With the shortage of the traditional flu vaccine, interest in the Flumist nasal vaccine has increased, and apparently the manufacturer plans to make and market as much of it as possible.
Last year was the first year that it was in general use. According to the manufacturer’s own website, possible routine side effects from Flumist, a live virus vaccine, can actually resemble a mild case of flu itself (fever, sore throat etc.). That’s not at all appealing, but would still probably be better than getting the flu. My question is: has anyone experienced or heard of any serious or severe side effects or allergic reactions from Flumist which would be a good reason not to get it? There are websites that are outspokenly opposed to all vaccination across the board, but nobody seems to have much information specifically about actual experience with Flumist.
I bought Flumist last year after the hype when children started dying and it became impossible to find a traditional vaccine. I actually found that I had less of a reaction than the traditional shot vaccine - no symptoms whatsoever. In all, a pleasurable-but-pricey experience.
Certain virii are neurotropic, for instance rabies virus. Inject rabies virus into your thigh and the virus travels up axons until it reaches the brain, causing an encephalitis.
Is influenza virus neurotropic? I don’t know, maybe an MD or virologist can handle that, but there is this: