<div class="block">It&#39;s September so that means it&#39;s time to start considering your annual flu shot. Amy Lynn Safaty, pharmacy district leader at CVS, joined &quot;beWell&quot; to share some facts about the flu, vaccine efficacy and side effects. </div>

beWell

Be Well: What to Know About Flu Season

Well, although it still might feel like summer outside, it's also that time of year to start preparing for flu season. And that means getting your flu shot. You know what? There are so many different misconceptions out there about the flu shot, some of which may actually cause you to avoid getting one. So we're here to break down the fact versus fiction when it comes to those shots. Pharmacy district leader, Amy Lin. Thanks so much for joining us. Thank you so much for having me. All right. So I'm excited because we're actually going to play a game, which I find really fun. So you're gonna say a statement about the flu and we're gonna decide, is it fact or is it fiction? Ok. It's gonna be fun. All right. So you go ahead and start off with your first statement. Yeah, let's go ahead and get started. So the first one, you can get the flu from getting a flu vaccine. I'm gonna say fiction, fiction. It is fiction. So this is a really big common misconception when it comes to the flu vaccine. So a lot of people think I'm not gonna get the vaccine it will cause the flu, but it's actually an inactivated vaccine. So it is impossible for it to actually cause the flu. But, but for people who feel sick and what is that? That's like your body's immune system reacts to it. So the vaccine causes side effects. So sometimes people can mistake that for the flu. But it is common to feel a little bit under the weather at your vaccine, your arm won't be sore. You might feel a little bit tired, but that goes away usually in just 2 to 3 days, still better than getting the flu itself. Ok. Next one, better flu vaccines are necessary every year. Oh, I'm gonna say, I wanna say a fact, but I'm gonna say because I don't get it every year. So this is actually a fact. I was right by one. Thanks for keeping score. The flu vaccine is not a one in type of shot. So the flu virus does change and there are different strains that are prominent every year. So each of the formulation is different. So it is important to make sure you get the updated vaccine every year. Ok. And this next one has to do with timing. So it's too early to get the flu vaccine now. Fiction, fiction, right? I did it before. Yes. Yes, absolutely. So it actually takes your body two weeks to develop the antibodies to the vaccine. So some people might think it's too early, but really we're right in the height of that flu season. So now is the time to go and get one. Ok. What's up next? It's hard to find a place to get a flu vaccine. Fiction. Yes. All right. Yes. So we have a yes, 9000 stores across the country that anybody can walk in and get a flu vaccine at any time. Um, so you have a lot of availability for our patients. So it's really easy to walk into your neighborhood pharmacy and get a vaccine from your pharmacist and most people can schedule it with their regular doctor as well. Right. Um Yeah, absolutely. But with CV S, we do offer a um online scheduling tool where you can actually schedule appointments for you and the whole family at the same time. So year we all went together. Yeah. And a lot easier. Yeah. Ok. So next one is you can get both the flu and COVID vaccines at the same time. That is fact. So you guys are doing great. Uh Both vaccines are inactivated vaccines. So it's perfectly safe to get them at the same time. Ok. And then is this, is this our last question? I believe. The next one is we don't need to get additional COVID boosters fiction, I think because we just did a story on there's a changing a new evolvement. Yes. So this was kind of a trick question. It's neither fact nor fiction. Um As we know the COVID virus is always changing and evolving. So now we are trying to uh follow CDC guidance and kind of keep on top of what the new variants are going to be. So there is an updated booster for this year with the prominent variant for this season. Um But we'll see what the guidance of the CDC says tells us um hopefully it will be an annual vaccine like the flu in the future, but we just have to wait and see for that. All right, Amy. Thank you so much for being here. This is fine. Thank you so much.