A Pharmacist’s Guide to Staying Healthy and Why I Stopped Recommending Flu Shots

Disclaimer: This post is for informational purposes only and not medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.

Introduction: Health Starts with the Basics

As a pharmacist with years of experience in community settings, I’ve always emphasized simple, effective ways to stay healthy. I tell my patients: prioritize vitamin C, vitamin D, zinc, and handwashing. These foundational habits can significantly boost your immune system and help you fight infections. Add in regular exercise and at least 15 minutes of sunlight daily, your body’s best source of vitamin D, producing up to 10,000 units per hour naturally, and you’re building a strong defense against illness.

But there’s another part of my journey I want to share, after years of administering and receiving flu shots, I’ve made the decision to stop recommending or taking them. This wasn’t an easy choice, but it’s grounded in evidence, experience, and a commitment to questioning what we accept as “standard” in medicine. Here’s why.

The Basics of Immune Health

Let’s start with the essentials I recommend to everyone:

• Vitamin C: A powerful antioxidant that supports immune function. Found in citrus fruits, bell peppers, and supplements.

• Vitamin D: Crucial for immune regulation. Sunlight is ideal, but supplements (especially in winter) are a great alternative.

• Zinc: Helps your body fight off viruses. Include zinc-rich foods like nuts, seeds, or take a supplement.

• Handwashing: Washing your hands with soap and water for 20 seconds is one of the most effective ways to prevent infections. I learned this during my residency, and it’s a non-negotiable habit.

• Exercise and Sunlight: Physical activity boosts immunity, and sunlight not only provides vitamin D but also uplifts your mood.

These habits are simple, affordable, and backed by science. They form the foundation of a healthy immune system, which is critical before considering interventions like vaccines.

Why I Reconsidered the Flu Shot

For years, I followed the standard protocol: recommend and administer flu shots to patients, my family, and myself. But as I dug deeper into the science, I began to question their efficacy, safety, and necessity. Here’s what I found:

1. Efficacy is Limited:

• According to the Mayo Clinic, flu vaccine effectiveness ranges from 22% to 56% (2009–present). That means millions still get sick, visit doctors, or require hospital care despite vaccination. ( https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/flu/in-depth/flu-shots/art-20048000 )

• A 2018 study of 700 influenza-positive individuals showed the flu shot was only 21% effective at preventing transmission to household members. That’s barely better than isolating yourself.

¬ 2024 flu season, the flu vaccine was estimated to be 34.5% effective against hospitalization overall.

2. Safety Signals Raise Concerns:

• Post-marketing surveillance studies (2005–2019) identified serious adverse events linked to flu vaccines, particularly in the elderly. Proportional Reporting Ratios (PRRs) flagged issues like neuritis, fatigue, and even death. PRR measures a relationship between product and adverse events based on a relative increase of the proportion of individual cases related to an adverse event. (Ramya, all about pharmacovigilance.org) If PRR > 1, it suggests that the adverse event is reported more frequently for the drug of interest compared to other drugs, potentially indicating a safety signal.

• A South Korean study found 36 safety signals, including narcolepsy, muscle weakness, and rashes, some unexpected and not listed on vaccine inserts.

• Mercury (thimerosal), used as a preservative in multi-dose vials, is a known toxin. A 2005 study found mercury in the brains of thimerosal-exposed monkeys, raising questions about its safety despite claims of “safe use” since the 1930s. Thimerosal (Burbacher, T. M., Shen, D. D., Liberato, N., Grant, K. S., Cernichiari, E., & Clarkson, T. (2005). Comparison of blood and brain mercury levels in infant monkeys exposed to methylmercury or vaccines containing thimerosal. Environmental health perspectives, 113(8), 1015–1021. https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.7712)

*Barrett J. R. (2005). Thimerosal and Animal Brains: New Data for Assessing Human Ethylmercury Risk. Environmental Health Perspectives, 113(8), A543–A544

3. Antigen Processing Alters Effectiveness:

• Flu vaccines often use formaldehyde to inactivate the virus, which can alter the protein’s structure (think of a paperclip bent out of shape). This change may reduce the immune system’s ability to recognize the actual virus, potentially explaining low efficacy.

• The 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry highlighted that protein structure equals function. If we’re presenting a distorted antigen, are we truly preparing the immune system?

4. Vaccine Interference and Pathogenic Priming:

- A 2018 study among Department of Defense personnel showed that flu vaccination increased susceptibility to other respiratory viruses, like coronaviruses and RSV, due to vaccine interference. Interference (Wolff G. G. (2020). Influenza vaccination and respiratory virus interference among Department of Defense personnel during the 2017-2018 influenza season. Vaccine, 38(2), 350–354. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2019.10.005)

- Pathogenic priming: where a vaccine primes the immune system to overreact to a similar protein in the body, could contribute to autoimmune issues. This is a concern as vaccine schedules have expanded since the 1980s, alongside rising autoimmune diagnoses.

5. Questionable Data Transparency:

• FOIA requests (e.g., by Dr. Sabine in Germany and Senator Rennick in Australia) revealed inconsistencies in flu-related death estimates and data collection. For example, 2017–2018 flu deaths were revised from 79,000 to 61,000. Why the discrepancy?

• Patient inserts often omit efficacy data, possibly to avoid legal liability. This lack of transparency undermines trust.

