The Importance of Getting a Flu Shot

This year it is more important than ever for you and your family to receive vaccinations for the Flu. With COVID-19 directly at the forefront of health safety, the more we can keep high immunity levels for other diseases the better. 

Flu season typically occurs from fall to early spring. The length and severity of an epidemic may vary from year to year and city to city, but according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the flu affects between 3 and 11 percent of the U.S. population each year. 

The CDC estimates that both the flu virus and the virus that cause COVID-19 will be spreading during the upcoming cooler months of fall and winter. The symptoms of flu and COVID-19 have a large overlap of symptoms, so the flu vaccine will be more important than ever.

Benefits of the Flu Vaccination

There are many reasons to get a Flu (also known as Influenza) vaccine each year. The best way to protect against the flu is a seasonal flu shot in early fall. It is possible to have both COVID-19 and the Flu at the same time, so attentive care is required as flu season begins.

Flu vaccines can keep you from getting sick with the Flu

The Flu vaccine has been shown to reduce the risk of getting sick with the Flu and having to go to the doctor by 40 percent to 60 percent. 

Reduces the risk of hospitalization for Children, Adults, and Seniors

Tens of thousands of hospitalizations are prevented by the Flu vaccine each year. An estimated 58,000 flu-related hospitalizations were avoided during the 2018-2019 flu season. This 2020 study found that during the same 2018-2019 season, vaccination reduced flu-associated hospitalization by 41% and flu-associated emergency visits by half among children aged 6 months to 17 years old.​

Flu vaccination helps protect women during and after pregnancy

A Flu shot reduces the risk of flu-associated acute respiratory infection in pregnant women by about 50%, and studies have shown that in addition to helping protect pregnant women, a flu vaccine given during pregnancy helps protect the baby from flu for several months after birth.

Flu vaccines can be lifesaving for children

The 2019-2020 Flu season resulted in 188 deaths of children under 17, according to the CDC.  Significantly reduce a child’s risk of dying from flu with yearly Flu Vaccinations.

Reduces the severity of illness in people who get vaccinated but still get sick

According to this 2018 study, of adults hospitalized with flu, vaccinated patients were 59 percent less likely to be admitted to the ICU than those who had not been vaccinated. Of adults in the ICU with flu, vaccinated patients spent an average of 4 fewer days in the hospital than those who were not previously vaccinated.

If you’d like to a Flu vaccination or have questions or concerns, the staff at Tiger Pediatrics are here to help. Call us at 573-777-7627