# Man up, people: flu shots are here. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 15, 2013, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876 "2013-09-15T00:56:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/81 "2013-09-19T13:33:18Z")
> [@lavenderviolet](#): > > You probably haven’t had the real flu. Colds can be pretty bad, but the flu is noticeably worse. The rule of thumb I’ve always heard is that if there were a $100 bill lying just out of reach on the floor, and you would get out of bed to pick it up, you don’t have the flu. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/82 "2013-09-19T16:08:21Z")
Lot of ignorance that needs fighting in this thread. For the majority of us that are healthy, you don’t get the flu shot for yourself. Many of you are right…you’ve never got it and even if you did, you would probably get through it. Over 15,000 people die a year in the US from the flu. Most of those that die are really young or much older or whose health is already on the lower side of things…their bodies just can’t fight off the flu, and they die! Guess who these people catch the flu from? The healthy people that catch it and spread it. The reason for mass vaccination for the flu is to slow down the spread of it. So even if you think that you can handle the flu if you were to get it…the chances are that you may spread it to someone that may die from it. Get the shot! ---
**Author:** ![Macca26](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/13edae/32.png) [@Macca26](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Macca26)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/83 "2013-09-19T16:29:50Z")
> [@lavenderviolet](#): > > You probably haven’t had the real flu. Colds can be pretty bad, but the flu is noticeably worse. I can’t really imagine a cold or flu feeling worse than like your skin is coming off, your muscles have run a marathon, your head is exploding, your chest is too heavy to breathe, and your vision is going dim while you simultaneously freeze and burn and stew in your own sweat. If it’s worse than that, you got me. If not, I’ll take that once every 20 years than the reaction from a shot every year. Hmm, 100 days of feeling moderately shitty compared to max 10 days of feeling really bad? Yeah, I’ll just get it all over with at once. Also, again, the flu shot is only a guess as to the main strains for the year. Not foolproof and not for all of them. I might get the flu anyway even with the shot. Nope. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/84 "2013-09-19T18:53:38Z")
Lessee…Risk getting the autism\* from a vaccination, or risk getting a few days off from work so’s I can get some quality Skyrim time in with the kids sequestered at their mom’s house. Tough choice. - Oh shut up, I know. ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/85 "2013-09-19T19:05:30Z")
I got mine already! ---
**Author:** ![elninost0rm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ed655f/32.png) [@elninost0rm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elninost0rm)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/86 "2013-09-19T19:48:43Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > Lot of ignorance that needs fighting in this thread. > > For the majority of us that are healthy, you don’t get the flu shot for yourself. Many of you are right…you’ve never got it and even if you did, you would probably get through it. > > Over 15,000 people die a year in the US from the flu. Most of those that die are really young or much older or whose health is already on the lower side of things…their bodies just can’t fight off the flu, and they die! Guess who these people catch the flu from? The healthy people that catch it and spread it. > > The reason for mass vaccination for the flu is to slow down the spread of it. So even if you think that you can handle the flu if you were to get it…the chances are that you may spread it to someone that may die from it. > > Get the shot! I was going to make a lengthy post about this argument but since you were kind enough to post this, it makes my life a lot easier. No. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/87 "2013-09-19T20:39:24Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > Lot of ignorance that needs fighting in this thread. > > For the majority of us that are healthy, you don’t get the flu shot for yourself. Many of you are right…you’ve never got it and even if you did, you would probably get through it. > > Over 15,000 people die a year in the US from the flu. Most of those that die are really young or much older or whose health is already on the lower side of things…their bodies just can’t fight off the flu, and they die! Guess who these people catch the flu from? The healthy people that catch it and spread it. > > The reason for mass vaccination for the flu is to slow down the spread of it. So even if you think that you can handle the flu if you were to get it…the chances are that you may spread it to someone that may die from it. > > Get the shot! I herd what you did there. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/88 "2013-09-19T22:23:34Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > Over 15,000 people die a year in the US from the flu. I hear statistics like this a lot, and yet I have never ever known anyone, or anyone who knows anyone, that died from influenza. It was a worldwide panic when only five or ten people died from Swine or Bird Flu, and yet apparently tens of thousands die of regular flu? Really? Can we back this up with some solid evidence? ---
**Author:** ![LavenderBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e95f7d/32.png) [@LavenderBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LavenderBlue)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/89 "2013-09-19T22:35:14Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I hear statistics like this a lot, and yet I have never ever known anyone, or anyone who knows anyone, that died from influenza. It was a worldwide panic when only five or ten people died from Swine or Bird Flu, and yet apparently tens of thousands die of regular flu? Really? Can we back this up with some solid evidence? CDC reports at least hundred and fifty thousand deaths from H1N1 in 2009. > [@](#): > > [http://www.cdc.gov/flu/spotlights/pandemic-global-estimates.htm](http://www.cdc.gov/flu/spotlights/pandemic-global-estimates.htm) > > The study, co-authored by 9 members of the CDC Influenza Division, used an improved modeling approach which resulted in an estimated range of deaths from between 151,700 and 575,400 people who perished worldwide from 2009 H1N1 virus infection during the first year the virus circulated. I have never thankfully known anyone who died from smallpox but I’m pretty sure the disease killed hundreds of millions. I get people who state they’ve had a medical reaction in the past and don’t want it. But otherwise I don’t get it. The flu is horrible. The shot is cheap and offers at least some serious protection against it. Even if you get the flu, the shot will likely help reduce your symptoms. What’s so wrong with getting it? My eldest daughter and I got one about two weeks ago. After having the flu in my teens I’m so happy I can do anything to reduce my odds of getting it again. