How to Protect Yourself from Seasonal Flu with Vaccines

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Seasonal flu can make you very sick. You might have to get hospital care. Flu can have different impacts on people and every flu season is unique. During typical flu seasons many people get flu every year. Many people need to go to the hospital and many people die from flu.

The best way to help reduce the risk of getting flu and its problems is to get an annual seasonal flu vaccine. Flu vaccines make your body fight flu better. They work about two weeks after you get them.

Seasonal flu vaccines protect you from the four flu viruses that will probably be around the most during the season. They are all “quadrivalent” vaccines in the United States. They protect you from four flu viruses: an influenza A(H1N1) virus an influenza A(H3N2) virus and two influenza B viruses.

Some people with certain health conditions and different age groups need different types of flu vaccines. For people younger than 65 years CDC does not say that one type of flu vaccine is better than another during the 2022-2023 flu season. For this age group, the choices are inactivated influenza vaccine [IIV] recombinant influenza vaccine [RIV] or live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV). There is no preference for any flu vaccine over another.

For people 65 years and older there are three flu vaccines that are better than standard-dose flu vaccines. Fluzone High-Dose Quadrivalent vaccine Flublok Quadrivalent recombinant flu vaccine and Fluad Quadrivalent adjuvanted flu vaccine are these vaccines. These vaccines work better for older adults than standard-dose flu vaccines.

You can find out more about the different types of seasonal flu vaccines and their effects or side effects on there CDC website. You can also find a nearby place to get a flu vaccine using the Vaccine Finder tool.

Getting a flu vaccine is very important during the COVID-19 pandemic. Flu vaccination can lower your chance of getting sick with flu and needing medical care. This can help save health care resources. Flu vaccination can also lower your chance of getting both flu and COVID-19 at the same time. This can be very bad for you. Flu vaccination is very important for people who are at high risk of serious problems from both flu and COVID-19. These include older adults people with chronic health conditions pregnant women and children younger than 5 years.

Flu vaccines are safe and work well. For many years, they have been used and have a good record of safety. The most common bad effects are mild and go away quickly such as soreness redness or swelling at the injection site headache fever muscle aches or fatigue. Very bad allergic reactions are very rare .

Protect yourself and your loved ones from seasonal flu by getting vaccinated as possible. Flu vaccines are easy to get at doctor’s offices pharmacies clinics health departments and other places. Flu season usually peaks between December and February but it can last as late as May. It takes about two weeks after vaccination for your body to fight flu better.

Don’t wait. Vaccinate!

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