Will Flu Shots Make Your Child Sick?

The flu is a nasty virus, and the swine flu is scary, but will the flu shot make your kid sick? After all, this flu season, doctors suggest that your kids get not one, not two, but three vaccinations. That's a lot of shots for a little kid to handle. And for each innoculation your child receives, it can up the chances of him experiencing side effects. And who likes to listen to her child scream when the doctor pulls out the needle? Heather Armstrong of Dooce asks, "Will flu shots make your child sick?"

Does your child receive a flu shot? Are you afraid the shot will make your child sick? And are you worried about the upcoming flu season? Join the Momversation by commenting below.

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Showing the Latest of 19 Comments

issais
2 yearss ago

for more info on swine flu mutation evolution and how to protect your children from swine flu , go to www.issapharma.org

MustangSally
2 yearss ago

I'm concerned enough to pull my son out of daycare until we can get the vaccinations. He only goes one day a week and stays home with Daddy the rest of the time, so it's not a huge hassle. I'm not even that concerned about my son - he's always been very healthy and easily able to shake off inevitable bugs from "snotcare", but Daddy has chronic health issues and gets chest infections/pnuemonia at the drop of a hat. Something I've never understood, Heather is how the whole immunity transfer thing works with breastfeeding. I nursed and punped until mine was a year old and credit a lot of his health to that, but it sure seems like YOU should be able to get the shots and Marlo would pick up the immunity from you. And save her the needle trauma. But I'm sure it doesn't work that way.

Claire
2 yearss ago

My daughter had Swine Flu, in fact 50% of her school... yes half of the school, was out with Swine Flu. It lasts about 3-5 days and is not as bad as seasonal Flu. People are freaked out because of the unknown. I was freaked out a first as well until it hit our town with such a force until I did the actuall research and comparison of the seasonal flu and swine flu. More people die from seasonal flu then swine flu. I do not get vacinated, my daughter does but I do not. I was allergic as a baby. It took the Dr's years to get my vacines in and since I have an immune deficiency it is best that I dont get vacinated because I will get sick. I skip the Flu vacine but my daughter gets one every year.

chaosisus
2 yearss ago

I got a flu shot for my kids when they were infants but never again after. I was not very worried about swine flu til the new studies were published a few days or so ago. I have a baby due in early November and i believe if it is offered and available we will get it. The last thing i want is my newborn baby sick. It scares the crap outta me.

Kit
2 yearss ago

Ok. This Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) in children needs to be cleared up. The prognosis for recovery in children is generally excellent, with the majority of children achieving a complete functional recovery within 6 months from the onset of illness (I have seen it, I have worked with it, And children get better through vigorous rehabilitation, as the same can be said with kids who have suffered from the effects of meningitis too). There are of course exceptions as noted by a previous entry. The incidence is estimated to range from 0.5 to 1.5 in 100,000 in individuals less than 18 years of age. GBS has been associated with vaccines- but may I emphasize that development of GBS can follow ANY VIRAL or BACTERIAL SYNDROME 1-3 weeks AFTER the infection. It is not solely related to vaccines. ~And yes monika it is thought that the virus mutates, but as with any virus- all virus's mutate. There can also be several different strains that occur simultaneously. So try as hard as they have to develop something to help prevent an outbreak of one strain it can be argued that the vaccine doesn't cover for another. But I think it is important to realize that with vulnerable populations it is not adequate to simply NOT provide anything to try to combat or decrease the incidence of an occurrence of a virus. -If that makes sense...

thecanary
2 yearss ago

I suggest you do not vaccinate your children with the swine flu vaccine....my brother got guillen barre syndrome from vaccines and suffered paralysis lasting a lifetime...don't do it.

MonikaE2024
2 yearss ago

Hi all. I have never gotten the flu shot, and have not gotten as sick as those who have. Strange right? I read somewhere that by the time they create the vaccine the virus has mutated and the vaccine more than likely will have no or very little effect. Do any of you also think that this hysteria is caused by the manufacturers of the vaccines and supplemented by the media?

Asianmommy
2 yearss ago

We get our flu shots every year. This year, we'll do the swine flu shot as well when it becomes available. It can be a nightmare with the screaming and the crying and the needles, etc, but I'd much rather do that than have to see my kids suffering from the flu or swine flu.

Mom of a lot
2 yearss ago

How interesting that this topic appeared today. I just posted a similar question on my FB page to see whether friends are hesitant about the shot this year, avoiding it altogether or getting it as soon as they can. What I found disappointing about the video was the lack of any mention of the link between a swine flu vaccination administered in 1976 and the deadly nerve disease Guillain-Barre Syndrome. My fear is that there could be a similar recurrence this year. I should say now that I'm a firm believer in flu shots and have received them every year since my oldest daughter was born five years ago. We have four children now. We all get vaccinated when eligible (Heather, infants under six months old can't get flu shots so Marlo is out for at least this year. Her protection comes from you and your milk). I'm not a medical naysayer by any means. I just want to make extra sure that in their haste to make a vaccine that averts a possible pandemic, the CDC doesn't sacrifice safety. I wish the video would have provided more information about this. Obviously, I'll have lots of questions for the pediatrician. One more thing: one of my friends made an interesting point on my FB thread. She noted that she's going to wait, just a bit, until a number of people have received the vaccines -- just to see if there are any tragic reactions -- before vaccinating her children. This sounds like a good rule of thumb except I read in The Washington Post today that experts expect the flu to peak in mid October and it takes two weeks for the flu shot to reach full efficacy.... which means a wait-and-see approach can't wait too long. (Also: it's my understanding that in 1976, after just 10 weeks of pushing the flu vaccinations, the government backed off its efforts because of the link between the shot and GBS cases) I look forward to reading more comments, especially from those in the medical community.

thecanary
2 yearss ago

Consider this report about the side effects of the vaccine...

Will Flu Shots Make Your Child Sick?

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