Myth #1: The flu vaccine gives you the flu or makes you sick. (No, it doesn’t.)
Myth #2: Flu vaccines contains dangerous ingredients, such as mercury, formaldehyde and antifreeze. (Not exactly, and the ingredients aren’t dangerous.)
Myth #3: Pregnant women should not get the flu shot. (They should.) / The flu shot can cause miscarriages. (It doesn’t.) / Pregnant should only get the preservative-free flu shot. (Nope.)
Myth #4: Flu vaccines can cause Alzheimer’s disease. (They can’t.)
Myth #5: Flu vaccines provide billions of dollars in profits for pharmaceutical companies. (Maybe, maybe not, but so what?)
Myth #6: Flu vaccines don’t work. (Um, they do work.)
Myth #7: Flu vaccines don’t work for children. (Again, they work.)
Myth #8: Flu vaccines make it easier for people to catch pneumonia or other infectious diseases. (No, they make it harder.)
Myth #9: Flu vaccines cause vascular or cardiovascular disorders. (No, they don’t.)
Myth #10: Flu vaccines can break the “blood brain barrier” of young children and hurt their development. (No, they can’t.)
Myth #11: Flu vaccines cause narcolepsy. (Not the seasonal flu vaccine, and not most others.)
Myth #12: The flu vaccine weakens your body’s immune response. (It actually strengthens it.)
Myth #13: The flu vaccine causes nerve disorders such as Guillain Barre syndrome. (Not usually, and not as much as the flu does.)
Myth #14: The flu vaccine can cause neurological disorders. (No, it can’t.)
Myth #15: Influenza isn’t that bad. Or, people recover quickly from it. (Uh, it’s pretty bad.)
Myth #16: People don’t die from the flu unless they have another underlying condition already. (Actually, healthy people DO die from the flu.)
Myth #17: People with egg allergies cannot get the flu shot. It will kill them! (No, it won’t, and there’s an egg-free vaccine.)
Myth #18: If I get the flu, antibiotics will take care of me. (No, they can’t.)
Myth #19: The flu shot doesn’t work for me, personally, because last time I got it, I got the flu anyway. (It still reduces your risk.)
Myth #20: I never get the flu, so I don’t need the shot. (You can see the future?)
Myth #21: I can protect myself from the flu by eating right and washing my hands regularly. (No, you can’t.)
Myth #22: It’s okay if I get the flu because it will make my immune system stronger. (Selfish, much? And no, it doesn’t.)
Myth #23: Making a new vaccine each year only makes influenza strains stronger. (No, it doesn’t.)
Myth #24: The side effects of the flu shot are worse than the flu. (No, they aren’t.)
Myth #25: The flu vaccine causes Bell’s palsy. (No, it doesn’t.)
Setting the record straight: Debunking ALL the flu vaccine myths « Red Wine & Apple Sauce