According to the study published in the journal Pediatrics, nearly 26% of parents with children ages 6 months to 18 years say they doubt their children will get the flu shot.
He found that the parents’ reluctance is not due to safety concerns but to concerns about the effectiveness of the influenza vaccine. Conversely, only 6% of parents question the effectiveness of routine childhood vaccines, such as those for measles, mumps, and whooping cough.
The findings were obtained from a panel of 2,176 parents, considered a representative sample of the parental population in the United States. Although the effectiveness of the flu shot varies from year to year, depending on how well it matches the strain of the flu virus that is dominant that year, health experts say the flu shot decreases in severity. of the disease even in years when it is not a good combination with the circulating virus.
Overall, flu vaccines reduce the risk of the disease by 40% to 60%, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. An annual flu shot, considered the most important way to prevent the flu, is recommended for almost everyone 6 months and older, but research shows that in most years, at least 40% of young people Americans are not vaccinated against the flu. .
Public health experts are particularly concerned that people of all ages will get a flu shot this year, given that the flu season and a second wave of new coronavirus cases are likely to coincide this fall and winter, It will severely stress hospitals and medical care. system in general.
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