Homeostasis: Respecting the Body’s Balance

The body is a finely tuned system, maintaining homeostasis, a balance of billions of cells, biochemical reactions, and environmental interactions. Introducing external agents like vaccines, especially with adjuvants (e.g., aluminum, MF59) or preservatives (e.g., mercury), can disrupt this balance. While adjuvants aim to boost immune responses, their long-term effects are not fully understood. (Pulendran 2021) Natural immunity, built through exposure and supported by nutrition, often outperforms artificial interventions.

A Call for Discussion, Not Dogma

Science isn’t absolute; it evolves with scrutiny. The sun doesn’t rise at the same time every day, and medical “truths” shouldn’t be taken as gospel. I’m not anti-vaccine, I’m pro-evidence and pro-choice. We need open conversations about:

• Why flu vaccine efficacy is so low.

• Why safety signals are ignored or downplayed.

• Whether processing methods undermine vaccine effectiveness.

• How contaminants (e.g., DNA in HPV vaccines) affect outcomes.

I encourage you to research, question, and consult trusted healthcare professionals. Check out resources like: Pure Media Australia (where I shared this perspective in a detailed presentation, https://puremediaaustralia.org/video-reports-2/f/pharmacist-speaks-about-why-he-stopped-using-annual-flu-shots) or studies in journals like JAMA and Nature. If you’re curious about specific points, email me or connect via Pure Media Australia.

Conclusion: Empower Your Health

My advice? Strengthen your immune system with vitamin C, D, zinc, handwashing, exercise, and sunlight. These are low-risk, high-reward habits. As for flu shots, I’ve stepped away because the data doesn’t convince me of their value. Your health is your responsibility, arm yourself with knowledge and make informed choices.

What’s your take? Have you questioned flu shots or found success with natural immune boosters? Share your thoughts in the comments or subscribe for more health insights from a pharmacist’s perspective.

Disclaimer: This post is for informational purposes only and not medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.

Links

-

3 studies show definitively that the influenza vaccines don't work

-https://rumble.com/v60w1pq-dr-daniel-santiago-speaks-to-pma-news-about-why-he-stopped-using-and-admini.html

- https://puremediaaustralia.org/video-reports-2/f/pharmacist-speaks-about-why-he-stopped-using-annual-flu-shots

- https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/flu/in-depth/flu-shots/art-20048000

- Grijalva CG, Nguyen HQ, Zhu Y, et al. Estimated Effectiveness of Influenza Vaccines in Preventing Secondary Infections in Households. JAMA Netw Open. 2024;7(11):e2446814. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.46814

- Zeno, E. E., Nogareda, F., Regan, A., Couto, P., Rondy, M., Jara, J., Voto, C., Rojas Mena, M. P., Katz, N., Del Valle Juarez, M., Benedetti, E., de Paula Júnior, F. J., Ferreira da Almeida, W. A., Hott, C. E., Ferrari, P. R., Mallegas, N. V., Vigueras, M. A., Domínguez, C., von Horoch, M., Vazquez, C., … REVELAC-i Network (2024). Interim Effectiveness Estimates of 2024 Southern Hemisphere Influenza Vaccines in Preventing Influenza-Associated Hospitalization - REVELAC-i Network, Five South American Countries, March-July 2024. MMWR. Morbidity and mortality weekly report, 73(39), 861–868. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7339a1

- Hong, B., Lee, H., Rhee, H.E., Kim, J.H., Jeon, H., Kim, S., Choi, N., Jung, S., & Shin, J. (2022). The Different Safety Signals on Influenza Vaccine in Adults and the Elderly: A Nationwide Post-Marketing Surveillance Study from 2005 to 2019. Drug Targets and Therapeutics.

- Lee, H., Hong, B., Kim, S., Kim, J. H., Choi, N. K., Jung, S. Y., & Shin, J. Y. (2022). Post-marketing surveillance study on influenza vaccine in South Korea using a nationwide spontaneous reporting database with multiple data mining methods. Scientific reports, 12(1), 20256. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-21986-8

- Burbacher, T. M., Shen, D. D., Liberato, N., Grant, K. S., Cernichiari, E., & Clarkson, T. (2005). Comparison of blood and brain mercury levels in infant monkeys exposed to methylmercury or vaccines containing thimerosal. Environmental health perspectives, 113(8), 1015–1021. https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.7712

- Barrett J. R. (2005). Thimerosal and Animal Brains: New Data for Assessing Human Ethylmercury Risk. Environmental Health Perspectives, 113(8), A543–A544

- Wolff G. G. (2020). Influenza vaccination and respiratory virus interference among Department of Defense personnel during the 2017-2018 influenza season. Vaccine, 38(2), 350–354. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2019.10.005

- *Lyons-Weiler J. (2020). Pathogenic priming likely contributes to serious and critical illness and mortality in COVID-19 via autoimmunity. Journal of translational autoimmunity, 3, 100051. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtauto.2020.100051

- Pulendran B, S Arunachalam P, O'Hagan DT. Emerging concepts in the science of vaccine adjuvants. Nat Rev Drug Discov. 2021 Jun;20(6):454-475. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41573-021-00163-y Epub 2021 Apr 6. PMID: 33824489; PMCID: PMC8023785