The CDC recommends flu shots for everyone 6 months and older. By Lisa Esposito
One of the first signs of fall is U.S. health experts coming together to urge flu vaccines for everyone 6 months and older. Here are key points from the panel hosted Thursday by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases at the National Press Club in the District of Columbia: Influenza vaccines are safe, and they're the first and most important step in flu prevention, advised experts including Dr. Tom Frieden,director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The2014–2015 flu season was a bad one, Frieden said: Seniors hospitalized for flu reached the highest rates ever recorded (starting a decade ago), and 145 deaths were documented among children. This new season's vaccine is expected to provide better coverage, said Dr. William Schaffner, medical director for NFID. The updated vaccine is a closer match with predominant flu strains this season so far, including the H3N2 strain, says Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. Getting your flu shot is becoming more convenient. Pharmacists are now approved to give flu vaccinations in all 50 states. Doctors' offices, clinics, health departments, pharmacies, a growing number of workplaces and some schools provide flu shots. You don't need a needle: Along with the traditional flu shot, options include a nasal spray vaccine, a jet-injector vaccine, an intradermal vaccine using a much shorter needle, an entirely egg-free vaccine and a high-dose vaccine for people 65 and older. Even young, healthy people can die from the flu, said Dr. Kathleen Neuzil, director of the Center for Vaccine Development at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Protecting others – young kids, seniors and vulnerable people with conditions such as cancer and lung disease – is another compelling reason to get vaccinated, she said: "We are the transmitters in the community." Dr. Wendy Sue Swanson, a pediatrician, blogger and executive director of Digital Health at Seattle Children's Hospital, described seeing unvaccinated kids with flu suffer from fever-related seizures, wheezing,10-pound weight loss and multiple missed school days. Kids under 5 are more likely to be hospitalized with flu, she said. They're exposed to the virus in daycare and at preschool, where, she pointed out, kids "swap spit, snot and saliva." Everyday flu precautions include covering your coughs and sneezes; staying away from sick people; and if you're sick, staying home from work or school. Also advised: frequent handwashing with soap and water when available, or with alcohol-based hand rubs if not. SOURCE: http://health.usnews.com/health-news/articles/2015/09/17/new-reasons-to-get-your-flu-shot-this-year?int=a3bb09
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