►January 15, 2004 - Jury Still Out On Flu Vaccine - HealthDay via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution - "The CDC is still urging flu vaccination, especially for such high-risk persons as children and older people, because history shows that the vaccine probably is preventing the disease in many cases and reducing the incidence of complications in those who develop the disease, says Dr. Nidhi Jain, a CDC epidemiologist..."Remember, there are three different strains in the vaccine," Treanor says. "One of those strains could pop out later this year...And the record of past years in which there was a mismatch between the virus used for the vaccine and the most common strain in the population shows that the vaccine did reduce the number of infections and the potentially life-threatening complications in those who developed influenza, Jain says."

Comment:  Even though the CDC says "This study does not provide data that permits an assessment of the effectiveness of TIV (trivalent inactivated vaccine) against laboratory-confirmed influenza and its complications. Additional studies to provide such data are under way. Because TIV was effective against laboratory-confirmed influenza and influenza-related complications in previous years in which it was not effective against ILI (8,9), and because influenza B and influenza A (H1N1) viruses might cause serious illness later this season, influenza vaccine continues to be recommended for persons at increased risk for influenza-related complications, their household contacts, and health-care personnel.", it is still difficult to see how the CDC can continue to recommend this vaccine.  This is particularly true given that their own preliminary studies confirm that it appears the vaccine is not likely to be protective.  (After all, it is not as if there are no adverse flu vaccine-associated reactions reported to VAERS.  Between 1990 and now there have been 20,174, probably at a minimum representing over 200,000.) That is, it is hard to fathom unless they view their primary job to be protecting the vaccine manufacturers rather than the public.   And unless they have conducted studies comparing those who were vaccinated to those who were not vaccinated against the flu (breaking it down by "never vaccinated" and all the various vaccine combinations), there is simply no basis for the argument that a mismatched flu vaccine offers at least some protection against the flu.

►February 11, 2004 - Black Death Not Reason for Anti-HIV Gene Mutation - Nature via Reuters Health - "People with a genetic variation in a receptor on immune cells, called the CCR5-delta-32 mutation, are resistant to infection with HIV. The mutation is much more common in people of Northern European descent than in other populations, and it seems to have arisen some 800 years ago...Researchers have suggested that it became so common as a result of selective pressure by the Black Death plague in the Middle Ages, meaning that people with the mutation were more likely to escape the contagion...As plausible as the theory seems, it's apparently unfounded, researchers conclude in an article in this week's issue of the science journal Nature."

►February 11, 2004 - Obesity turning into major threat for nation's kids - The Seattle Times via Fort Wayne News Sentinel

►February 11, 2004 - Survey Shows Impact of Psoriasis is More Than Skin Deep - Self-confidence, Relationships, Work/School, and Social Interactions Affected - PRNewswire via Yahoo!

►February 12, 2004 - Call for bird vaccinations - Chickens may get the jab to stop spread of bird flu. - Nature

Comment:  But if a recent article in New Scientist is correct, vaccinations may be part of the problem, rather than part of the solution.

►February 11, 2004 - Avian Influenza - Advice from The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Travel VideoTelevision News