Christina Aungst, PharmD, RPhChristina Aungst, PharmD, RPh, is a community pharmacist licensed in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. Along with writing for GoodRx, she is a contributing author and editor for TheDigitalApothecary.com.February 18, 2021, 1:49PM (PT)
Key takeaways:
- Before COVID-19, research showed that taking OTC pain relievers before getting a vaccine didn’t always help to prevent side effects like pain and swelling.
- Studies have shown that acetaminophen and NSAIDs might have some effect on how the immune system works, but we don’t know if this would cause the COVID-19 vaccines to be less effective.
- To be extra cautious, it’s best to avoid taking OTC pain relievers before you get your shot, but it’s okay to take them if you start feeling side effects afterward.
Now that vaccines for COVID-19 are being given to certain groups of people across the country, we are starting to see the types of side effects they cause. There are expected side effects for any vaccination, like:
- Pain or swelling where the shot was administered
- Fever
- Chills
- Headache
These are signs that your immune system is working. However, these side effects are more common with the current COVID-19 vaccines available.
Even though these reactions usually go away quickly for most people, no one likes to feel them. So you might be tempted to take an over-the-counter (OTC) pain reliever or fever reducer, such as Tylenol or Advil, before you go for your vaccine to try to prevent some of this discomfort. But experts are warning people not to do this.
Is it safe to take OTC pain relievers and fever reducers like Tylenol or Advil before getting the COVID-19 vaccine?
There’s still a lot experts don’t know about COVID-19. Whether it’s safe to take pain relievers before receiving your vaccine is one of those many unanswered questions. As of right now, no studies have determined if acetaminophen (the main ingredient in Tylenol) and ibuprofen (the main ingredient in Advil and Motrin) affect how well the COVID-19 vaccines work.
This question hasn’t been researched much for any vaccination, not just the COVID-19 vaccines. Because of this uncertainty, both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommend avoiding pain relievers and fever reducers before getting any vaccine, not just the current COVID-19 ones. Think of it as erring on the side of caution.
Can taking OTC pain relievers before getting the COVID-19 vaccine help combat side effects like pain and swelling at the injection site?
This is another question we don’t have a definite answer for yet. Past vaccine research is a little confusing, as there are studies that have very different results.
One study from 1998 looked at children who were receiving their childhood vaccinations. Some of the children were given Tylenol before their shots, while others were not. The researchers found no difference in the amount of side effects either group of children experienced.
However, another study from 2014 found that when children took Tylenol or Advil before their childhood vaccines, they had less discomfort afterward. While both medications helped prevent pain, Tylenol worked better for fever. They also helped more often with the children’s first shots than their booster shots.
Since these studies seem to have opposite answers, we would need more research to say whether taking Tylenol or Advil would definitely help prevent vaccine side effects. It’s also important to keep in mind that these studies only looked at children, so we have no research on whether OTC pain relievers and fever reducers would help adults avoid vaccine discomfort.Don’t miss out on savings!Get the best ways to save on your prescriptions delivered to your inbox. By signing up, I agree to GoodRx’s terms of service and privacy policy, and to receive marketing messages from GoodRx.
How do pain relievers impact the immune response of vaccines?
While we don’t have any studies on how OTC pain relievers affect your immune system’s response to the COVID-19 vaccine, we do have some research that was done with other vaccines. In short: pain relievers might cause a weaker response to the vaccine, possibly making it less effective, but we need more research to be sure. There are two studies on this that we’ll talk about, both dealing with kids who took Tylenol before getting their vaccines.
Kids and Tylenol studies
In the first study, from 2009, researchers looked at how Tylenol affected the immune systems of infants receiving their childhood vaccines. Some children were given Tylenol before getting their shots, while others were not. When the children had their antibodies tested — antibodies are the proteins in our blood that help us develop long-lasting immunity — those who were given Tylenol beforehand had lower antibody levels.
The same researchers released a follow-up study in 2013. They followed these children until they finished receiving all of the necessary boosters for their vaccines. The children continued to take or not take Tylenol before each of their booster shots, just as they had before. This time, though, researchers found that the antibody levels were the same for all children regardless of whether they took Tylenol, meaning that they all developed long-term immunity from the vaccines.
NSAIDs
While most of this type of research focuses on Tylenol, a study published in 2010 looked at how immune system cells reacted when exposed to a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAIDs). Researchers found that after the NSAID was introduced, there were lower amounts of a certain protein that helps create immune cells in the body. Unfortunately, this study only looked at blood samples under a microscope, so we don’t know if the results are the same when a person takes an NSAID like Advil or Motrin.
This study also didn’t look at people being vaccinated, so we can’t say for sure if taking OTC NSAIDs would interfere with how your immune system responds to a vaccine. While experts do know that inflammation is an important part of getting your immune system to respond properly, they don’t know if lowering inflammation with medications when you’re sick or get a vaccine is actually harmful. A review published in 2016 found that pain medications did not impact the immune response, but it was based on observational studies that are of lower quality, and the researchers thought that more studies were needed.
Because of the lack of high-quality studies on taking NSAIDs or Tylenol before getting a vaccine, the CDC and other similar health organizations recommend not taking Advil or Tylenol beforehand. This is suggested just to be extra careful and in case future research shows these medications do have a negative effect on the immune system.
Will taking a pain reliever like Tylenol make the COVID-19 vaccine less effective?
Although the two studies on kids taking Tylenol before their vaccines showed that it didn’t affect their long-term immunity, we can’t say if this will be the same for the COVID-19 vaccines. Right now, we don’t know how long immunity from the COVID-19 vaccines lasts. If these vaccines don’t provide long-lasting protection against the virus, then the two studies mentioned above can’t be used to give advice about taking Tylenol before getting your shot.
If I take Tylenol, aspirin, or NSAIDs for another medical condition, is it safe to continue taking it when getting the COVID-19 vaccine?
Since there’s no concrete evidence one way or the other on if OTC pain relievers make the COVID-19 vaccines less effective, it could actually be much riskier for you to stop any regular medications. Stopping a daily low-dose aspirin can raise your risk of heart problems or blood clots. Stopping regular NSAIDs for arthritis can worsen your condition or cause a flare-up of symptoms.
If you do take any medications that contain acetaminophen, or if you take NSAIDs regularly (including aspirin) for other medical conditions, please speak to your healthcare provider about whether you should continue taking them while receiving your COVID-19 vaccine. They will review your personal medical history and let you know if you should stop taking them a few days beforehand.
Can I take an OTC pain reliever if I am experiencing side effects after getting the COVID-19 vaccine?
Yes, it is perfectly fine to take OTC pain relievers after you have received the COVID-19 vaccine. This is recommended by experts, and it can help ease the side effects you might experience. The reactions you might have after the shot are a sign your immune system has already started responding to the vaccine, so taking Tylenol or Advil shouldn’t interfere with it.
The bottom line
If you have a sore arm, fatigue, or even a fever after your COVID-19 vaccine, know that it’s very common and a sign your immune system is learning how to protect you from getting sick from the coronavirus. Because there’s a possibility that OTC pain relievers, such as Tylenol or Advil, might weaken your immune system’s response to vaccines, it’s best not to take them before you get your shot. But once you’ve received the vaccine, feel free to take these medications if you feel you need them.
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