Southwest District Public Health Director addresses myths about flu vaccines

Each fall, as healthcare providers launch seasonal flu vaccination campaigns to protect the public against debilitating and sometimes deadly influenza, they must combat misconceptions about vaccine safety and effectiveness.

“Myths and misconceptions may cause some people to miss getting vaccinated, and that puts them at risk. Even worse, it puts their friends, neighbors, colleagues and loved ones at risk, and increases the overall risk of influenza in the community at large,” said Southwest District Health Director Dr. Jacqueline Grant.

One common mistaken belief is that flu shots cause the flu.

“That doesn’t happen,” Grant said. “The viruses used in flu shots are dead.”

Confusion may arise because some people who receive the vaccination experience mild symptoms. “They may have a runny nose or body aches for a day or so after getting a flu vaccine and mistake that for the flu,” Grant said. “But what is really happening is that their body’s immune system is responding. It is a good sign.”

Another misconception occurs when people get vaccinated, but get sick anyway, and conclude the vaccine failed to protect them. What they don’t realize is that flu vaccine prevents a few strains of influenza, not illnesses caused by other germs or other strains of influenza.
“The flu vaccine contains only the three influenza strains that experts believe will circulate and cause infection in the upcoming flu season,” Grant said.

On the other hand, since flu vaccine takes about two weeks to become fully effective, those exposed to flu during that window may indeed catch it. Plus, the vaccine is generally 70 percent to 80 percent effective in healthy people, so it is possible to be vaccinated but still catch influenza.
“The positive side is that even when the vaccine doesn’t prevent flu infection, it does reduce the risk of severe complications,” Grant said. “That is important when you consider that a typical winter flu season affects 7 percent to 20 percent of the U.S. population, resulting in 114,000 hospitalizations and claiming 36,000 lives.”

Some people doubt vaccine safety, fearing it may contain harmful agents, she continued.
“A common concern that there is dangerous mercury in shots is based on a misunderstanding about a preservative called thimerosal,” Grant said. “Thimerosal is used in vaccines, and it does contain an organic form of mercury called ethylmercury. But ethylmercury is different than the kind of mercury that contaminates the environment, which is known as methylmercury.”

Also, the amount of mercury in thimerosal is very small; meaning thimerosal in vaccines is minute. Studies have not linked thimerosal in vaccine with neurological problems, she said. Besides, thanks to technological advances, fewer and fewer vaccines need thimerosal as a preservative.
“Flu vaccine is very safe,” said Grant. “It is given to millions of people every year.”

Grant said that African-Americans are less likely to get flu vaccinations than other populations. “The most recent Behavior Risk Factor Surveillance Survey revealed 67 percent of whites received flu shots in the past year compared to 48 percent of blacks and 55 percent of Hispanics.”
Persons who have never had flu shouldn’t assume they don’t need a flu shot, she continued. “Nobody is completely immune. Not getting the vaccine leaves you vulnerable to serious illness, particularly if you are in a high-risk group.”

All of Southwest District Public Health’s 14 county health departments have flu vaccine available. Seasonal influenza vaccinations are appropriate for: