At What Age Can You Get the High-Dose Flu Vaccine?

December 1, 2022

Did you know that there are multiple versions of the flu shot available to adults age 65 or older? While the standard flu shot can protect you from serious illness, there is a high-dose version available that can provide you with an even higher level of protection against influenza.

We want you to stay as healthy as possible this year, so we recommend that everyone get vaccinated against the flu as soon as possible in the season. Read on from our AFC Urgent Care Statesville team to learn about your options regarding the flu shot below.

What Is the Difference Between Flu Shots?

The standard flu shot works to protect you from the year’s most common strain of the flu. It changes a bit year to year to protect against the strains of the flu likely to be most common that season. The higher dose vaccine is one step above that. It protects against four different strains at one time!

More protection against more flu strains can be really beneficial for older adults, because as you age, your immune system can start to weaken and make you more vulnerable to serious illness. With the high-dose vaccine, you get four times the amount of protective antibodies.

Common Flu Shot Side Effects

Muscle aches
Minor discomfort at the injection site
Headache
General tiredness

If I Have Side Effects from the Flu Shot, Am I Sick?

It is quite common for your body to have an immune response to the vaccine, so minor side effects like the ones above simply mean that your body is working hard to create those antibodies for you. Neither of the two shots can cause the flu, but they can make you feel run down for a day or so.

That seems like a small inconvenience for such beneficial protection! If you are 65 or older, ask your care provider for the higher-dose version of the flu vaccine this year to best protect yourself from a severe flu infection.