Thanksgiving break: take the time to get your flu shot

Another semester milestone has come and gone. Campus Thanksgiving dinner was held Wednesday, although admittedly in a different form than usual. If you are headed home for Thanksgiving break, it’s important to remember that break presents an opportunity to get your influenza shot if you haven’t already.

There are many misconceptions about how the vaccine truly works, and this Our View will seek to present facts and clarify misconceptions about the influenza vaccine.

First, the flu shot works by creating antibodies to protect you from weakened and inactivated viruses in the vaccine. Essentially, getting the flu shot is like showing your body a really good study guide so that it can build up antibodies and ace the test, the test being if your body comes in contact with the influenza virus.

A common misconception about this vaccine is that it will actually give you a version of the flu. According to the CDC, flu shots are made in two ways, either injecting a flu vaccine virus that has been inactivated and is therefore unable to make you sick, or with only a single gene from the flu virus that will produce an immune response without causing infection. It is therefore scientifically impossible for a flu shot to cause the flu. The only thing a flu shot can do is help your body prepare to fight the flu.

However, this common misconception is entrenched in two lived experiences. One reason people claim the flu shot gave them the flu is because of the two week window. According to the Mayo Clinic, the flu shot has a two week incubation period before being fully protective. If someone gets a flu shot and then gets the flu within this two week window, they may think that it was the vaccine that caused the flu. In reality, it was just that the vaccine hadn’t had time to take effect yet.

The second reason is that there is often confusion about what illness people have. The flu shot fights influenza, which, as stated previously, is a respiratory infection. It does not protect against stomach flu viruses, which, according to Allina Health, is a virus with symptoms such as diarrhea and vomiting. So, when people have stomach virus after the flu shot, it is not a result of the shot or even of the shot not working, it is simply a different illness.

The past two years have highly politicized the COVID-19 vaccine, and by transitive property, all vaccines. Recognize that the flu shot has been around since 1945 and various forms have been administered countless times. This vaccine, like other vaccines, is safe, thoroughly vetted and effective. Given that we all live in close proximity to others, there’s an extra burden of responsibility to keep yourself healthy. Hopefully this Our View reminded you to book your flu shot over Thanksgiving break if you haven’t gotten the shot already.

The last thing anyone needs is to catch a flu right before heading into the last week before finals.

Enjoy the break from classes and remember to always count your blessings.