From "Today" or todayonline. I have trouble putting up the link..
I REFER to "The trouble with Tamiflu" (Aug 1). It used to be thought that the side effects of Tamiflu occur in only a small percentage of people, but it is alarming that the latest United Kingdom study suggests it affects about 50 per cent of children who take it.
Beyond side effects, the real trouble is that Tamiflu is widely-regarded as a "magic bullet". Governments around the world spend billions to stockpile it. Doctors prescribe it freely. As the report noted, whole classrooms of UK students used to be given the drug if just one of them caught the flu. Here in Singapore, a friend who is a tuition teacher tells me that several of his students have been given Tamiflu at the slightest flu symptoms. And people take it without questioning.
Doctors and lay people view Tamiflu as the solution to the flu. Yet, medical literature tells us that anti-viral drugs such as Tamiflu and Relenza are only effective in reducing flu symptoms by about one day. Considering the typical flu patient suffers symptoms for about 10 days, this works out to be a mere 10 per cent improvement. For that small improvement, consumers put themselves at risk of side effects that, according to the United States Food and Drug Administration's Division of Drug Risk Evaluation, include: Panic attacks, delirium, convulsions, depression, loss of consciousness and suicide.
How many who take Tamiflu read (or are told about) the warning label that states: "People with the flu, particularly children, may be at an increased risk of self-injury and confusion shortly after taking Tamiflu and should be closely monitored for signs of unusual behaviour"?
Even the Health Promotion Board (HPB) does little to highlight the side effects of anti-viral drugs. The HPB recently distributed a booklet, Frequently Asked Questions on Influenza A (H1N1 - 2009). It mentions in passing that side effects may occur, but does not elaborate.
As for the possible side effects of flu vaccination, a number of prominent doctors in the US have written commentaries to point out that vaccination may possibly cause far greater harm than the flu itself. Yet HPB's booklet does not mention any possible flu vaccination side effects.
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