An Oregon mother found out firsthand the potentially severe side effects of the flu medicine, Tamiflu, and now wants to warn others, her local station KKTV 11 reported.
When her son got sick, Sarah Wells took him to the doctor, where he was prescribed Tamiflu. Her son started experiencing hallucinations, hearing voices and saying that “everything was in fast forward” after taking it for a couple of days, Wells told reporters. The psychological effects of Tamiflu are known side effects and occur more commonly in children, the report said.
The antiviral drug Tamiflu is the second recommendation on the CDC’s list of flu preventions and treatments, right behind the flu vaccine. And, at the recommendation of the WHO, governments around the world have stockpiled the drug in preparation for potential flu pandemics.
The U.S. government has spent an estimated $1.3 billion to stockpile Tamiflu, despite a review from the highly respected Cochrane Collaboration that questioned the drug’s effectiveness and called the billions of dollars spent to stockpile Tamiflu a waste of money.
Also, before reaching for Tamiflu, consider that since 2009, Roche, the maker of Tamiflu, has refused to release data from eight of 10 clinical trials on the drug. There is currently no scientific basis for the WHO’s recommendation to use Tamiflu to treat or prevent the flu, and it’s believed by many that the missing trial data may reveal potential harms, and/or verify the drug’s ineffectiveness.
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