Editor’s note: This article originally ran Aug. 30, 2021, and was updated Sept. 4, 2022, Dec. 13, 2022, and Sept. 3, 2024.
If you’re hoping to avoid a nasty case of the flu this winter, there’s one thing you can do today: Get your flu shot.
Adults and children 6 months and older are eligible, and the shot can help keep your family healthy.
“The flu shot is just as important this year as in previous years,” says UNC Health family medicine physician Sarah Ruff, MD. “If there is a vaccine to decrease your risk of getting a virus and getting really sick from said virus, I recommend getting it.”
Here are three reasons to get a flu shot this year.
1. The flu shot can help keep your family at school and work.
As we move into flu season, COVID-19 is surging, and doctors expect another winter of high respiratory virus activity, Dr. Ruff says. Flu activity begins in the fall and typically peaks between December and February before petering out, often as late as April. That’s why September and October are ideal months to get vaccinated; you probably haven’t encountered the virus yet this season and the shots should last until spring.
You need a flu shot each year; scientists change its composition to match the flu viruses in circulation that season. This year, the COVID-19 vaccine is also updated to match current variants, and you can get both shots at the same visit. Now, there’s also an RSV shot for infants younger than 8 months old, pregnant women and people 60 and older.
Vaccinating against these illnesses, combined with simple infection-prevention methods such as handwashing and staying home when you’re sick, can go a long way to keeping your family healthy and avoiding the hassle of missing school, work and fun activities like holiday events.
2. The flu shot prevents severe cases of the flu, which can be deadly.
Most people recover from the flu just fine resting at home. But hundreds of thousands of people are hospitalized each winter, and tens of thousands of people die from the flu.
The flu shot helps protect you from serious illness; you might still get the flu, but you’re less likely to need medical care and hospitalization.
If you don’t get the flu shot, you’re at higher risk of being hospitalized with pneumonia that started as the flu, especially if you’re older than 65 or have a chronic illness, such as heart disease or lung disease. Pregnant women and children under age 5—particularly those younger than age 2—are also at heightened risk of complications from the flu and should get the flu shot as soon as possible.
3. Getting the flu shot helps protect others in your community.
Again, there are several groups of people for whom the flu is especially dangerous: very young children; older adults; pregnant and immediately postpartum women; residents of nursing homes; people with chronic illnesses such as asthma, lung disease and heart disease; and those with chronic immune-suppressing conditions such as diabetes and cancer.
The more people who get vaccinated, including young and healthy people, the less flu will circulate in the community. That means fewer hospitalizations and deaths for everyone.
“Getting a flu shot each year is one of the best ways to keep yourself and your loved ones safe, limit time off from work and school, and improve your chances of having mild illness if infected,” Dr. Ruff says.
Talk to your doctor about receiving a flu shot. Need a doctor? Find one near you.
The post 3 Reasons to Get a Flu Shot This Year first appeared on UNC Health Talk.
