More Flu in Those Who Got the Flu Vaccine
The Cleveland Clinic published a pre-print study showing that its employees who received the flu vaccine for the 2024-25 flu season were 27% more likely to get the flu compared to employees not vaccinated.
The Cleveland Clinic mandates the flu shot but allows for medical and religious exemptions. Among its 53,402 employees, 43,857 (82.1%) received the influenza vaccine. Influenza occurred in 2.02% of the employees representing 1,079 cases. The study was 25 weeks long
During the early phase of the study, the cumulative incidence of influenza was similar in the vaccinated and unvaccinated but the cumulative incidence of influenza increased more rapidly in the vaccinated as the study progressed.
The incidence of influenza was significantly higher in the vaccinated when controlled for age, sex, clinical nursing job, and employee location.
Flu Vaccine Recommendations
The U.S. and Canada are the only two countries that recommend the flu vaccines for all individuals older than six months. The United Kingdom only recommends the flu vaccine for high-risk individuals. The U.S. is also an outlier for still recommending COVID-19 vaccines to all individuals over six months.
Why More Flu in the Vaccinated?
It is one thing if a vaccine does not protect against a particular infection, but it is another story when more cases of infection occur following vaccination. Something similar happened in California in 2015 when most cases of measles were related to the MMR vaccine.
Why should that be? Are all these vaccines damaging our immune systems over time? I, however, have nothing to base that upon.
Individuals who get the annual flu vaccine are 25% more likely to COVID-19 vaccines per this study published in JAMA.
