Adam’s Journal
‘Tis the season – for pharmacies to advertise flu shots. Pretty much every drugstore I pass seems to be encouraging folks to come in and get their annual flu shots. Is now the right time to get vaccinated?
Dr. Scofield Prescribes
In life, getting a jump start on things is often a good thing. But when it comes to flu shots, you can actually be too early.
Generally, your immunity peaks a few weeks after you receive the shot. However, even after that crest, protection against the flu lasts five or six months.
Now, let’s do a little math.
If you get your shot now, that means you’ll have immunity from late September through February, or perhaps March. However, flu season typically begins in October and usually continues until March or April.
So, if you get your shot now, two things will happen. First, you’ll have your peak protection before the season has even started. Second, your immunity may wane while the influenza virus is still circulating in late winter and early spring.
To avoid this, I’d recommend waiting until early October to get your flu shot. Indeed, that’s when we offer vaccinations to all of our employees at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation.
When getting a flu shot, I’d also generally recommend an updated Covid booster. The new Covid vaccines, approved by the Food and Drug Administration in August, offer protection against variants of the virus that have been circulating in the U.S. this year (or, in the case of one vaccine, a predecessor of those variants). Other than a little extra soreness at the vaccination site, there’s no reason not to get Covid and flu shots at the same time.
Still, if memory serves, you were one of many who recently contracted Covid. For you and others in the same boat, I’d recommend waiting a bit before getting a Covid booster.
Right now, you still have natural immunity from your infection. To get maximal protection – just like the flu shot, immunity conferred by Covid boosters wanes over time – push pause on a Covid booster until three months have passed since you were sick.
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Adam Cohen is OMRF’s senior vice president and general counsel. Dr. Hal Scofield is a physician-scientist at OMRF, and he also serves as Associate Chief of Staff for Research at the Oklahoma City VA Medical Center. Send your health questions to contact@omrf.org.
