STORY BY

Karen Krakower Kaplan

Every flu season doctors, nurses and concerned spouses hear the same pitiful excuses and myths about the flu and its arch-enemy, the vaccine.

It appears that Americans are more afraid of The Sting than The Bug—sensible, if talking about Killer Bees—but we're not.

The flu is dangerous, even deadly. The vaccine is not.
Be informed. And be well.

Myth #1
“Honestly, the flu just isn't that bad. I get it all the time.”

Wrong on both counts.
Influenza is directly or indirectly responsible for 114,000 hospitalizations each year and 36,000 deaths in the US alone. SARS, our newest collective nightmare, took just short of 8100 lives. Worldwide.

Myth #2
“Yeah, I had a doozy of a flu last year, so, I'm sure
I'm immune this year.”

Wrong.
Influenza strains are crafty fellows and change every year. They mutate so we can’t recognize them; they travel worldwide and take up residence in a country they like, only to move on to another place the next year. They have exotic names like Hong-Kong, Moscow, Australia...for a reason.

Epidemiologists study the worldwide trends in illness and predict which strains will be the most virulent the following year. Those are the developed vaccines that become available each October. Usually there are several strains contained in one vaccine.

The likelihood of becoming infected with the same strain of flu twice in a row is remote.

Myth #3
“The flu shot GAVE me the flu.”

Wrong—it can’t and it won’t.
The flu vaccine injectible used in the US is made from inactivated or “killed” virus and cannot give someone the flu. Killed vaccines introduce our body’s defensive line to the “corpse” of the disease. Our antibodies, blood proteins that reproduce in response to foreign substances, or invading organisms, bind to the invader and destroy them. Our antibodies do not always need a “live” virus to be aroused to attack. They just need a mug shot to identify them.

Myth #4
“I must have gotten a bum batch of vaccine.
Not a month later, I caught the flu.”

Wrong. Sort of.
The flu shot is very effective—about 70 to 90 percent if you are exposed to the same STRAIN of influenza that is in the vaccine. But there are hundreds of other respiratory illnesses, viruses, bacterial organisms that can mimic flu. The flu shot only protects against the influenza virus.

The flu shot will not protect against rhinoviruses—the same group that is responsible for the common cold. Nor will it protect against corona virus—the strain of which SARS originates. There are several other vaccines available against pneumonia, meningitis, hepatitis, to name a few.

There also is the possibility that you took the shot too late in the season and did not have a chance for your antibodies to rally. In most cases you can be given anti-viral medication that halts the replication of the virus. The flu is cut by half in severity and duration. You must, however, begin this treatment within 24 to 48 hours after initial onset.

Best defense from other body invaders is simple hygiene. Wash your hands with plain soap and water, rubbing vigorously for 15 seconds, and then rinse well. Common ways of spreading illness is hand- to- eye contact and hand- to- nose or mouth. So keep your hands away from your face.

If you are coughing or sneezing, cover your mouth. (Then wash your hands.)

Myth #5
“I've already got enough health problems. I can't weaken
my immunity by overtaxing it with a flu shot.”

So very wrong.
Unless you have certain life-threatening immune-compromising illnesses, you are the very person who needs to be protected the most.

Researchers are now making connections between flu and both heart attacks and strokes. The annual flu vaccine is one of the best and least expensive ways to keep killers at bay.

Three UT researchers kept seeing patients in their practice who had had upper-respiratory infections and then suffered heart attacks or strokes. This led to a study done at the UT Medical School at Houston that concluded patients with heart disease who were vaccinated were 67 percent less likely to suffer future heart attacks than those who were unvaccinated.

Several studies have corroborated these results.

The reason that these two seemingly unrelated ailments have anything in common is that the flu starts as an acute inflammatory condition throughout the body, including the harmful plaque in arterial walls. The inflammation can then destabilize the plaque, creating conditions for heart attack, stroke or clot formation.

Myth #6
“I'm scared to death of needles—I'll take my chances.”

Lucky you.
There is now an alternative.
Fresh on the market is FluMist, an inhalable option to the shot. “It’s a great alternative for those who won’t get shots,” says Ed Septimus, MD, clinical professor of infectious disease and occupational health at the medical school.

It’s a simple squirt up the nose, but it does have its downsides. “It can only be used on people over 6 and under 50, it is up to three times more expensive than the shot, and it does use a live, but weakened flu virus,” Septimus says.

It’s also called a “cold-adaptive” vaccine because it only replicates in a colder environment, like the nose, which is why a live version of the virus is necessary.

The age restriction on FluMist is simply because it is new and not enough study has been done on these age groups.

“But it is definitely a neat little engineering trick that is perfect for healthy adults who hate shots,” says Septimus.

Myth #7
“I know people who ran high fever and couldn't even lift
their arm for days after the flu shot.”

(more wrong than right—and we bet his fish was THISSSSSSSSSS big…)
When you receive your shot, you will be told that it is possible to have some soreness for up to a day or so at the site. That’s why the shot is usually given in the “dominant” arm—the more you move it, the better.

And some folks feel sluggish for a few hours the evening of the shot. The overwhelming majority do not notice a difference.

Simple Tylenol, aspirin (if you’re over 18) or ibuprofen will alleviate any transient and minimal discomfort you might feel.

Without question, it beats the flu.

Myth #8
“That's what antibiotics are for.”

Wrong.
The influenza virus is... a VIRUS. Antibiotics work on bacterial organisms and lately, they aren’t doing such a great job of that, due in part, to our overuse of them. If you were given an antibiotic prescription for “the flu,” chances are you developed a dreaded secondary infection from the virus that left your body vulnerable to bacterial attack.

The flu vaccine helps to break a troubling cycle, Septimus says. “If you take the vaccine, your chances of getting the flu are greatly diminished, which keeps you from secondary complications, which keeps you from needing antibiotics, which reduces antibiotic resistance, which keeps you out of the hospital, which cuts costs to an already overtaxed healthcare system. The return on your investment is huge.”

Myth #9
“Babies and children are too young to be getting
all these vaccines.”

Wrong.
Infants and young children are one of the most vulnerable age groups.

Young ones make up a heavy percentage of flu-related hospitalization and secondary complications, from ear infections to pneumonia, says Dr. Carlos Moreno, chairman of the Department of Family Practice.

“There is a big push to get the young kids in for vaccination to ward off serious secondary complications,” Moreno adds.

Septimus agrees for another reason. “Kids are often the ones who bring the virus from school or daycare, into the home. That’s parents and grandparents—another vulnerable group—who get exposed.”

Myth #10
It's dangerous to take the flu shot if I have allergies.

(wrong-ish.)
It depends on the allergy. If you have an allergy to hen’s eggs, you are right. The flu vaccine is grown and “hatched” in eggs.

If you have ever had a severe reaction to a vaccine in the past, you should consult your doctor before you take another.

Those with seasonal allergies, however, usually benefit from the vaccine, since they are prone to pulmonary, ear and nasal infections from their allergies.

Bonus Myth #11
“The flu vaccine will take years off my face, tighten my abs
and whiten my teeth.”

Wrong.
But it might add years to your life.

Last Updated: 10-13-2003

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