Up until recently, health-care providers have asked their patients if they have and egg allergy or handed a screening and consent form with that question before being given the flu vaccination. If the patient did have an allergy, they wouldn’t have been given the flu shot.
Most influenza vaccines are grown in chicken eggs and may contain a tiny amount of egg protein. There has been no evidence that the influenza vaccine could trigger an allergic reaction in people with egg allergies. Health care providers thinking was that it was better to be safe than sorry. Recent studies have shown that even having a severe egg allergy is no longer a reason to avoid getting vaccinated against the flu.
“There really is no reason for providers or screening questionnaires to ask whether someone is allergic to eggs before they get a flu shot,” Dr. John Kelso, a coauthor of the allergists at the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, told Forbes Health.
Research has shown that the amount of egg protein in a dose of influenza vaccine is so teeny that, as the allergists say in their practice parameter, “it’s highly unlikely to cause reactions even in the most severely egg allergic recipients.”
The risk of not getting a flu shot is far greater than the risk of getting one, (FluMist, the nasal vaccine approved for people 2-49 years old, contains even less egg protein per dose than flu shots. It, too, is safe for individuals with egg allergies, according to the allergists. However, for the current flu season and the last, ACIP recommended against using FluMist because of concrerns about its efficacy in children and teens, and the vaccine’s website still says it should not be given to people with severe egg allergies.)
During the 2015-2016 flu season, they noted, more than 15,000 U.S. children younger than 5 years old were hospitalized because of the flu, and an estimated 124 U.S. children die of influenza each year.
With that being said, everyone should get a flu shot to prevent getting the flu and spreading it. Having insurance coverage helps get the cost of a flu shot lower. Call Cosmo Insurance Agency to sign up for quality health insurance or request a doctor that can prove flu shots for you and your family. 732-363-3888
