Effectiveness of flu vaccines are exaggerated, American study says

TORONTO – Each winter, Canadians head to clinics, roll up their sleeves and get a shot to protect them from the season’s influenza, but a new American study suggests the flu shot isn’t as effective as public officials claim.

In findings that oppose the medical community’s conventional message, University of Minnesota researchers warn that the flu vaccine might not offer as much protection as doctors advertise in an effort to get people vaccinated.

Lead researcher Dr. Michael Osterholm and his team partnered with the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy experts in their report.

Flu vaccine proof of efficiency “overhyped,” authors say

More than 5,700 medical articles published between 1967 and 2011 that focused on influenza risk were screened. It took three years to sift through these reports.

The findings from analyzing these studies revealed that the general public health estimates of 70 to 90 per cent flu shot effectiveness in protecting healthy adults aren’t accurate.

Osterholm suggests that flu shots have only a 59 per cent efficacy in the United States.

Read the study’s full findings here.

What was also noteworthy is that the scientists allege that flu vaccines provide only “modest” protection for healthy adults and “little if any” protection for seniors, who are considered at risk of serious complications if they catch influenza, according to a New York Times report on the study.

The researchers say that U.S. vaccination recommendations are drawn on a lack of solid evidence.

“We have overpromoted and overhyped this vaccine,” Osterholm told the publication.

“It does not protect as promoted. It’s all a sales job; it’s all public relations.”

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Even nasal spray vaccines offered protection 83 per cent of the time for healthy adults but didn’t help immunize children or seniors.

Still the best option to protect against influenza

Despite his findings, Osterholm is still a “pro-vaccine guy.”

“I say, ‘Use this vaccine.’ The safety profile is actually quite good. But we have oversold it. Use it – but just know it’s not going to work nearly as well as everyone says,” he told American outlets.

Canadian physicians are adamant that their patients get the flu shot each year and as early as possible as it could take two weeks for the vaccine to work.

The flu season in Canada typically occurs from October to March with peak periods in January or February, according to Dr. Gerald Evans, a Queen’s University School of Medicine professor and chief of infectious diseases at Kingston General Hospital.

He told Global News that he’s anticipating a standard flu season to strike this year.

“A typical flu season means that we will see probably sometime in January or February a period of time that usually lasts four weeks where there’s an upswing in the number of people who have influenza,” he explained.
Because the seasonal flu strain changes from year to year, Canadian officials advise the country to get vaccinated annually.

Take a look at the Public Health Agency of Canada’s flu tracker here.