Every year, 1 in 12 (about 8%) of the U.S. population comes down with the flu, a highly contagious disease caused by several influenza viruses. These viruses infect the nose, throat, and lungs, causing many symptoms. Usually, flu infections cause mild to moderate illness, which subsides on its own over the course of several days or weeks. In severe cases, flu infections can lead to death.
Children aged 0 – 18 years old are most at risk for getting infected, with children under the age of 1 being most likely to develop severe symptoms or complications. Can infants get the flu shot? Yes, the influenza vaccine for infants is a safe and effective way to prevent severe symptoms or complications. Even without complications, the flu isn’t fun for you or your child. Common symptoms include fever, chills, sore throat, cough, congestion, muscle aches, headache, and fatigue. Children may also experience vomiting and/or diarrhea. Every year in our office, we get a front row seat to how severe flu can be. We do NOT look forward to flu season.
Getting a flu vaccination is the best way to protect your children from the flu. Being vaccinated reduces the likelihood of becoming infected in the first place, and if your child does get the flu, being vaccinated reduces the severity of the illness, the likelihood of complications, and the risk of hospitalization.
The answers to these common questions will give you the knowledge to know if and when a flu shot is right (it almost certainly is) for your child.
The Best Time to Get a Flu Shot
The CDC recommends that healthy individuals receive an annual flu shot in the fall, preferably before the end of October, beginning at six months old. Flu viruses evolve quickly, and new vaccines are developed each year to combat the dominant strains in the environment. Additionally, immunity wanes over time. The annual booster ensures you (or your baby) are as protected as possible.
Why do infants need two flu shots? If your child is getting a flu vaccine for the first time, they may need two doses spaced at least four weeks apart. As a result, children can and should be vaccinated as soon as vaccines become available, provided they’ve reached the 6-month milestone. That way, there’s time to get a second dose before flu season peaks. It’s never too early or too late to start building immunity. So, even if your child reaches six months of age after flu clinics in October, they should still be vaccinated.
Side Effects of the Flu Shots
Flu shots have been demonstrated to be overwhelmingly safe and effective. Hundreds of millions receive them yearly, to great benefit and with minimal side effects. When side effects happen, they are usually mild (milder than the flu) and resolve quickly. Common side effects include:
- Soreness and swelling at the injection site
- Headache
- Fever
- Nausea
- Muscle aches
If your child does have an adverse reaction to a flu shot, it’s likely to happen soon after they receive the injection.
Lastly, it isn’t possible for a flu shot to give your child the flu. Vaccines are made either from inactivated (dead) viruses, from specific genes (like a mugshot instead of the virus itself), or from attenuated (weakened) viruses that can’t survive in the body. Nothing inside of a flu shot can infect healthy individauls.
Influenza Vaccine for Infants and Toddlers
Children 6 to 24 months should receive a flu shot, but healthy children two years and older may opt for a nasal spray vaccine instead. Unlike injections, which are typically made of dead viruses, nasal spray vaccines are made with live attenuated (weakened) viruses. While alive, they’re cold adapted and can’t function once they reach the warmer temperatures inside your body. They might want to give you the flu, but they don’t have the strength and are quickly eliminated.
Flu Shots for the Common Good
Getting an annual flu shot protects the person receiving the shot (or nasal spray) and the people around them. Because vaccinated people have lower rates of illness, they also have lower rates of passing on illness. When a significant portion of the population is vaccinated, the overall risk of infection drops for everyone. Even when kids get older, and their individual risk decreases, they still might pass the flu to younger siblings, elderly family members, or other at-risk members of the community.
Flu shots are not only safe, but they’re also one of the easiest ways to protect your children, extended family, and community from illness through the winter season.