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/90 "2013-09-20T00:34:52Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I hear statistics like this a lot, and yet I have never ever known anyone, or anyone who knows anyone, that died from influenza. It was a worldwide panic when only five or ten people died from Swine or Bird Flu, and yet apparently tens of thousands die of regular flu? Really? Can we back this up with some solid evidence? The US population is [313.9 million.](https://www.google.com/#q=population+of+US) If 15,000 die each year from the flu, that would be 15,000 / 313,900,000, or .0048 %. This means you would have to be intimately connected, on the average, with at least 200 people, 200 each of which would phone you if they were sick, for you to know about just one suffering in bed with the flu. How large is your circle? Do they call you every time they sneeze? Vomit? Or just when they die? ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/91 "2013-09-20T01:41:44Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > How large is your circle? Do they call you every time they sneeze? Vomit? Or just when they die? My circle is not that large. But I am occasionally made aware if they’re severely ill. So far none of the people I knew who have died called to tell me while it was happening. I had a look around, and it seems that when someone dies of the flu, it is sometimes of some other illness where the flu’s contribution was to weaken their immune system. So cause of death might be listed as pneumonia, exacerbated by the flu, so they still count the statistics as a flu death. I’m not sure if I can rely on that claim either, though, it sounds a bit too skeptical. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/92 "2013-09-20T01:47:22Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > My circle is not that large. But I am occasionally made aware if they’re severely ill. So far none of the people I knew who have died called to tell me while it was happening. I have just inserted on my calendar a note to email **GuanoLad** if I croak from the flu. Posthumorously, of course. However, it’s not likely, since I have a flu shot in my schedule next week. Guess you’ll have to get along without me dying so easily. Sorry. Please wait for a more serious malady. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/93 "2013-09-20T01:47:26Z")
Khadaji died from the flu. So there’s one person you knew. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/94 "2013-09-20T02:00:32Z")
> [@MsWhatsit](#): > > Khadaji died from the flu. So there’s one person you knew. Aha. And I see that he in fact died of a [heart attack](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=680331), brought on by the flu. Now the statistics start to make sense, there’s a kind of doubling-up going on. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/95 "2013-09-20T02:25:32Z")
One of the problems with the flu, especially [strains like H1N1](http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/surveillanceqa.htm), is that even relatively common medical conditions like pregnancy, asthma, and diabetes increase the risk for hospitalization due to flu complications. Plus H1N1 was different from standard flu in that it wasn’t the very old and very young that were most frequently killed by it. The vast majority of flu-related deaths, 41%, were in the 25-49 age group. (see above link) ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 10:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/96 "2013-09-20T10:04:59Z")
There are, in _very_ general terms, two ways the flu kills. Most commonly, it weakens the person so they die of something else - pneumonia, heart attack, whatever. The other way is by prompting an auto-immune response such that the body essentially kills itself. This is most likely what’s happening when the flu kills the otherwise healthy, the 25-49% age group (those with weakened immune systems are less likely to have their systems turn on them). It accounted for the spike in H1N1 recently, and is believed to be what caused so many deaths in the Great Flu Pandemic last century. So, those of you bragging of how healthy you are, how you never get sick - you are _more likely_ to die than the sickly if the second type of flu strain is prevalent in a given year. Fortunately, such years are rare, but when they come around that’s when YOU need a flu shot. So, the choice is yours - you can do without the shot under the assumption it will be an ordinary year, which bet you will “win” most of the time, or get the shot so you have some protection when the “kills the healthy” variations come around. Meanwhile, wash your hands, cover your mouth and nose when you cough and sneeze, and if you’re sick stay home. That’s just courtesy, to not share germs with other people regardless if they’re flu or not. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2013, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/97 "2013-10-10T01:22:32Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Aha. And I see that he in fact died of a [heart attack](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=680331), brought on by the flu. Now the statistics start to make sense, there’s a kind of doubling-up going on. Just so I’m understanding you, you believe he would have died without the flu? ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2013, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/98 "2013-10-10T02:00:41Z")
> [@Stink Fish Pot](#): > > I just started doing the annual flu shot thing about 3 years ago. Never got sick before, always struggle a few days after getting the shot now. > > I really wonder if they are necessary. Maybe they are just a sham, but my doctor seems to think they are important. He probably gets a nice cut of each shot. It’s a racket! The flu shots always leave me a bit run down for a day or two, but I always get one to minimize the chance I will spread the disease to someone else. It’s such an easy way to be socially responsible. I’ve had the flu a couple of times, and I don’t think most “first world” people appreciate how dangerous and unpleasant influenza is. ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2013, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/99 "2013-10-10T14:25:27Z")
I don’t like needles ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2013, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876/100 "2013-10-10T14:42:02Z")
The influenza vaccine is available in the form of a [nasal spray](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_attenuated_influenza_vaccine) if you want to avoid the injection. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-up-people-flu-shots-are-here/668876.md?page=6)