Dec. 3, 2025 – With many parents still navigating new COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for children – and with most pediatric infections remaining mild – it can be hard to know what to do. But a growing body of research points to the same conclusion: COVID infection poses greater and longer-lasting health risks than vaccination does.
Providing some of the strongest data yet, researchers at University College London analyzed three years of health records for 14 million kids ages 1 and up, including 3.9 million diagnosed with COVID and 3.4 million who were vaccinated. The vaccine carried a small risk of heart inflammation or blood clots in the first month after immunization – but these events were very rare and short-lived, found the study, published in The Lancet in November.
By contrast, COVID infections were linked to "rare but more frequent and longer-lasting" heart and blood vessel problems, sometimes lasting up to a year.
COVID infection caused about two heart inflammation cases (compared to less than one tied to vaccination) for every 100,000 children, and 17 inflammatory post-infection conditions (compared to none tied to vaccination).
In short: It's safer for young people to get vaccinated than to get sick.
"Get out the message clearly, cleanly, and loudly: Unvaccinated kids are at higher-than-normal risk of bad cardiovascular outcomes if they catch COVID – and that risk continues for up to a year after infection," said New York City–based epidemiologist Maureen Miller, PhD, who was not involved in the study.
Beyond heart risks, research shows COVID can leave children with lingering health problems – another reason experts recommend vaccination.
More Evidence Shows Risks for Kids
The new study findings align with previous research. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania reviewed health records of children and adolescents under 21 and found that those infected with COVID-19 a second time had a "significantly higher risk" of long COVID symptoms and other health complications, according to a separate study published in The Lancet this September.
Affected children had myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle), changes in taste and smell, fatigue, heart disease, respiratory symptoms, and problems with their heart and blood vessels, among other health issues. These findings mirror what is known about adults who have long-term complications after reinfections, showing that children are similarly at risk.
Another study from the University of Pennsylvania, published in Nature Communications in April, found that children and teens who get COVID are more likely to have heart problems – ranging from inflammation and irregular heartbeats to chest pain – than those who never get infected.
"Our research group conducted a similar study and showed that the risk of heart complications was 2 to 6 times higher with infection compared with vaccination among teenagers, and 7 to 8 times higher among young men," said Suchitra Rao, MD, with the University of Colorado School of Medicine and Children's Hospital Colorado. She was one of the key investigators looking at national pediatric child data as part of the Nature study.
Together, these studies confirm that even young people – including children – can face serious health difficulties when infected with COVID.
What to Do as Winter Approaches
COVID cases remain relatively low in the U.S. after a summer surge, according to Biobot, a national wastewater data resource. But the World Health Organization reports an uptick in cases internationally, potentially signaling the start of a winter surge.
Taking a few simple precautions can help keep your family safe.
Have a conversation with your doctor. They can help you decide what's best for your family. Schedule an appointment – or even a quick telehealth call – to discuss vaccinations against COVID and other seasonal respiratory viruses like the flu.
Vaccination "won't just prevent severe complications from SARS-CoV-2 [the virus that causes COVID] like hospitalization, ICU admission, and death, but can also prevent long COVID," Rao said. "These effects wane over time, so updated vaccines are essential, similar to getting updated influenza vaccines each year."
For the 2025-2026 season, the CDC recommends the updated COVID vaccine for anyone ages 6 months and older based on a discussion of individual risks and benefits with a doctor – a process called "shared clinical decision-making." The benefit of immunization may be greater for young people at high risk of severe COVID or complications from getting infected again, according to recent research. Vaccinations lowered long COVID risk by 35% for all children and 50% in adolescents.
Schedule an appointment for a COVID vaccine. COVID vaccines and booster doses are available at most major pharmacies across the U.S. The following vaccines are approved for children and teens:
- Ages 6 months to 4 years: Moderna (Spikevax) only
- Ages 5-11: Moderna (Spikevax) and Pfizer-BioNTech
- Ages 12-64: Moderna (mNexspike), Moderna (Spikevax), Novavax, and Pfizer-BioNTech
Check your local or state public health website for details on where you can get vaccines. The CDC advisory panel voted down a recommendation to require prescriptions for vaccination, so pharmacies should accept any walk-ins or appointments without one.
"It's complicated. And it shouldn't be," Miller said. "These days, people may not know where to find reliable information. General overwhelm and rampant misinformation may cause some parents to settle on simply stated but inaccurate information in their decision-making."
Stay smart. Other steps to protect yourself and your family this winter include:
- Stay home if you're feeling sick and get tested if needed.
- Wear a mask, especially around immunocompromised, younger, or older people.
- Improve ventilation in indoor spaces.
- Rest and take care of your health.
