I was driving into work and heard that "Adenovirus 14" was a lethal and frightening new menace for our North Texas community to deal with. The fact that Adenovirus 14 (or any other number for that matter) is a common cold "bug" was not discussed. There had been several deaths over the past few years in association with severe colds that wound up in pneumonia in very sickly and immunocompromised people. This is always a sad thing. No one likes to see mortality from a common infection but I am really quite sick and tired of the fear-mongering about viral illnesses. Instead we should be focusing on the ways that we can help to prevent the spread of these "bugs" and train a new generation of health-conscious folks who know the good and the bad from the ugly. Specifically, washing the hands regularly and using disposable tissues are simple ways to reduce infections and help our community. Fear reduces immunity and increases the risk of infection.
Next thing, I get an ad in a professional journal that offers flu vaccine with a "money-back" guarantee if you don't wind up using it all. There is such a desperation to push "product" that the flu vaccine manufacturers are upping the ante so that more doctors will buy. This news came on the same day that a groundbreaking article revealed research that flu vaccine has no significant impact on mortality. In other words, if you're going to die from an illness, flu vaccine isn't going to make a difference. Does the flu kill a few people every year? Absolutely. Is it more than a few? Possibly. Is it tens of thousands or more? NO!
So my point is that we don't need to be propagandized into injecting more "product" into ourselves and our children to support the infrastructure of the flu vaccine manufacturers. When we need to ramp up production of vaccines to save the lives of the populace from something like SARS or bird flu gone wild, we should have a clearly articulated public policy that says so. Stop the foolish scare tactics about health hazards and start teaching healthy habits. It's really pretty easy if people really want to be involved in their own health and wellness. If they don't, there's not a whole lot anyone can do to "Make them healthy!" I am thankful for the excellent medical system we have in place. Let's not manufacture any more problems than we already have!
