H1N1 (swine flu) and facebook
Well as flu vaccine season comes to Canada we are seeing some back and forth on whether the H1N1 flu vaccine should be given or not. Some say it is untested, and some question whether the adjuvants used to boost the power of vaccines may cause more problems. As for H1N1 itself, the jury is still out whether this is more or less severe than the common flu.
The Ottawa Citizen and Ottawa Sun both told the story of a young H1N1 victim in the city. Will we see more? One thing I’m sure of is that of my group of Facebook friends I definitely see people who are taking it, people who are not, and some who are unsure. And the people I mention are not afraid to talk about it on Facebook. I will definitely be watching Facebook in order to see how a small subsection of people I know react to H1N1 and the vaccine. Social media and personal healthcare–together tackling this very contentious issue.
BTW, for more information on adjuvants, see this article from Scientific American. It is generally pro adjuvants, but beyond the controversy it contains a good explanation of what the mysterious adjuvants do.
