You might have heard stories:  “I got a flu shot once and I was never so sick!”  This is absolutely an old wives tale.  You cannot contract the flu from a flu shot;  and getting a flu shot certainly protects you from getting influenza.

Unfortunately some people get confused by terminology.  People sometimes call any illness “the flu.”  A stomache bug, allergies, a head cold, any fever … any of these might be called “the flu” or “flu-like symptoms” by a non-medical person.  Obviously flu shots won’t help protect against these illnesses.

But true influenza, type A, B, or H1N1, which goes around the world every year, is different.  The flu shots (and the nasal mist vaccine) certainly protect you (and your child) from getting Influenza.  They have very few side effects, other than some low grade fever or muscle aches for a day or so.  So there’s no reason to stay away from them.

Some people have expressed fear about the H1N1 (Swine Flu) vaccine, because they think it’s “new.”  In fact, the vaccine manufacturing process is the same as for the regular (“seasonal”) flu vaccines, for both the shots and the nasal mist.  So the side effects may be expected to be the same.

So, get your flu shots!

–  Dr. Epstein