Will another adult "vaccine" come to market soon? What you need to know about this bacteria.

How to prevent this infection instead.

A Medscape article recently discussed preliminary research for a new mRNA vaccine that may protect you against Clostridioides difficile (C. diff) infections.

Photo by Zoshua Colah on Unsplash

When I worked in LTC, when a resident was admitted to the hospital, it was always a concern that they would return with a C. diff or MRSA infection. This meant the resident had to be isolated, and precautions had to be taken upon entering the resident’s room. Often, this isolation period could last months.

C difficile is a bacterium that can lead to diarrhea and GI conditions such as colitis. It can also live in your gut without causing any harm. But just like candida overgrowth can lead to damage, so too can C. diff when it shifts the ecosystem in the microbiome.

The elderly in a long-term care or hospital setting are more vulnerable.

The reasons for increased vulnerability for this population are due to their

• weakened immune system

• gastric acid suppression

• gut dysbiosis

• antibiotic usage

Since C. diff is immune to many drugs and even to the harsh toxic disinfectants used in hospitals and nursing homes, it can become highly contagious in these settings for the weak and immune-compromised population. C. diff spores can live on surfaces for months and spread from the caregiver's hands to the vulnerable person.

Thus, since antibiotics may be unsuccessful in eradicating C. diff, a new injection is being examined that may protect one against C. diff. No human trials have occurred at this time.

C. diff can be challenging to eradicate, and 1 in 6 people will get it again within 2 to 8 weeks, which means their microbiome is still in dysbiosis. They probably have chronically low stomach acid.

So, instead of addressing low stomach acid, a weakened immune system, and gut dysbiosis, we should ignore all that and give one more injection.

Well, it is the easiest solution.

Vaccines for Adults

I used to think that vaccines were targeted only to children, but that is no longer true. You can be on a regular vaccine schedule from birth to old age. Vaccines are being pushed at every age.

According to the CDC, adults 50-64 should get a C-19 and flu injection yearly, as well as RSV and Tdap. Additional vaccines recommended for certain adult age groups include shingles, pneumococcal, and meningococcal. If a C. diff injection comes to the market, I imagine it will be enforced for anyone in a skilled nursing facility and anyone 65 and older.

These adult injections are in addition to the 70 current injections a person would receive from 18 “vaccines” from birth to 18 years old.

As the CDC site states

“Staying up to date on your vaccines is one of the best things you can do to protect your health.”

I have mentioned previously how there are subliminal messages that make people think that vaccines equate with health. For example, NPR's health tab on its site is called Shots, which has a needle picture.

Why is NPR’s section with health articles showing a picture of a needle? Shouldn’t it have a picture of food, sunshine, nature, or something similar?

Avoiding C. Diff

So we know what can make you susceptible to a C. diff infection, but nowhere on any MSN links I looked at did it say what you can do to avoid it, such as:

• Taking a probiotic and eating probiotic-rich foods and fermented food

• Only take an antibiotic if necessary

• Support gut microbiome health before, during, and after antibiotic use. (take a probiotic 2 hours or more away from medications)

• Address the low stomach acid (common in the aging population) naturally, such as betaine HCL or raw, unfiltered apple cider vinegar.

• Stay independent as you age so that you can avoid a skilled nursing facility if possible

• Avoid hospitals unless necessary

Are PPIs to Blame?

Since the aging population is more susceptible, and low HCL is a risk factor, why are many older adults prescribed an acid blocker?

I was unable to locate current statistics, but a 2022 research article indicated that PPIs are one of the most commonly prescribed medications in the US and Europe and that their use is high in the elderly population. Another article mentioned that people over 65 years old are more likely to have low stomach acid levels.

Not only does an acid-suppressing drug reduce stomach acid, making one more prone to C. diff, but long-term proton pump inhibitor use has been shown to increase gut dysbiosis risk.

Long-term use for a PPI drug is defined as longer than 8 weeks. How many people do you know who have been taking a PPI for years?

So again, why are so many people 65 and older on an acid-suppressing drug that can make them more susceptible to a C. diff infection?

When I worked in LTC, the majority of residents were on an acid-suppressing drug, even though we know that the majority probably had low stomach acid to begin with. (as far as I could tell upon reviewing charts, no testing was done to confirm the person’s GI symptoms were related to elevated HCL rather than low).

Additionally, the number of medications we take increases with age. What is the synergistic effect of all these drugs on our microbiome? We do not know.

What are we doing to our aging population? We load them up on medications, destroy their gut health, give them a low-salt, processed food diet filled with artificial sweeteners and seed oils, and tell them supplements are just expensive urine.

It is no wonder that so many enter the hospital and leave with a C. diff infection.

What the Medscape Article Failed to Mention

Sehgal and Khanna (2021) state that bacterial imbalances in the gut cause C. diff and that a healthy gut plays a role in resisting C. diff colonization. Therefore, it would make sense for our aging population, who have weaker immune systems and are taking multiple medications, to take a probiotic at the very least.

Yet, suppose an injection for C. diff comes to market. In that case, medical practitioners will push this to our aging population and advise their adult children that getting this injection is being a responsible caregiver to their parents.

What We Need Going Forward

I hope the incoming presidential administration will address this. At the very least, we need (actual) informed consent from medical staff who do not criticize, judge, or turn patients away because they refuse these injections.

Medical offices should be required to have at least one employee whose sole responsibility is to provide informed consent. This means unbiasedly explaining, citing, and providing all the risks and benefits of each injection. They should also be required to offer other options, such as the ones I mentioned, in place of the C. diff injection.

Lastly, since big pharma now has plenty of money, it should not pose an issue to eradicate what President Reagan put in place to protect them.

What Plan Do You Have in Place As You Age?

Photo by Steven HWG on Unsplash

Would you get a C diff injection? Have you received adult “vaccines” such as those for shingles? If so, are you glad that you did?

I have spoken to our sons about my wishes should I become severely ill and require nursing care. If I can no longer speak for myself, will they follow my wishes? I want to think so!

What about you?

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