27 replies to this topic

[luvs2eat]

I've never had a flu shot. I go thru this every winter... wondering if I should have one or do what I've always done... become OCD about handwashing and trying hard not to touch my face.

We were all allergic to eggs when we were babies... so I sort of thought I shouldn't have a vaccine that's been incubated in eggs. But I had all the vaccinations kids have... and those would have been incubated in eggs too, right? Even my sister, who was the most allergic of all, gets flu shots w/o incidence. No one in my family has celiac but me.

Then I wondered that because I have an autoimmune disorder and was tested a few years ago for LUPUS after a high ANA (which turned out to be nothing)... I'm wondering if I should NOT have one because of autoimmune issues?

My GP doesn't give me the answers/reasoning I believe my fellow celiac sufferers will give me.

Thoughts?

[bartfull]

I never have never gotten a flu shot, and I have never gotten the flu. I am fanatical about washing my hands, and I keep my face away from people, even healthy people, so they don't breathe their germs on me. I may have mentioned before, I am a bit OCD. I don't like doctors and avoid them like the plague (or flu, as the case may be.)

I may be playing with fire, but so far, so good. Maybe when I am old(er) and sick(er) I'll consider it. But for right now I will continue doing what I've been doing.

[Alwayssomething]

I have gotten a flu shot for years, but last year when I was having all my DH issues and still undiagnosed I was afraid too and when I asked my Dr. he told me I should be ok and then ended it with "don't make a liar out of me now" so I chose not to get one. In the last two years I have added 2 autoimmune diseases to my lifestyle and I always have an elevated ANA so Lupus and a few others are tested for every 6 months.

I talked to my GP and inquired about the perservative free flu shot (it is what they give pregnant women and children and is in a single dose dispenser) and he thought that was a great idea. I had it yesterday. This is the first shot I can remember not being sore from as well as not feeling a little off the next day from. This will be my shot every year now. (I will add that the company I work for dispenses the shots for free but does not give the perservative free one so I went to Target)

[nvsmom]

I've heard, although I am far from an expert, that those with lupus and other rheumatic AI's should avoid the flu shot. I can't remember if it's because it gets your immune system going too much and causes a flare or what. Sort of like the fact that rheumatic AI sufferers are told not to consume garlic, echinacea,and melatonin because it boosts the immune system.

I do know those with Lupus should get the pneumonia vaccine every few years because they do not fight off viruses as well as the average person.

I don't know if that theory would apply to celiacs though since the gluten trigger is what puts a celiac's immune sytem into overdrive.

I tend to avoid the flu shot because whenever I do get it, I end up with a fever and flu-like symptoms...like in a flare. It's like a guarantee to feel bad in my case. I am currently getting tested for Lupus or other rheumatic AI's.

If Lupus, RA, UCTD, or MCTD are possibilities for you, you might want to look into vaccines connections to those AI's. i've never heard of it being an issue with celiacs. Best wishes.

[shadowicewolf]

The last time i got it was before i got really sick with the flu that triggered everything else. So no, i no longer get them.

[Adalaide]

I've always gotten a flu shot. My husband is diabetic so his doctor won't let him not get it. Because I've always worked with the general public and because me getting sick will put him at risk I get it for him. I am the world's biggest baby about needles. I whine, close my eyes, hole my breath and generally complain the whole time. I wasn't really thinking very clearly when I was at the doctor's office for my cold on Friday or I would have asked for one then. May as well pile on the misery.

Anywho, no one has ever told me it would be a bad idea to get one. I don't know about the egg thing, I don't have egg problems so it's never been an issue for me. I'd ask your doctor what he thinks about that. Besides that I don't know of any reason we should be avoiding them.

[mushroom]

I get a flu shot religiously. My lungs are so bad I can't risk flu or pneumonia (again!). That's how come I ended up in ICU with aspiration pneumonia this summer

[1desperateladysaved]

I would encourage anyone who thinks they want a vaccine to ask their physician (or the Center for Disease Control) website what is in them. The physcian receives the informations which each batch of vaccine.

To avoid the flu I carefully wash my hands with homemade soap frequently. We eat an organic, natural food diet, and get some sunshine. If someone in the family is sick all of us wear Tea Tree Oil, or Eucalyptus oil to kill germs in the air. Illnesses rarely if ever go through the seven of us in our household anymore.

I hope you will all be well this flu season.

Diana

[squirmingitch]

I'm not allergic to eggs. I don't have any other AI diseases that I presently know of. I have been getting a flu shot every year for the past 30 years; ever since I got the flu when I was 25 & it kicked my ass!!!!!!! At 25 yrs. old!!!!!! Last year I got the flu shot even having just discovered I have celiac disease. I will get one this year too.

[icm]

Here's an interesting video that talks about the benefits of 5000IU of vitamin d3 a day. I'm doing the protocol and never plan to have the flu shot in the future.

[ncdave]

I used to describe how i felt when i had got glutened as feeling like i had the flu. I got the flu winter before last, it was like a 3 day cake walk compaired to being glutened.

[archaeo in FL]

luvs2eat, ultimately the decision will be up to you. I encourage you to research the science behind vaccines - no amount of any vitamin or herb or supplement is going to vaccinate you or keep you from getting ill if you contract a virus that your immune system can't fight on its own.

I never got flu shots before, but I recently started a job that requires me to travel, and I now work in a building with about 60 other folks in a cubicle environment (after leaving an office with only two other folks, where any of us might commonly also work from home), and since I changed jobs I have gotten the flu shot. I haven't had any flu or flu-like illness since I was a kid, but vaccines are only effective if a lot of us (ideally most of us) get them.

Remember that even if you are successful at fighting off a virus, you can still spread it. I don't want to pick up a flu virus at work and share it with my elderly parents, and if the vaccine helps kill the virus any faster it's worth it to me.

I had a reaction to an egg-based shot when I was a child, and haven't had a negative reaction since.

[mushroom]

I used to describe how i felt when i had got glutened as feeling like i had the flu. I got the flu winter before last, it was like a 3 day cake walk compaired to being glutened.

Dave,if you got over flu in three days you were one very lucky dude

[Adalaide]

Yeah, three days is a walk in the park. If I could do the flu in three days I'd skip the shot. I do the flu in about 2 to 4 weeks and have never once managed it without an argument with my doctor about whether or not I need to be hospitalized. Seriously, unless I'm literally dying I would much prefer to be miserable at home thanks. Although to be fair I usually turn my flu into pneumonia. I never do anything halfway.

[ncdave]

I didn"t exactly get over the flu in 3 days, i was just using that number for the cake walk! Mine turned into bronchitis, thats the beginning of a long story.