Vaccines to take or not to take, that is the question

Maybe you're like me and doomscroll reels on Facebook or memes playing to Alphaville song "I want to be Forever Young," and the young faces of famous people and movie stars morph into their present-day image.

If they're dead, they have beautiful white wings, which is somewhat reassuring.

Sometimes, the cause of death is listed and No. 1 seems to be pneumonia, but also heart problems and Lewy Body dementia.

Pro-vaxxers and anti-vaxxers

Personally, I have never seen a vaccine I didn't like.

In Utqiagvik (formerly Barrow) the town was a site testing the Havrix vaccine used to prevent infection caused by the hepatitis A virus.

Hepatitis A is endemic to areas where there is a lack of sanitation (hot running water).

Once, in Anaktuvuk Pass, I was offered a piece of quaq, raw frozen fish, after the woman had changed her child's diaper without washing her hands.

That is not the case on the North Slope now as most villages have running water and flush toilets. Honey buckets are, thankfully, less and less common in rural communities.

Anti-vaxxers claim that some vaccines cause conditions like autism, but extensive scientific studies have disproved this. https://www.mayoclinichealthsystem.org/hometown-health/speaking-of-health/autism-vaccine-link-debunked

The World health Organization recently declared that "vaccine hesitancy is one of the top 10 threats to global health."

Studies have recently found the flu, herpes zoster (shingles), and pneumonia vaccinations have a protective effect against some cardiovascular events on people over 65 years.

Dosage is once a year.

Pneumonia can be deadly

Watch for these warning signals:

1. Confusion,delirium

2. Weakness and unsteadiness

3. Shortness of breath and racing heart

4. Chest pain

5. Coughing and up and down temperature fluctuation

6. Drop in blood pressure

Dosage is once a year.

Measles outbreak could affect you

Symptoms:

1. High fever

2. Cough

3. Runny nose

4. Red, watery eyes

5. White spots inside your mouth

6. A red rash that spreads from the top of your body on down

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported last month that there are 3,278 confirmed measles cases as of Sept. 10, 2026 reported in 47 jurisdictions, including Alaska.

https://www.cdc.gov/measles/data-research/index.html

Complications from a measles infection can include pneumonia, ear infections, blindness, encephalitis (swelling of the brain) and a rare but fatal disease of the central nervous system known as subacute sclerosing panencephalitis.

Older adults are also more likely to develop hepatitis or liver problems with a measles infection.

Measles is one of the most contagious of all infections.

Annual flu shot

I was interviewing an astronaut at Utqiagvik's Naval Arctic Research Laboratory when I fell very ill. For the next three days, I had a temperature of 103 and was almost hallucinating. You sure don't want that to happen to you.

Every year, the strain of flu is investigated, so the vaccine will address the new symptoms.

Symptoms:

1. Fever or chills

2. Cough

3. Sore throat,

4. Runny or stuffy nose

5. Muscle or body aches

6. Headaches

7. Fatigue

8. Occasionally vomiting or diarrhea

Complications from the flu for those over 65 can escalate to bacterial pneumonia, sinus infections and worsened chronic conditions like asthma or heart disease.

Protect yourself from shingles

Shingles is an extremely painful viral infection that stems from the same virus as chickenpox. Called varicella zoster, it stays in the body after you have chickenpox, lies dormant and years later can reactivate to cause shingles. Anyone who has had or been exposed to chickenpox is at risk.

The shingles rash can cause burning, tingling, and in some cases, long-term nerve pain. There is a vaccine called Shingrix, and it is approved and recommended for everyone over the age of 50.

Symptoms:

1. A sharp or stabbing pain. A rash that looks like mini pimples usually follows the pain.

2. Itching or tingling

3. Fever

4. Red rash and blisters

5. Fever

6. Headaches

7. Chills

8. Light sensitivity

Not taking the vaccine can lead to complications such as postherpetic neuralgia that causes deep, burning nerve pain lasting for months or even years; vision loss is possible if shingles occurs near or in the eye causing permanent eye damage or blindness. Severe cases can lead to hearing problems, pneumonia, or even brain inflammation (encephalitis).

A first dose is given at the doctor's visit, then a second two to six months after.

So, be wise-immunize.