Oct 11, 2019
Every year we hear people say that the flu shot gave them the flu. True or False? Can the flu shot give you the flu?
Answer: The answer to this question, without hesitation is false. But it raises 4 important points:
- The flu vaccine does not cause the flu. It is an attenuated or inactivated virus and therefore cannot cause the flu.
- Upon receiving the flu shot can be a response to the vaccine called an Immune Response. This is your immune system reacting and can elicit some symptoms similar to the flu, like muscle aches, fever…While annoying, it is actually a good sign.
- During the typical vaccination season, there a multitude of viruses in circulation that mimic some of the flu symptoms. Viruses like RSV, Rhinovirus, Enterovirus.
- Depending on when you received your flu shot or how well of a match there was with the vaccine, a person could have been exposed to the flu during the window of the vaccine working to create immunity. The vaccine is not 100% effective at preventing the flu, but should you acquire the flu and were vaccinated, the symptoms are often milder and the complications from the flu fewer.
This content was originally posted on the WDTV News website here.
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