Does you 5-11yr old have the flu vaccine? Do you feel differently about the covid jab?

[Januarypip]

And if so why?

Trying to think how I feel about it and unsure.

I think the method of the 2 vaccines gives pause for thoughts, if the covid was given nasally like the flu maybe some others would consider it. Many adults have felt quite rough/hadsore arm/both after their vaccines and might not want to inflict that on their dc.

Yes. No.

Yes and yes.

No and no.

No to flu, yes to covid

No to both.

Used to be a yes to flu vaccine but after a few bad reactions, it became a no.

Ironically, mine missed their flu vaccine this year as they were off school with Covid.

I'm pleased elder DD can have the Covid vaccine before starting Secondary school. Its not perfect, but its a bit of extra help.

Yes has had flu and has had first Covid jab (not in UK), will get second jab soon. Zero side effects from Pfizer

Mine always have the flu vaccine but my 12/13 year old hasn't had the Covid vaccine and my younger two won't be either. I don't have the flu vaccine but have had all my Covid vaccines. We haven't had Covid in our house yet (as far as I'm aware).

No, none of my dc's have had the flu jab and I'm going to put off them having the covid jab for as long as poss too. I don't feel it is at all necessary for children to be having flu OR covid vaccinations.
If it stops us from travelling in the future may have to readdress that.

My kids have the flu vaccine, it has no side affects for them, nasal so doesn’t hurt, has been around for years and years, stops them actually catching flu, and flu generally make children very poorly if they do catch it.

Covid jab is an injection so hurts, can have side affects including flu like symptoms and rarely far more serious ones, won’t stop them catching covid, hasn’t been around for children for even 1 full year yet, and covid is generally a very mild illness for children.

Even the gov is just saying it may be helpful to protect against further waves, so they don’t even think it’s actually necessary right now for many. But then the covid vaccine doesn’t last long term anyway so it’s not guaranteed to protect against future waves?

It’s a no from me for now, although I plan to watch the research closely. Fully vaccinated myself.

Yes and very probably will do.

We do the flu vaccine some years, it tends to depend on how organized I am.

I feel somewhat differently about them. The covid vaccination is quite new, unlike the flu one, so there's that.

But also, other respiratory diseases like flu and RSV and pneumonia are a bigger risk for kids than covid, and I don't especially worry about my kids getting those things. So I also am not too worried about them getting covid. I feel that they can afford to wait a bit until the vaccination has been in use longer.

Yes always

No

Flu can be really serious in some kids so yes my kid has the flu vaccine.
Aside from vulnerable kids I think the money could be better spent elsewhere than in 5-11 year olds getting the Covid jab.
I cannot get worked up enough to refuse it but it seems like overkill, particularly as my child has had Covid without any symptoms.

9 yr old has had both and will continue to do so. Not in UK, booked in as soon as it opened for 5-11 yr olds here

Mine used to get the flu vaccine but they just changed the eligibility rules in my country so can't get it any more but she would still be getting it otherwise (side note, they don't do the nasal flu vaccine for children over 6 here, which is annoying and I don't understand why not). Got the covid jab.

Yes flu no Covid. Maybe in a few years time when we know more information on children having the vaccine and the outcome of them.

No they don’t have the flu jab. No to the Covid jab. All had Covid twice, presumably Delta& Omicron and other than a temperature with the latter I don’t feel the risk to them is sufficient to get them vaccinated. Should that change, I will look again. I feel the decision to offer is more to do with travel restrictions affecting the industry and financial ramifications. And I also feel it would be better to begin to offer it going into the Winter and money spent on other areas.

No and absolutely no

Yes to both. DC will have second Covid vaccine in a few weeks.

Yes to flu, no to Covid. The difference is that the flu vaccination has been around for an awfully long time - in the early days it was just given to the vulnerable and then the programme got widened and widened. There just isn't enough data on any of the Covid issues. We have been told for months that vaccine immunity wears off so what is the long term proposal here? Vaccinating kids every year?

I'm not sure we will continue with the flu vaccine long term either as I'm now questioning the ethics - there seems to be a societal expectation that children and young people will have interventions that are of no benefit to them to protect others. Meanwhile there is no money to roll out a childhood chicken pox vaccination programme which would directly benefit children and is offered routinely in many other countries.

there seems to be a societal expectation that children and young people will have interventions that are of no benefit to them to protect others.

This is how vaccination works though, and how it has always worked.

Non-vulnerable children and young people benefit marginally from vaccination themselves, and more widely due to the benefits of living in a society where infectious diseases aren't rife (which in turn would impact on services, healthcare, and the community).

(for some of the infectious diseases referenced, for others it is clearly very much in a child's best interests to be vaccinated)

Yes flu and they will behaving covid jab too. There are far more side effects associated with covid and long covid than there are from the vaccines, which have now been very well tested across Europe and North America.