Matt Dionne | Sports and Health Editor
Featured illustration: Experts feel this year’s flu shot is a closer match to the current H3N2 flu strain. | Cedric Wong
Canada is apparently in the midst of its worst flu season, with 692 positive flu cases reported in just one week this past December.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the most common symptoms of the flu are fever, sore throat, cough, runny nose, headache, muscle or body ache and fatigue—some people may also experience intestinal distress such as diarrhea and vomiting.
Fortunately, Canada’s health care system offers free flu shots, which experts believe this year to be a close genetic match to the H3N2 strain circulating. According to recent data, however, fewer Ontarians are getting the flu shot.
From 2013 to 2014, 31 per cent of Canadians aged 12 and up got a flu shot. However, only 34 per cent of Ontarians got the flu shot from 2013 to 2014, down from the 38 per cent who got it in 2003.
People aged between 18 and 34 had the lowest percentage of vaccinations at just 17 per cent in 2013 and 2014, which was up from 13 per cent in 2003.
“I do not get a regular flu shot. As the vaccine only covers certain strains of the virus, there is no guarantee of immunization, and I consider it ineffective and not worth the effort of finding time to receive one. If there was a particularly strong or dangerous one, like H1N1, I would likely get the vaccine, but not the normal annual one,” says fourth-year psychology student Sandra Fornier.
“I feel that the vaccine is generally useful for vulnerable populations, such as children or older adults, or for those who have lower immune systems. Since I am none of those, I consider this particular vaccine to be useless.”
According to Stats Canada, 56 per cent of Canadians who didn’t get the flu shot chose not to because they “felt it was unnecessary,” while 26 per cent said they “didn’t get around to it.”
“I don’t get the flu shot because I don’t feel I need it. I rarely get sick, and I don’t have time to wait in a doctor’s office for something that isn’t necessary,” says Tevin Shadd, fourth-year psychology student.
“I’ve gotten it in the past, but I don’t anymore because I don’t usually get sick, and when I do get the shot I feel sick for the next few days after. I’m also not a big fan of needles,” says Ashley Bain, fourth-year linguistics student.
Despite the notion that the flu shot isn’t necessary, there are roughly 12,200 Canadians hospitalized from influenza-related illnesses each year, and approximately 3,500 influenza-related deaths.
If you haven’t yet gotten a flu shot but you’d like to, you can visit your family doctor, an influenza clinic or a nearby Rexall or Shoppers Drug Mart.
