flu virus from making copies of itself within the host cells." Statins have also been shown to be a viable flu treatment. Below is a good article to read on alternative therapies to emerging viruses. I also noted in the article that Ivermectin may also exert antiviral properties via inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 proteins nuclear import by binding to and destabilizing IMPα/β1, like observations made in other RNA viruses. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40100484/
 
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HRMSU

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I think the issue for a lot of folks regarding the advertising is you have a massive industry that is very intertwined with our government for public health and other reasons.

When that industry is allowed to spend so much money on advertising that they have a clear outsized influence on how news is reported at the outlets they are paying, it's worthy of a discussion.

That seems a reasonable question to discuss and the more forceful the opposition is the more I personally question their motive. It's a reasonable thing to talk about calmly.
Yea, I hate the ambulance chasing commercials that run all day every day during daytime tv but I guess they are a necessary evil. Recently my dad has had the exact complaint as the OP except it's with all the Medicare enrollment advertisements. Lots of patients up for grabs every year.
 
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mstateglfr

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He actually asked a legitimate question. Don’t be a díck.
It was a legitimate queastion and my response was legitimate and complete. I laid out multiple situations that could be viewed as 'reasonable experiences'.
I thought providing multiple examples that vary widely would be helpful.
 

onewoof

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Fact:
the flu vax is a crap shoot. From personal experience as well as observations of family and friends, it’s never a guarantee and the excuse given is always that the vax was for a different strain.
Might want to understand virology and epidemiology prior to making medical advice statements online.

The annual flu shot is a proactive measure based on expert predictions of the most likely circulating strains. While the vaccine does not specifically target every new mutation that emerges during the season, it remains the most effective tool for preventing severe outcomes from the flu.

Repiratory vaccines are not like other vaccines. But do realize that your immune system gets significantly weaker, once you are over 35-40, and again 60-65. The first time you really go down at 60+ you will understand your immune system needs help.

4 out of 5 deaths from flu is from adults over 65. Once you see a dozen friends die from the flu, the online jokes and internet diagnosis will stop. Like wormer meds lol.

For all the conspiracy theories of depopulation, nothing beats misinformation on the Internet. Will take out millions through ignorance.
 
Last edited:

mstateglfr

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Thanks for your contributions. Great info.

I think the vast majority of folks still have a ton of respect for doctors. I know I do.

I just think our system has become poisoned by too strong of a profit motive in healthcare (I'm not talking about individual physicians). I have no answers, but we need to be talking about it calmly.
One way to significantly reduce the profit motive from Healthcare would be to move to a single payer system.
- end prescription drug commercials.
- move to single payer Healthcare system.
- cap prescription drug prices/profits.

There would be downsides to this system too, though.
 

She Mate Me

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It was a legitimate queastion and my response was legitimate and complete. I laid out multiple situations that could be viewed as 'reasonable experiences'.
I thought providing multiple examples that vary widely would be helpful.

I didn't really ask a question. Honestly I was being a smartass. I don't actually think getting the first Covid shot and nothing else kept me from getting Covid.

It's my impeccable cleanliness.
 
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FormerBully

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Why do they need to be stopped? This is America isnt it?
Healthcare costs in our country are ridiculous. We have one of the worst systems compared to similar nations. One of our biggest issues is the cost. It costs money for those ads. Also, it is hard for news outlets to do a fare assessment into a drug when the drug is paying them.
 
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HRMSU

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Thanks for your contributions. Great info.

I think the vast majority of folks still have a ton of respect for doctors. I know I do.

I just think our system has become poisoned by too strong of a profit motive in healthcare (I'm not talking about individual physicians). I have no answers, but we need to be talking about it calmly.
The complexity of this argument is underestimated by almost all who are not in the industry and by quite a few that are actually in it. Politicians are the worst with their just drop drug and device prices argument.

A baseline read which is a little dated and thicker than the Bible is Defining Healthcare by Porter but even that only scratches the surface.
 
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FormerBully

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As a lot of you know, I am a board certified pulmonologist. The flu shot is safe and clinically proven over decades to be effective in helping to prevent transmission of the flu. Can you still get it when vaccinated? Yes. But then it can help to minimize duration, severity, and viral shedding. This helps keep people out of the hospital and also helps minimize spread. It does vary in efficacy from year to year. This years appears not so great. The media push you are talking about is a recognized important part of getting more people vaccinated.

as for the “I haven’t had the flu, what’s the point”. Same thing could be said about wearing you seatbelt.

and keep in mind getting the flu shot by as many people as possible helps to minimize spread. That’s the point.

The flu shot has been a recognized and important part of standard health care for decades. I get it. My family gets it. My patients get it. And I get zero dollars from pharmaceutical companies
Different question for you. The US healthcare system is not in a great spot. The cost has gotten crazy. How can we fix it? Don’t want a debate from anyone else. Just want a doctor’s answer.
 

OopsICroomedmypants

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Different question for you. The US healthcare system is not in a great spot. The cost has gotten crazy. How can we fix it? Don’t want a debate from anyone else. Just want a doctor’s answer.
Part of what we can do is ditch the Affordable Care Act and open up private insurance competition across state lines. Health insurance dictates the extent of what doctors can do, and when they can do it. Insurance is necessary though, since an average income earner can't pay outright for healthcare. AI will take over diagnosis, insurance approval, treatment and reimbursement pretty soon though. The whole system is broken as far as many are concerned.
 
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MagicDawg

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FWIW, my brother, 53, in western NC was diagnosed with the flu today after being ill for several days already. We are hopeful that he will be able to travel for Christmas but it's in serious jeopardy.

The graphic designer that designed the logo for my company died of the flu in his early 30s in metro Atlanta.
 
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Might want to understand virology and epidemiology prior to making medical advice statements online.

The annual flu shot is a proactive measure based on expert predictions of the most likely circulating strains. While the vaccine does not specifically target every new mutation that emerges during the season, it remains the most effective tool for preventing severe outcomes from the flu.

Repiratory vaccines are not like other vaccines. But do realize that your immune system gets significantly weaker, once you are over 35-40, and again 60-65. The first time you really go down at 60+ you will understand your immune system needs help.

4 out of 5 deaths from flu is from adults over 65. Once you see a dozen friends die from the flu, the online jokes and internet diagnosis will stop. Like wormer meds lol.

For all the conspiracy theories of depopulation, nothing beats misinformation on the Internet. Will take out millions through ignorance.
Fact:
I did not provide medical advice. I merely provided an observation over the years.
Once I become part of the at-risk population, I may rethink getting the vax.
If you don’t understand the growing distrust of vaccines and the pharmaceutical industry, I can understand given your claim that I was “giving medical advice”.