By Jacob Schor, N.D.
My family recently watched "Bowling for Columbine." OK, so we're a little behind in our movie viewing. My lasting memory of the movie is Mr. Moore, in all his obnoxious girth, knocking on house doors in Canada to demonstrate the difference in fear levels that distinguish Canadians from Americans.
In Canada, people don't routinely lock their doors, contends Mr. Moore. Whether this is true or not, and from experience I suspect it is true, it is a great example of our American tendency to seek out and find things to be fearful of.
Our experience traveling in Israel this past summer seemed to second Mr. Moore's opinion. It seemed to us that fear of terrorist attacks control the lives of more people in our country than in Israel.
These ruminations are prompted by the recent flu vaccine shortage in our country. The papers tell me there is now a black market for flu shots; a pediatrician's office in Aurora was robbed the other night of 600 doses of flu vaccine. Phone calls to our office would make me think there is a crisis at hand.
Has this been blown out of perspective simply to satisfy the American need to have something to be worried about? I think so. An analysis in the October 13 issue of the New Scientist makes interesting reading and if heeded would calm this sense of panic. This magazine, published in England, looks at the situation with a detached and rational perspective. “Despite the halving of the U.S.'s flu vaccine supply, there could be fewer deaths than normal this winter if people follow official advice….”
Recall that in the first week of October the British government found it necessary to shut down a vaccine factory in Liverpool owned Chiron Vaccines. The United States buys almost half of its supply from this factory. This year, we should see only 56 million of the 100 million doses ordered available for use. Reason for panic? No. In the 1990's the U.S. survived on 20 million doses a year.
Two-thirds of the U.S.'s supply of flu vaccine usually goes to adults between 18 and 65. Yet 90 percent of deaths from flu occur in those over 65 years old. In the U.S. there are around 35 million people over 65. Moreover, in 2002, the most recent year for which figures are available, only 24 million of them got a flu shot. That means the U.S. could vaccinate just as many elderly people as in 2002 and still have 30 million doses of vaccine left over for the other groups for whom vaccinations are officially recommended: people with diseases such as asthma and, for the first time this year, some 10 million children under 2.
OK, so health officials may feel frustrated but it isn't Osama out to get us with the flu. Many clinics are turning away healthy adults, as the Center for Disease Control recommends, while elderly people rush to get their shots. In fact, if more elderly people than usual get vaccinated as a result of the shortage and all the publicity about it, there could actually be fewer flu deaths this winter.
There are certainly other options to protect oneself from the flu. Let's remember to wash our hands and get the kids to wash their hands. There are a handful of nutritional supplements that come to mind when talking about flu prevention. The simplest is n-acetyl-cysteine usually nicknamed NAC. This chemical compound has been used for years as a mucolytic, that is it dissolves the mucous in the nose and lungs.
There's a study from a few years ago that I like that examined NAC use in older people and flu occurrence. Researchers recruited people with average age 65 years old from and gave them either a daily dose of NAC or a placebo (sugar pill) for the six months of the flu season. Come springtime the researchers reported, “NAC treatment was well tolerated and resulted in a significant decrease in the frequency of influenza-like episodes, severity, and length of time confined to bed. Both local and systemic symptoms were sharply and significantly reduced in the NAC group.”
My other favorite flu related nutritional supplement is an elderberry extract imported from Israel called Sambuccol. The product was developed by a virologist who remembered her mother giving her elderberry tea when she was sick as a child. The virologist, between more exciting research assignments, isolated the anti-viral factor in elderberries, figured out and patented a way to concentrate it from the berries and has been marketing her product Sambuccol ever since. Early studies suggested it cut intensity and duration of flu symptoms by half. A new study published just last spring was performed in Norway and showed that patients recovered on average four days earlier than people using a placebo.
Concern not Fear
Nobody enjoys getting the flu. For those of us not at high risk of complications, the flu should not be feared on the same level as weapons of mass destruction. Those at risk should and probably will be able to get the vaccine. Those of us who cannot can lower the risk of getting sick by taking NAC and if we do start feeling ill, reduce the symptoms and their duration by taking Sambuccol.
I'm not suggesting leaving your front door unlocked, but I am suggesting that this is one red alert that can be downgraded from fear to concern.
Jacob Schor, N.D. majored in Food Science and Product Development as an undergraduate at Cornell University, and received his doctorate in Naturopathic Medicine at National College in Portland, Oregon in 1991. He served as President of the Colorado Association of Naturopathic Physicians from 1992-1999 and maintains a private practice at the Denver Naturopathic Clinic.