Not Too Late For Flu Shots

(WebMD)  If you didn't get your flu shot before Thanksgiving, you're not a turkey. A shot in December — or even later — protects you and others.

Most years, flu season doesn't peak until February; and higher-than-usual flu rates may continue into May.

A flu shot starts protecting in just two weeks (six weeks for kids getting their first flu shots). Do the math, and you'll find there's plenty of time for your flu shot to pay off.

That's why the CDC and a long list of medical associations are sponsoring National Influenza Vaccination Week from Nov. 27 to Dec. 3. One organizer of the effort is Jeanne Santoli, M.D., deputy director of immunization services at the CDC.

"We want to emphasize the need to continue vaccination activities through December, into January, and beyond," Santoli tells WebMD.

"Getting vaccinated as early as possible is a very good strategy," she says. "But given that flu tends to peak later in the winter, there is still time to get vaccinated well after Thanksgiving."

Adults need just one shot for yearlong protection.

Children under age 9 who have never had a flu vaccination will need two shots, given at least four weeks apart. Just one shot won't work for these kids.

And to be on the safe side, the American Academy of Pediatrics says kids who missed their second shot that first year should get both shots the next.

Flu Shot? Who? You.

Americans broke all previous records this year for getting flu shots.

Already, 83.5 million doses have been distributed — and manufacturers tell the CDC they've got a lot more in store.

"Projections for this season are 110 million to 115 million total flu vaccine doses," Santoli says. "That is about 30 million more doses than have ever been distributed in the U.S."

That sounds like a lot. But the CDC recommends flu shots for 218 million of America's 300 million people.

Many of these are people particularly vulnerable to flu — the ones most likely to be among the 36,000 Americans who each year die of flu or the 200,000 Americans hospitalized with the disease.

Also, anyone who lives with, cares for, or has frequent contact with flu-vulnerable people might give these people the flu — so they, too, need a flu shot.

Those at high risk for flu complications are:

Children age 6 months to 5 years

Pregnant women

People age 50 and older

People of any age with chronic medical conditions

People living in nursing homes or other long-term facilities

One particularly important group to vaccinate is those in frequent contact with an infant under 6 months old, says Henry Bernstein, M.D., spokesman for the American Academy of Pediatrics, and professor of pediatrics at Dartmouth Medical School.

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