Do flu shots really work?

Brittany Goldfield-Rodrigues
Editorial Intern
In cold times like these, the flu is always on everyone’s mind. The coughs, fevers and red noses are all things we try to avoid.  The question of how to avoid it, however, seems to always puzzle our minds.
“It’s just the combination of the weather and people being inside more often than other seasons,” said David Jensen, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, when asked why the flu is most common this time of year.
Most doctors recommend their patients avoid the flu by getting the annual shot given out at hospitals, but skepticism about these vaccinations and their side effects always steer people away.
“I don’t think the flu shot is helpful. It’s been pretty well tested, but the newer ones may contain things that aren’t so safe,” said Danielle Stutzmann, a third-year history and visual arts major.
The controversy regarding flu shots is not a new one, but regardless of the risks, is it better to be safe than sorry?
Jensen seems to think so.
“It’s good to have that protection. The flu is a serious illness that can have you lying on your back for five to six days, and then another two more weeks to fully get over it,” Jensen said.
He claims the best way to remain healthy this year is getting the shot, noting the injection is a very good match thanks to the flu vaccines they have now. Between 90 and 99 percent of the shots counter the viruses out there, he added.
Jensen isn’t the only one who believes flu shots are better than nothing. Many students are opting to take the shot and dismiss the many theories that oppose vaccinations.
Fifth-year health and education major Garry Smolyansky is keen on the vaccinations. “I think that everybody has the right to make their own choices, and if they want to take precautions against getting sick a vaccination is a good idea. It’s been around for a long time and people are skeptical about everything all the time.”
Adrienne Miranda, a fourth-year linguistics major, thinks that it’s the media that is being misleading.
“I took this physiology course last semester and they were talking in-depth about how vaccinations work. I mean after you understand the science part of it, it makes more sense than if you hear the media and news talk,” said Miranda. “People get swayed based on where the information is coming from.”
It could also very well be the scare inspired by the reported side effects that came with last year’s infamous H1N1 shots.
According to the records of the Appletree medical centre, the clinic in York Lanes, doctors there administer about five flu shots a day, and those who have had the dose have never come back complaining of any side effects.
Ultimately though, it is up to the people to decide for themselves whether they wish to take the risk of having the flu shot, or the risk of not having it.
With files from Brandon Lorenzetti
Flu Symptoms