If you’re one of the millions who are planning to opt out — because of some alarming claims about the vaccine you heard from a friend or read on social media, perhaps, or because you think you are too healthy to need a flu shot — public-health experts are asking you to reconsider. They are urging all Americans who are eligible for the influenza vaccine (which includes nearly everyone over the age of 6 months, including pregnant people) to get a flu shot, ideally by the end of October. While flu cases were low to nonexistent in the United States since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic thanks to precautions like mask mandates and stay-at-home orders, scientists are concerned about an influenza resurgence now that most of these safety measures are gone. In fact, our flu hiatus may have set us up for a potentially severe flu season. Typically, exposure to the flu virus (even if you don’t get sick) gives your immune system a boost, allowing your body to fend off the virus faster at the next encounter. But many people — particularly those who didn’t get a flu shot in prior years — won’t have that immunity advantage, says Eili Klein, PhD, associate professor of emergency medicine at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore and a senior fellow at the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics, and Policy in Washington, DC. Unfortunately, political divisiveness and social media misinformation have made many Americans increasingly skeptical of vaccines — not just COVID-19 shots but also flu vaccines, as well as mass vaccination programs in general. Even before the pandemic, social media was rife with anti-vaccination sentiment, reports the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Anti-vaccination messaging often relies on sensationalism and harnessing fear to grab people’s attention and reach the widest audience. And it works: A study published in the September 2020 issue of the journal Vaccine found that people who were exposed to tweets that expressed concerns about flu vaccines during the 2018–2019 flu season were more likely to have negative attitudes about the flu shot, and were also less likely to get the shot, compared with those who didn’t see those tweets. Don’t let false “facts” and conspiracy theories leave you and your family unprotected. Here, we take on long-standing and newly circulating misconceptions about the flu shot and offer must-know advice on how to stay safe. “When it’s a perfect match, the shot works extremely well,” explains Megan Culler Freeman, MD, PhD, a pediatric infectious disease fellow at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. “But even when it’s not a perfect match, there is usually some cross-protection, which means if you do get the flu, it won’t be nearly as severe.” That could save you from being flattened for a week or longer, having to see a doctor, or, worse, being hospitalized. During the pre-COVID (2019–2020) flu season, the flu shot prevented an estimated 7.5 million influenza illnesses, 3.7 million flu-associated medical visits, 105,000 flu-associated hospitalizations, and 6,300 flu-associated deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Misconception No. 2: The Flu Shot Can Give You the Flu
“The flu shot is made from an inactive virus, so it’s impossible for it to give you the flu,” says David Brill, DO, a physician in the department of family medicine at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio. “It is possible but not common to have a day of body aches or not feeling well after getting the shot, but that’s just your immune system doing what it’s supposed to be doing, and nothing compared to the actual flu,” he explains. Immunity to the flu isn’t immediate, however. It takes about two weeks after vaccination for antibodies to develop in the body and for you to become protected. “It’s possible for someone to get the shot and then catch the flu before immunity kicks in,” notes Dr. Freeman. “But you would never get the flu because of the shot.” You may have heard about a study published in January 2020 in Vaccine and publicized on social media that identified an association between the flu vaccine and four commonly circulating coronaviruses (but not the type that causes COVID-19). This research prompted a spate of additional studies, none of which supported the original finding, says the CDC. One study, published in October 2020 in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases, found no connection between the flu vaccine and an increased risk of infection with other respiratory viruses, including seasonal coronaviruses. Bottom line: “The flu shot doesn’t make you any more — or any less — likely to get COVID-19,” says Freeman.
Misconception No. 4: Once Flu Season Starts, It’s Too Late to Get the Shot
The CDC recommends getting vaccinated by the end of October so that you have immunity by the time the influenza virus starts circulating in your community. But if you don’t make that deadline, don’t stress — or give up on the whole idea. The flu is unpredictable and seasons can vary. “As long as flu viruses are circulating, it’s still worth getting a flu shot,” says Dr. Brill. In March 2022, the CDC reported an unusual spring spike in flu cases across the United States and noted that unvaccinated people could still benefit from getting a flu shot.
Misconception No. 5: It’s Healthier to Get the Flu and Let Your Immune System Do Its Job
Unfortunately, there’s nothing healthy about getting the flu. “People can have pretty severe and negative outcomes from getting natural flu,” says Freeman. In addition to causing 7 to 10 days of full-on misery, influenza can lead to severe complications, such as pneumonia or inflammation of the heart or brain — and even death. Contrary to what many people think, vaccines don’t weaken your immune system or prevent it from working the way it should, points out Brill. “Vaccines actually stimulate your immune system and get it to work in the direction you want it to, without getting the actual illness,” he explains. Getting vaccinated is a much safer choice than getting sick.
Misconception No. 6: Young, Healthy People Do Not Need to Worry About the Flu
While it’s true that the flu is most threatening to the very young, the elderly, and people with underlying illnesses or medical conditions, it can cause severe symptoms in anyone. Even healthy children and adults are at risk of hospitalization or severe complications from a bout of the flu, notes Brill. Also keep in mind that you’re not just getting the flu shot for yourself but also for everyone around you. The more people get vaccinated, the less likely it is that influenza will spread, a concept known as herd immunity. “You should get a flu shot for Grandma or the older person in line in front of you at the grocery store,” advises Brill. You can’t pass along a virus if you never get it yourself.
Misconception No. 7: You Shouldn’t Get a Flu Shot and the COVID-19 Vaccine or Booster at the Same Time
This is a common source of confusion because earlier in the pandemic, out of an abundance of caution, the CDC recommended waiting at least two weeks between a COVID-19 shot and any other vaccine. However, the CDC has since revised its advice. They now say it’s safe to get a COVID-19 vaccine or booster without worrying about the timing of other vaccines, including the flu shot. A recent CDC study found that people are slightly more likely to experience (generally mild) side effects such as fatigue if they get a COVID-19 booster and a flu vaccine at the same time, so if that’s a concern you may want to spread these shots out a bit.
