Janet Street-Porter: Google and Covid jab misinformation is harming older people

Google and misinformation around the Covid vaccine is harming older people who want to stay healthy, Janet Street-Porter has warned.

The broadcaster and journalist, 77, has teamed up with Sir Steve Redgrave to launch a healthy ageing and shingles awareness campaign today with the pair pleading with people to rely on doctors – rather than the internet – for medical advice.

They also raised concerns that Covid vaccine fatigue may start to seep into routine immunisation programmes for the elderly, as has been seen in the MMR [measles, mumps and rubella] programmes leading to measles outbreaks around the country not seen in decades.

Street-Porter told i: “I had shingles in my 40s when I was doing two TV shows at once and was completely floored by it. I thought I was having an allergic reaction to a detergent or had eczema. It never occurred to me I had shingles as I was always a very healthy person who did a lot of exercise, but also a hell of a lot of work.

“At the time I got it I was under a lot of stress. I was busier than usual and then this rash appeared. A day later this rash appeared around my middle which I couldn’t touch. It was excruciatingly painful.”

The Shingles National Immunisation Programme changed in September 2023, with 900,000 more people eligible for a free jab on the NHS this year following recommendations from the Joint Committee of Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).

In addition to people aged 70-79 who were already eligible, those who turned 65 on 1 September 2023, and those 50 and over with a severely weakened immune system, such as blood cancer patients, are now eligible.

Shingles is caused by varicella-zoster virus (VZV), the same virus that causes chickenpox. Once a person has chickenpox, the virus stays in their body. The virus can reactivate later in life and cause shingles.

“When you get to my age – I’m 77 now – if you’re eligible for a vaccine that will stop you getting something serious that could strike up 1 in 4 of the population, for God’s sake take it because if you have shingles you are vulnerable to other things,” Street-Porter said. “And it will knock you for six. I got it a second time but not as badly. I wasn’t aware that anyone who has had chicken pox as a child, like I did, carried the virus with them.”

The Loose Women presenter said she has had conversations with people who have told her they would not have the Covid vaccine.

“Some older people feel ‘I’ve had all these [vaccines and boosters], do I need another one?’ If you’re offered a vaccine – take it. As you age don’t put yourself through unnecessary risk. Life is not a lottery. You’re not playing the horses. I wouldn’t take an unnecessary risk, that’s all I’m saying.”

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Sir Steve, 61, said it would be “crazy” not to take up an offer of something that could prevent a future health condition.

“I’m married to a doctor and my eldest daughter is a doctor as well [but] I wasn’t aware that there was an injection for shingles,” he told i. “I didn’t know it was likely to affect one in four people and if you’ve had chicken pox the chances are even greater.

“There might be a tendency following Covid to think ‘not another vaccination programme’, but if it’s going to help you not have a condition and make us healthier it’s crazy not to [have the vaccine].”

The five-time Olympic gold medallist, who was diagnosed with ­type 2 diabetes at the age of 35, has been candid in the past regarding his health difficulties following his retirement from rowing in August 2000 – when he was consuming 7,000 calories a day.

He now wants to use his own experiences to help improve the health of others in their 60s and beyond.

“I’m nearly 62 now – had diabetes for 25 years so healthy living is very important to me,” Sir Steve said. “Obviously, being an athlete for 25 years gives you a routine. I hated training, the preparation to it all, but I always found that the more I trained the better results I had – and I quite liked having good results.

“Since I retired, I’ve found it really difficult to get into a routine with good intentions of eating healthily. When I was an athlete I was eating a huge amount of food. Trying to get out of that habit is pretty bad and you do see a lot of rowers struggle with their weight once they retire.”

Last year’s annual report by Chief Medical Officer Sir Chris Whitty, Health in an Ageing Society, called for action to improve the health and quality of life of older adults.

This group of people are more at risk of developing conditions like shingles due to the immune system naturally weakening with age, which the new campaign hopes to address.

And a new survey commissioned by GSK for Shingles Awareness Week, revealed just half of the 1,000 UK adults polled do regular exercise and 79 per cent take up vaccinations offered to them. Only 59 per cent visit their doctor if they have any symptoms they are worried about.

Street-Porter said many older people are relying on “Dr Google” rather than making the effort to go and see a medic if they fall ill.

“Googling is stopping people getting checked out by a doctor. They’ve got their sons, daughters, grandkids showing them how to Google symptoms on the internet. It’s astonishing,” she said.

“People have brought up this resistance to going to see an expert believing, in my opinion, falsely, that they know better. I find it extraordinary that there is this level of self-diagnosis going on.”

Sir Steve added: “Googling is not that bad, but you’re only looking at one thing, whereas a medical professional is looking at the whole picture and not just one element.”

‘Get a dog – but don’t count your steps’

Street-Porter has no intention of shuffling off screen any time soon.

“No I don’t see myself retiring. I want to live as long as I can,” she said, adding: “I’m not like the people in Silicon Valley investing in eugenics and freezing parts of my body. The main thing is to combine moderate achievement with good mental health.”

Sir Steve stressed how important a routine is to healthy living as we age – and he credits his dog with helping him to keep one.

“If I don’t get into a routine, suddenly two or three weeks have gone past and I haven’t done anything. Life goes so quickly. So what I tend to do is surround myself with like-minded friends, not all rowers, and try to play golf once a week and go out cycling.

“The last two to three years we’ve got static bikes in our own homes. We probably do that more than getting out on the road these days. We go online, chat and exercise at the same time.

“And I try and get into the routine of doing something every other day. That helps me with the ageing process and, obviously, the older we get the harder it becomes, but it becomes more important. I do notice if I go two to three weeks without doing anything. I tend to seize up.

“I’ve also noticed than in the periods when I’m not playing my golf my weight would increase. I’ve played golf for many, many years, but I never treated golf as exercise. It was more of an enjoyment sport that I got fun out of, but actually my weight is much better controlled when I play regularly.

“It’s different for everyone. You to have to work out what’s best for you. Some people like doing stuff on their own. But you don’t have to have an expensive gym membership, you can just go for a regular walk – almost putting it into your diary that you do that. I also have a dog and having a pet helps a great deal – and they don’t talk back to you.”

The NHS recommends adults aged 65 and over should aim to be physically active every day, even if it is just light activity, including activities that improve strength, balance and flexibility on at least two days a week.

Officials say to do at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity a week or 75 minutes of vigorous intensity activity if you are already active, or a combination of both. Anyone who has not exercised for a long time should speak to their GP first.

Sir Steve and Street-Porter both said it is important to have achievable goals and worry less about the official guidelines.

“There’s so much conflicting advice about what constitutes adequate exercise. I would say it’s time spent moving rather than counting steps – as long as you’re doing something every day and not just sitting on your backside glued to the screen, that’s a good thing,” Street-Porter said.

“Don’t make it a horrible experience. If I’m doing a TV show which is very demanding, I’ll get up at 7am and just walk around the square in London where I live for 15 minutes, I don’t care what I look like, I’m absolutely focused on emptying my mind and calming myself down.

“As you get older it’s important to set your priorities around a healthier life because otherwise what kind of life are you living?”

Get Shingles Ready is a campaign by GSK supported by Sir Steve Redgrave and Janet Street-Porter. For more information visit GetShinglesReady.co.uk