Nearly everyone has experienced the anxiety and panic associated with mild COVID symptoms like a sore throat or a cough. Since then, every test result has been negative. With flu season just around the corner, this frustrating uncertainty is likely to return. Similar symptoms are shared by the flu and, contagious respiratory conditions that cause similar symptoms. Without a laboratory test, it is difficult to distinguish the difference. Only testing can determine which virus is causing your symptoms. Labs are currently working on a test to detect the flu and COVID-19.
As a professor of nursing with public promotion experience, I am often asked about the differences between the flu and COVID-19. Many people have questions about the timing of the COVID-19 booster and whether it can use with the flu shot.
Analyzing the Symptoms
Both COVID-19 and flu symptoms can range from mild to severe. Flu infection isn’t usually associated with loss or impairment in taste or smell. Both can cause fevers, fatigue, or body aches. More severe symptoms, such as difficulty breathing and pneumonia, can occur.
Timing the Shots
The COVID-19 booster shot has been made available. It is normal to wonder if it is the right time for both shots, with flu season just around the corner.
You should get them both as soon as possible. Remember that antibodies to COVID-19 as well as flu vaccines can take around two weeks to build up.
You can now die if you have received your primary COVID-19 vaccination series, and it has been more than eight weeks since the last booster. COVID-19 infection rates have decreased significantly with the original COVID-19 and booster vaccines.
Every person 6 months or older should have both the COVID-19 and influenza vaccines. Some populations, like pregnant women, are more vulnerable to serious infections. It is therefore important to get vaccinated.
In addition, symptoms of infection in people who have had COVID-19 vaccination tend to be milder. It is clear that vaccination or immunity against COVID-19 does not last forever. This is due in part to the rapid evolution of the virus. Studies have shown that the primary COVID-19 series is effective against severe illness and death for six months but loses effectiveness six months later. Six months after vaccination, the protection against infection drops by 20-30%.
Booster shots are therefore so important. If there isn’t a significant increase in booster shots, the COVID-19 infection rate may rise again.
Flu Season is Coming Up.
The 2020-2021 flu season saw fewer deaths and hospitalizations due to lockdowns, reduced travel, and school closings during the pandemic.
Experts began to concern about the possibility that a COVID-19 flu epidemic could occur in the fall of 2021, as COVID-19 restrictions were being lifted. The worst didn’t come to pass. The flu numbers for the 2021-2022 season didn’t reach pre-pandemic levels. However, the possibility of a “twin epidemic” is possible for this flu season.
It is hard to predict flu season. Because most people are likely to travel again, they will expose and susceptible to germs that they haven’t been protected against over the past two and a half years. Schools are open, and mask mandates have been lifted. Workers are back at work.
Flu vaccine rates were lower during the period of the pandemic. This could indicate that Americans might not use to receiving their flu shots.
The Pairing of Shots
Many people wonder if it is safe to receive the flu shot as well as the updated COVID-19 booster simultaneously. The COVID-19 booster is safe for both adults and children as young as 12 years.
Recent research has shown that side effects such as pain at injection sites and fatigue are more common in people who have received both the flu vaccine and the COVID-19 booster. These side effects, including fatigue and headaches, were mild and can treat in a matter of days.
You don’t need to visit two places as long as your next COVID-19 vaccination is due. However, I don’t recommend you delay getting your COVID booster if you haven’t had your flu shot. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), everyone should get their flu vaccine before October. It’s better not to miss the deadline than get your flu shot later.
About COVID-19 Vaccines
The COVID-19 vaccines that are available in the United States protect people from becoming seriously ill, hospitalized, or dying. You are best protected against COVID-19, as with other vaccine-preventable illnesses, if you keep up with recommended vaccinations, and recommended boosters. The United States has approved or authorized four COVID-19 vaccines
- Pfizer-BioNTech
- Moderna
- Novavax
- Johnson & Johnson Janssen (J&J/Janssen). (CDC recommends that J&J/Janssen’s COVID-19 vaccine be only in certain situations. This is due to safety concerns.
Updated (Bivalent Boosters)
Because they protect both the original COVID-19 virus and Omicron variants BA.4 and BA.5, the updated boosters (bivalent) are called “bivalent”. Because they were originally designed to protect against COVID-19, previous boosters were called “monovalent”. They provide some protection against Omicron but not as much as the new (bivalent), boosters. Over time, the virus that causes COVID-19 changed. Variants are the names of different viruses that have evolved over time. Learn more about variations of the COVID-19 virus. Moderna and Pfizer have created updated (bivalent COVID-19 boosters) for their COVID-19 vaccines.
What are you up to?
When you have completed a COVID-19 primary series and received the latest booster dose, you are current with your COVID-19 vaccinations.
- You are considered up-to-date if you have completed your primary series but are not eligible for a booster.
- You are considered up-to-date if you fall ill with COVID-19 even though you have received all recommended COVID-19 vaccine doses. You don’t need to be revaccinated nor do you need an extra booster.
Three things are the basis of COVID-19’s recommendations for vaccines:
- Your age
- The first time you received a vaccine.
- How long it has been since you last took your dose
Different recommendations for COVID vaccinations are given to people who are severely or moderately immunocompromised.
Get Vaccines if You Have or Are Currently Having COVID-19
If you have recently been diagnosed with COVID-19, you might consider delaying your next dose of vaccine (primary or booster) for 3 months. This would be from the time your symptoms began or, if none, from the date you received your first positive test. Infections are less likely to occur in the first few weeks or months following infection. There are some factors that could make it more difficult to get a vaccine, including the risk of serious illness or death in close family members, the COVID community level, and the most prevalent COVID type.
Mixing COVID-19 Vaccine Products
Do not mix primary series
The CDC doesn’t recommend that you mix products for primary series doses. You should use the same product for each subsequent primary series dose if you have received Novavax, Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna for your first dose.
Mixing boosters
This information is for people who wish to use different products to boost their vaccine.
Vaccination received outside the United States
The following factors will determine the specific recommendations for those who have been vaccinated in the United States:
- The United States accepts the vaccines received as valid vaccinations
- The primary series was complete and, if applicable, a booster dose was given.
These recommendations are only applicable to persons who are not severely or moderately immunocompromised.
What makes this booster so different?
The bivalent vaccine is the new booster. This means that it contains two messenger RNA (mRNA), components of coronavirus. The vaccine targets half the original strain and half the BA.4/BA.5 Omicron subvariant lines. Both are expected to continue to circulate this fall and winter.
How can we be sure that the booster is safe?
Regulators approved the vaccines based on safety data and effectiveness data from COVID-19 mRNA vaccinations as well as the trials in mice of the new formulation. Pfizer and Moderna also had human trials of a similar formulation, which was aimed at an older version of Omicron, BA.
Pfizer published updated clinical trial data in November. It showed that the bivalent booster’s safety was similar to its COVID vaccine. Moderna also reported no new safety issues in its human trials, as compared to its monovalent vaccine.
