Flu Vaccine: Many locations available to get your flu shot this season
Flu Vaccine: Many locations available to get your flu shot this season
Seasonal influenza vaccines generally protect against three different strains of influenza each year. The influenza strains mutate each year and this is why the flu shot is recommended annually. The key in flu vaccination is not only getting a flu shot to protect yourself but also to protect those around you. The more people that get vaccinated with a flu shot the less likely an abundance of influenza cases will spread throughout that area. Generally, influenza disease will peak in January through March. The ideal time to get your Flu vaccination is September through January. The CDC recommends everyone 6 months and older should receive a this vaccine every year. The groups at highest risk for influenza disease are:
- pregnant women
- children younger than 5
- individuals 50 years of age and older
- individuals with chronic medical conditions
- health care workers
Influenza vaccine shots are not live diseases. This vaccine as well as many others are attenuated or killed. You cannot get influenza disease from the flu shot. You can get minor immune responses such as headache, sore arm or fever. It is a large myth that you can get the flu from a flu vaccination. If you do not know where to go to get a flu vaccine you can use aflu clinic finder. This is new technology that has been brought about as a public service by Google. Flu clinics register their information and all the clinics are registered into Google's mapping system to provide convenient locations for any individual needing a flu vaccination. You can use this link to find a flu clinic near you or to register your flu clinic with google http://www.fluvaccineclinics.com