Get flu vaccination early

Getting a vaccination early in the flu season can help protect family and community against the potentially dangerous effects of the flu.

Roughly 5 percent to 20 percent of the U.S. population gets the flu every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. More than 200,000 are hospitalized annually due to flurelated complications.

Additionally, the very young, the very old and those suffering from certain health conditions are especially vulnerable, with more than 90 percent of influenzarelated deaths, about 36,000 Americans, occurring in people over 65.

Many of these deaths could be prevented by vaccination early in the flu season. Maintaining high immunization rates also helps protect the community by interrupting the transmission of diseasecausing viruses. That protection extends to people who cannot be immunized due to medical reasons.

There are two types of vaccine available to fight the flu, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. Flu shots use inactivated vaccine containing killed virus that is given with a needle. The flu shot is approved for use in people older than 6 months, including healthy people and patients who suffer from chronic medical conditions.

A nasal spray flu vaccine is also available. This vaccine is made with weakened, live flu viruses that do not cause illness, and is approved for use in healthy people as young as 5, as well as for adults up to age 49 who are not pregnant.

This story provided by North American Precis Syndicate Inc.