Nursing

Get Your Vaccination This Flu Season

NursingDecember 02, 2013

 

Flu season is underway and up to 20 percent of people in the United States will become ill. There is an easy way to try to prevent getting sick. A flu vaccine will help to protect you from this dreaded illness that can send you to bed for about a week, if not more.

When is the Flu Season?

In just a short period of time, the flu can spread from person to person like wildfire. The severity of the flu can range from quite mild to very serious, especially among the young, the old and the debilitated. It is a respiratory illness that is highly contagious. Flu season typically rears its ugly head in the fall and winter months, perhaps anytime between October and May. The peak of the flu season is generally in the early months of the year, around January and February.

The Flu Vaccine:  Why You Should Get It

The flu is spread when someone with this ailment either coughs, sneezes or even speaks. Minuscule droplets of saliva carry from an infected person's open mouth right into yours. When people who have the flu touch an object, such as a grocery cart, a faucet or even a pen that you loaned to them, the flu virus can also be spread. This alone is a strong reason to receive the flu vaccine. You may be exposed to the flu several times within the course of a single day and not even be aware of it. Each year, it is discovered which flu will be the most common. A vaccination is then given to protect yourself against it. Your immune system becomes a little more susceptible to the illness than the year before, as the effects of the flu vaccine dwindle. The flu will vary each year and new strands will develop.

Side Effects of the Flu Vaccine

Most people have a minimal reaction to the flu vaccine, if any at all. The most common side effect is obviously tenderness to the area of the vaccination. You may also feel some general fatigue. A low grade fever is also a possibility.

Some side effects and the time that it takes to get the vaccination far outweigh the flu symptoms that you will endure if you do not. Be smart, and get your flu vaccination today!

Photo Source: Flickr

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