The flu jab is available on the NHS for people who are considered "at risk". This includes anyone aged 65 and over, mums-to-be at any stage of pregnancy and people with a long-term health condition. Find out if you should have the flu vaccine this year.
1. Having flu is just like having a heavy cold
A bad bout of flu is much worse than a heavy cold. Flu symptoms come on suddenly and sometimes severely. They include fever, chills, headaches and aching muscles, as well as a cough and sore throat. So, you’re likely to spend two or three days in bed. If you get complications caused by flu, you could become seriously ill and have to go to hospital.
2. Having the flu jab gives you flu
No, it doesn’t. The influenza vaccine contains inactivated flu viruses, so it can’t give you flu. There are some fairly common but mild side effects. Your arm may feel a bit sore where you were injected, and some people get a slight temperature and aching muscles for a couple of days afterwards. Other reactions are very rare.
3. Flu can be treated with antibiotics
No, it can’t. Viruses cause flu and antibiotics only work against bacteria. You may be prescribed antiviral medicines to treat your flu. Antivirals do not cure flu but they can make you less infectious to others and can reduce the length of time that you may be ill. To be effective, antivirals have to be given within a day or two of your symptoms appearing.
A bacterial infection may occur as a result of having the flu, in which case you may be given antibiotics. Find out more about why antibiotics won't work against flu.
4. Once you've had a flu jab, you're protected for life
No, you aren’t. The viruses that cause flu can change every year, so you need a vaccination each year that matches the new viruses. The vaccine usually provides protection for the duration of the flu season that year.
5. I’m pregnant, so I shouldn’t have the flu jab because it will affect my baby
You should have the vaccine whatever stage of pregnancy you are in. If you’re pregnant, you could get very ill if you get flu, which could also be bad for your baby. Having the jab can also protect your baby against flu after they're born and during the early months of life.
6. The flu jab won't protect me against swine flu
Yes, it will. This year’s flu vaccine protects against three different flu viruses including the H1N1 swine flu virus. This is because the virus is expected to be circulating this year.
7. Children can't have the flu jab
Children over the age of six months who are most 'at risk' of serious illness if they catch flu are eligible for the flu jab on the NHS and it's important that they receive the vaccine.
These are children with a pre-existing illness such as a respiratory or neurological condition or children who are having treatment such as chemotherapy.
The flu jab will offer them protection against the H1N1 swine flu virus and the other two strains of flu that are predicted to be circulating this winter.
8. I’ve had the flu already this autumn, so I don’t need the vaccination this year
You do need it if you're in one of the risk groups. As flu is caused by several viruses, you will only be protected by the immunity you developed naturally against one of them. You could go on to catch another strain, so it’s recommended you have the jab even if you’ve recently had flu. Also, what you thought was flu could have been something else.
9. If I missed having the flu jab in October, it's too late to have it later in the year
No, it's not too late. It's better to have the flu vaccine as soon as it becomes available but it's always worth getting vaccinated before flu comes around. Since we don't know when flu will strike, the sooner you have the vaccine the better.
10. Vitamin C can prevent flu
No, it can’t. Many people think that taking daily vitamin C supplements will stop them getting flu, but there’s no evidence to prove this.
Read the answers to some common questions about flu and the flu vaccine.
