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The nasal flu vaccine is offered free of charge to children aged 2-3 years old to protect against flu, a highly contagious illness that can be serious in young children.
Vaccinating your child also protects those around them, including those at risk of serious complications such as pregnant and elderly people, as children can catch and spread flu very easily.
You should get an invitation from your GP surgery for your child’s nasal flu vaccine. If you haven’t heard from them, you can contact them to book an appointment if your child is 2 or 3 years old.
The children’s vaccine is usually given nasally as a fast and painless spray into each nostril, and can safely be administered alongside other immunisations. It protects against the most common flu viruses and usually takes up to 14 days to work.
Although there’s still a chance that your child can get flu after being vaccinated, they are much less likely to become seriously ill or require hospitalisation. You cannot get flu from any of the flu vaccines and the most common side effects are mild and improve after 1-2 days, learn more about side effects here.
Most children are offered the flu vaccine as a nasal spray. It contains porcine gelatine, neomycin, gentamicin and a small quantity of egg protein, alongside other ingredients. You can read the full list of ingredients here. A flu vaccine that does not contain gelatine is offered as an injection. Speak to the person vaccinating your child if you’d prefer this.
Children who cannot have the nasal vaccine and children under two years old will also be offered the vaccine as an injection. If you think your child may need the injected vaccine for medical or allergy reasons, speak to your GP or practice nurse. Click here for more information about which children can’t have the nasal flu vaccine.
Take a look at a video of the nasal flu vaccine being administered:
The flu vaccine as an injection is offered free of charge to pregnant individuals, learn more here.
