The annual seasonal flu vaccination campaign has started, but how good is your knowledge of the flu and the flu shot?
In the United States, the flu virus is currently hitting earlier and harder than in years past, with the highest number of hospitalizations in a decade. Australia also had a severe flu epidemic from April to October this year, especially among children between 5 and 9 years of age. High-risk groups in our country are therefore best vaccinated, experts say. But first we would like to dispel some of the myths surrounding the flu.
Myth 1: The flu vaccine gives you the flu
Thanks to the corona vaccines, most of us have some experience with vaccination against respiratory viruses. For some, these are occasionally accompanied by side effects such as headache, fever, muscle aches and a general feeling of weakness. This ‘flu syndrome’ is not corona or flu. After all, the flu vaccine contains an inactivated flu virus, not a live one. So the vaccine cannot possibly give you the flu. The disease symptoms are a signal that your immune system is getting to work. However, such side effects are rare with the flu vaccine. Sometimes there is some swelling or mild pain at the vaccination site. Even rarer with the flu vaccine are complications due to a faulty immune system response. With flu vaccination, for example, you run an extremely minimal risk of, for example, Guillain-Barré syndrome, a sudden temporary paralysis, but the chance of that condition is greater if you actually get the flu. The flu vaccine also has benefits. It protects against strokes and heart attacks.
Myth 2: If you ever had the flu, you don’t need a shot
The immunity you acquire at a young age against certain strains of flu can last for years. The problem is that influenza viruses are evolutionarily very young (they are barely a few thousand years old). Their adolescent nature causes them to change shape year after year and mislead our immunological memory and defense stronghold. Our memory cells from last year’s flu, for example, will no longer recognize this year’s mutated flu viruses. An annual dose of the flu vaccine is therefore indicated.
Myth 3: Getting the flu after a flu vaccination is impossible
Vaccines are not sanctifying. The flu shot protects you only 40 to 70 percent against the flu, depending on your immune system and the strain of flu in circulation. For example, people who received a flu shot in the 2017-2018 flu season were only 36 percent less likely to contract the flu than those who were not vaccinated. This again has to do with the fickle nature of influenza. Every February, health authorities meet to determine the ingredients of the next flu shot. For the coming flu season, the vaccines contain a cocktail of antigens against four influenza strains. We’re never quite sure that another devastating strain of flu won’t come to the fore this year. That is why it is best to observe the well-known ‘golden rules’: stay home if you are sick, wash your hands correctly and regularly and wear a mouth mask in crowded places where physical distance is difficult. If you do get flu, a mutated strain of flu may be responsible, but the vaccine will still protect you from serious symptoms and complications. Or you just caught another respiratory virus. Many viruses cause the same symptoms as the flu.
Myth 4: November is too late for the flu shot
December to March are the best flu months. The Superior Health Council (SHC) recommends vaccinating from mid-October. As long as the number of infections has not yet peaked, vaccination will remain useful. After the flu shot, it takes two weeks before you are optimally protected. The effect of the vaccine lasts for about six months. In older people, the protection disappears a little faster. And what about your covid or pneumococcal shot? According to the SHC, simultaneous vaccinations or vaccinations in quick succession are perfectly safe and effective.
Myth 5: The flu vaccine is expensive
The flu vaccine is largely reimbursed for persons belonging to a risk group. Regular insured pay about 4 euros per vaccine, those who have an increased allowance 2.5 euros. Most health insurance funds also provide an (extra) allowance for multiple age and/or risk groups for costs incurred for the purchase of vaccines. Request a special certificate from your pharmacy for this. The vaccine is free for people staying in a subsidized care institution in Flanders. From 2022 onwards, they will receive a vaccine with a four times higher dose of antigens than standard dosed vaccines. Without a contribution from the health insurance you pay about 16 euros for a flu vaccine. Some companies offer the vaccine to their staff for free to avoid excessive absenteeism rates.
Myth 6: Getting the flu vaccine is cumbersome
Since last year, the government has made it even easier for you to get the flu vaccine. You can pick it up at the pharmacy without a prescription and then have it fitted by your GP or a nurse. Keep the vaccine in the refrigerator.
Myth 7: The flu is a harmless condition
The flu does more damage than people think. It can lead to serious complications, increasing the risk of heart attack or pneumonia. There is also a risk of additional health problems. For example, the flu virus can lead to Guillain-Barré syndrome. Patients at risk, such as people over 65 years of age, pregnant women, people with obesity and people with an underlying chronic condition are advised to be vaccinated. Vaccination of risk groups also protects other people in society, such as babies and young children. For young, healthy adults, the flu poses less of a threat.
Myth 8: You can’t die from the flu
In Belgium, the number of flu deaths varies from a few 100 to a few 1000 people, depending on the severity of the epidemic. More than 90 percent of deaths involve people aged 65 or older. In addition, 1 in 1000 flu patients develop complications that require hospitalization.
Myth 9: Flu has been outcompeted by Covid-19
On average, 500,000 people in Belgium are affected by a flu syndrome every year, about 2 to 8 percent of the population. It is true that there has been hardly any flu in our regions in recent corona years because of the sanitary measures. However, the health institute Sciensano expects that the flu virus will circulate strongly this winter and that many people will be susceptible to the virus because there has been relatively little exposure over the past two years, especially among children. The data on influenza activity in the southern hemisphere is like a canary in the coalmine, and those data are not reassuring. There, the flu season started earlier and was more virulent.
Myth 10: You can treat the flu
Unfortunately. Getting sick is the only cure. You should have recovered after a week. You can ease the symptoms a bit, but there are misunderstandings about that too. For example, extra vitamin C does not help to heal faster. Painkillers such as paracetamol can take some of the discomfort away, as can rest. An unproven but can’t do any harm is drinking green or black tea because it contains catechins that can prevent the flu and cold viruses from multiplying. What certainly doesn’t help is antibiotics. Flu is caused by a virus, not a bacteria. Although there is an antiviral medicine against the flu, namely oseltamivir (Tamiflu), its effectiveness is insufficiently proven.