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Flu vaccines do a great job of limiting the number of people who end up in hospital with the illness.
Last winter, getting vaccinated cut the risk of being hospitalised by 66% in children and 25% in adults over 65.
But there are persistent misconceptions about the vaccine that put some people off from getting it.
Whether you’re eligible for the NHS vaccine, your workplace is offering jabs or you’re considering paying for one out of your own pocket, here’s what you need to know.
You can’t get flu from the vaccine
It is impossible to get flu from the flu vaccine, because it does not contain the live virus.
You might feel a bit shivery or have a slight fever – but that’s an immune response, not the flu – Professor Peter Openshaw, a virus expert at Imperial College London, told Sky News.
“It’s showing that your body is doing what it’s meant to do, which is to create an immune response against influenza, which is protective,” he said.
“So it isn’t flu, but it does have some resemblances to flu.”
It is safe to get the flu vaccine while pregnant
In fact, it is encouraged.
Studies have shown it is safe to have the flu vaccine while pregnant and pregnant women can get the jab free on the NHS.
Pregnancy changes how the body deals with infections such as flu and pregnant women are more likely to have complications if they catch flu.
If you have flu while you’re pregnant, it could cause your baby to be born prematurely or have a low birth weight, according to the NHS. In the most serious cases, it could lead to stillbirth or death.
Prof Openshaw said while he understood people’s hesitancy, “everything is positive about getting vaccinated in pregnancy”.
Not only does it protect you, but you also pass that on to your baby.
“If you get vaccinated in the later stages of pregnancy, then you will develop antibodies to influenza which you share with your baby,” Prof Openshaw explained.
“You share it through the placenta and through breastmilk, and therefore you are…
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