TIME FOR YOUR SHOT

Is it Covid or is it the flu? Experts says the only way to safeguard yourself is to get vaccinated against both

- NASIFA SULAIMAN

IF ANY good at all came out of two dark years of Covid, it was that flu season was virtually non-existent.

Working from home, lockdown, mask-wearing, hand-sanitising, social distancing – all helped stave off the sniffles, sore throats and coughs associated with the annual sick-show. But now that life in many ways is getting back to normal, the dreaded lurgy is starting to rear its snotty head once again.

Winter is looming large on the horizon and, with many of us going back to the office and getting out and about again, germs are poised to strike – and Covid vaccines aren’t the only jabs people are talking about these days.

So, now, the questions are: should you get a flu shot? Can you get a flu shot and a Covid shot at the same time? And will one protect against the other?

We went in search of the answers.

FLU AND COVID: THE DIFFERENCE

Both are highly contagious respiratory illnesses but they are caused by different viruses. Flu is caused by the influenza A and B viruses, while Covid-19 is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Professor Hannelie Meyer, head of the SA Vaccination and Immunisation Centre (SAVIC) and member of the Department of Public Health Pharmacy and Management at Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, and Chair of the National Immunisation Safety Expert Committee, says the challenge is that flu and Covid-19 have similar symptoms, which include body aches, chills, cough, fatigue, fever, headache, sore throat and a stuffy nose. “This makes it difficult to differentiate between the two,” she says.