Have you gotten your flu shot?

National Influenza Vaccination Week

This week highlights the importance of getting your influenza vaccination. Flu season peaks between December and February but can last well into May! Each year, hundreds of thousands of people get the flu and many are even hospitalized. 

"While the impact of flu varies, it places a substantial burden on the health of people in the United States each year. CDC estimates that influenza has resulted in between 9.2 million and 60.8 million illnesses, between 140,000 and 710,000 hospitalizations and between 12,000 and 56,000 deaths annually since 2010." - Centers for Disease Control 

The flu is a highly contagious respiratory infection. Those who are most at risk of contracting the flu are:

• individuals 65 or older           
• pregnant women
• kids
• people with asthma, heart disease, HIV/AIDS, diabetes, or cancer

For this flu season, it is recommended that you only get the flu shot to be sure that you are safe from the flu. However, other preventative measures you can take to stay healthy this winter include:

• avoiding close contact with sick people
• if you have flu-like symptoms, stay home for at least 24 hours
• cover your nose and mouth when sneezing
• ALWAYS wash your hands! If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol based hand-sanitizer.

For more information, click here!

To learn how you can spread more information about National Influenza Vaccination Week and information about the flu in general, go to the CDC's Influenza page here!

To find out where you can get a flu vaccine, go to https://vaccinefinder.org/