Back to school and the start of fall mean the unfortunate return of respiratory virus season. Between colds, COVID-19 and the flu, there are endless viruses spreading during the colder months that cause an array of symptoms such as congestion, fever, coughing and headache. There is also a risk of more severe complications like hospitalization and even death — and this is especially true after a bad flu season last year.
One way to keep yourself and those around you protected from the flu is by getting the flu shot, which is available now at pharmacies and doctors’ offices throughout the country.
“Everyone age 6 months and up is recommended to get a flu vaccine every year, and the CDC did … reinforce that recommendation for this season as well,” said Sara Lane, the manager of Pharmacy Clinical Services at Hannaford Supermarkets, a New England and New York supermarket chain.
Last year, just under 50% of children received a flu shot, and 46.7% of adults got the vaccine. “Getting your flu shot is the No. 1 way to help get you protected against influenza, help protect your friends and family, help decrease the spread … it’s all about that community immunity,” Lane noted.
Flu is a respiratory virus that causes fever, fatigue, body aches, headache and cough. While some people can fight it off at home, young children, older adults, pregnant people and folks who are immunocompromised are among the groups at risk of severe complications, hospitalization and death.
Here’s what to know about when to get your shot and why it’s so important to get it:
September and October are the best months to get a flu shot, but later on in the year can be protective, too.
The best time to get the flu shot tends to be in September or October. You can also consider getting it later, like November, and even into the winter before flu peaks, Lane noted. Flu tends to peak between December and February, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
“Even if we’re later into the season, and you haven’t got vaccinated, it’s still worth [it] to get that protection,” Lane said.
Whenever you decide to get it, the best time to get the shot is before flu is “widely circulating and with enough time for you to develop immunity,” said Dr. Geeta Sood, an infectious disease physician at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Maryland.
It takes two weeks to develop immunity after you get your flu vaccine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Protection from the vaccine does wane, Lane said, so don’t rely on your shot from last year. Additionally, “the virus that causes flu can change season to season, and so we’re always looking to update the flu vaccine on what viruses we’re anticipating to be circulating that season,” Lane said.
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Last year was a particularly bad flu season, which makes vaccination especially important this year.
You probably know at least one person who came down with the flu this past winter, that is, if you didn’t get it yourself. And there is a reason for that — “flu season was particularly bad last year,” Sood said.
Flu hospitalizations were at their highest since the 2010-2011 flu season. “There were a lot more people that were hospitalized than usually are hospitalized, and child mortality from influenza was also very high. So, it was a particularly bad influenza year,” Sood added.
As we head into flu season, this is important to know. The flu shot may not prevent you from getting the sickness altogether, but it can keep you from getting as sick as you would have without the shot.
“There are some vaccines that are really great at preventing any kind of disease, like the measles vaccine, for example, but [getting the flu shot does not] necessarily mean that you will not get the disease at all, but it will reduce the severity of the disease so that you don’t get super sick, so that you don’t get hospitalized, so that you don’t die from it,” Sood explained.
You may notice mild symptoms from your flu shot, but they won’t last — and that’s normal.
“The flu [vaccine] is made up of inactive virus,” so you can’t get the actual flu from the flu shot, Lane explained. But you can develop some post-injection symptoms that are signs your body is building up your flu immunity.
“You may feel like you have muscle aches, and you may even have a low-grade fever immediately after having the vaccination,” Sood said. You also may notice fatigue after vaccination, Lane said.
If you do have symptoms, you can take a painkiller like Tylenol or ibuprofen to feel better, according to Sood. It’s also important to get enough rest and hydrate before and after your shot, Lane added.
Flu shots are available at pharmacies such as CVS and Walgreens, doctors’ offices, community clinics and pharmacies within grocery stores. You can check with your local pharmacy or doctor to schedule your flu vaccine this fall.