Should everyone get a flu vaccine each year?
Based on Science
Yes, everyone should get a influenza (flu) vaccine each year. Flu vaccines protect you and those around you from getting the flu.
Last update March 9, 2020
With few exceptions, everyone should get a flu vaccine.
The flu vaccine protects against influenza. Influenza viruses are common viruses that can cause mild or severe illness.
Millions of people get sick and tens of thousands of people die from flu each year in the United States. The flu vaccine is the best way to prevent it.
Vaccines save lives. Getting a flu vaccine makes it less likely that you will get flu or spread it to others.
Everyone should get a flu vaccine each year. The only people who should NOT get a flu vaccine are babies under 6 months of age and people with a life-threatening allergy to the flu vaccine.
Getting a flu vaccine makes it less likely that you will catch the flu. Typically, it cuts your risk of getting the flu by about half.
Getting a flu vaccine can make your illness less severe if you do catch the flu. Even if the vaccine is only partially effective, it can help prevent serious illness or death.
Getting a flu vaccine protects the people around you. Children, older people, pregnant women, and people with health problems are especially at risk of getting very sick or dying from the flu. If you get the flu vaccine, you’re less likely to spread the flu to others.
Getting a flu vaccine is easy. The flu vaccine is widely available and typically doesn’t cost much. It’s free for those with Medicare and many other insurance plans.
You need a flu vaccine each year.
You need a new flu vaccine every autumn in order to protect against the flu.
The flu viruses that pass from person to person are often a little different each year. A new flu vaccine is made every autumn that fights the types of flu expected to be most common that year.
It’s best to get your flu vaccine before flu shows up in your community.
Last year’s vaccine won’t protect you fully against this year’s flu viruses because new strains of flu come out each year.
The flu vaccine is more effective in some years than others. But getting the vaccine is ALWAYS more effective than not getting it.
The flu vaccine is safe.
Like all vaccines, the flu vaccine goes through a lot of testing and monitoring. It is very safe.
Getting a flu vaccine cannot cause you to get the flu.
The flu vaccine is safe for pregnant women, children aged 6 months and older, and people with chronic conditions.
The flu vaccine has a few possible side effects. They include soreness, headache, fever, nausea, and muscle aches.
Some studies have associated the flu vaccine with a nerve problem called Guillain-Barré syndrome, while other studies have not found any association. Guillain-Barré syndrome is extremely rare and much more likely to occur after a flu illness than after flu vaccination.
Talk to your doctor before getting the flu vaccine if you have had a severe allergic reaction to a previous flu vaccine, have had Guillain-Barré syndrome, or are feeling sick. The flu vaccine is safe for most people with egg allergies.
