health

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Holy springs and holy water: underestimated sources of illness

Holy Crap!

Holy water at religious shrines and churches in Austria is often contaminated with fecal matter and bacteria, researchers have found, advising the faithful not to drink it, especially in hospital chapels.

Scientists at Vienna University medical school’s Institute of Hygiene and Applied Immunology came to the conclusion after analyzing the water quality at 21 “holy” springs and 18 fonts at churches and chapels at various times of year.

Only 14 percent of the water samples from holy sources showed no fecal contamination, and none of the springs could be recommended as a source of drinking water, the study presented to a conference in Vienna this week found.

Kirschner, A.K.T., M. Atteneder, A. Schmidhuber, S. Knetsch, A.H. Farnleitner, R. Sommer. Holy springs and holy water: underestimated sources of illness? Journal of Water & Health 10.3: 349-357 (2012)

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22960479
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-austria-water/holy-water-in-austria-unsafe-to-drink-researchers-idUSBRE98H0AG20130918 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2419851/Not-pure-Most-holy-water-contaminated-faecal-matter-harmful-health.html

 

 

 

The Influenza Vaccine

Flu vaccines are available either as:
  1. Trivalent or quadrivalent injection (TIV or QIV), which contains the inactivated (dead strains) form of the virus.
  2. A nasal spray of live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV, Q/LAIV), which contains the attenuated or weakened form of the virus.  Cold Adapted, it can only cause problems in your nose where it is cold, when it goes deeper where it is warm it will not cause problems.
There are huge misconceptions and conspiracy theories:
  1. The flu vaccine do NOT cause flu. Feeling dizzy and uncomfortable after the vaccine is due to your immune system reacting to the virus and creating antibodies. You are not sick.
  2. Thimerosal/mercury does NOT cause autism.
  3.  Vaccines do NOT cause autism.
  4. Vaccines ( even in volume) are NOT bad for the immune system.
  5. The flu vaccine is NOT a government conspiracy.
Efficacy of the flu vaccine:

Usually between 60% or 70%

Studies show that in a vaccinated group of 100 subjects, 1 gets infected and in the control group of 100 subjects 4 get infected.

In general benefits outnumber risks greatly.

Benefits:
  1. Herd immunity
  2. Reduces sick time.
  3. Reduces medical visits
  4. Reduces hospitalizations
  5. Reduces Deaths
  6. Protects again complications
  • Pneumonia
  • Bronchitis
  • Asthma
  • Ear infections
  • Sinus infections
  • Bacterial infections
Risks:
  1. Some pain in the arm is not that uncommon for a few hours
  2. Febrile seizures (1 in a 1000, it produces no long term problems)
  3. Guillain-Barre syndrome (nerve disease) – In 1976 there was an extra case among 100,000

 

Why do you need to get a flu shot every year? by TEDed: https://youtu.be/FZ_jNGKCIWs

Get your flu shot! it’s not about you, OK? By HealthcareTriage: https://youtu.be/iXociKUJXu8

How the flu shot works (and why you should get it) by Seeker: https://youtu.be/JBEkdRx6b5s

The trouble with this year’s flu season (2018) by SciShow: https://youtu.be/8Ch48o4og8E

Two flu vaccines by Khan (TIV and LAIV): https://youtu.be/4mXv-Pa4CMM

Flu vaccine risks and benefits ny Khan: https://youtu.be/2h09oj26_H0