Health officials recommend flu vaccine before the holidays

MARQUETTE COUNTY — With the holidays coming up soon it may be a good time to make sure you have received your flu shot.

Influenza is a potentially serious disease that can lead to hospitalization and sometimes even death. Every flu season is different, and influenza infection can affect people differently. Millions of people get the flu every year and hundreds of thousands of people are hospitalized due to this common disease. Even thousands to tens of thousands of people die from flu-related causes every year.

This year alone there have been five pediatric deaths across the country from flu related complications so far. So it is important to get vaccinated if you did not receive your flu shot in the earlier months.

“People sometimes think that if they didn’t get it in September or October that they do not need to get it,” said Jean Reynolds, RN Clinic Coordinator at the Marquette County Health Department. “Usually flu season doesn’t peak until later on in the year. In fact March of last year was the peak for Michigan’s flu season. So you still have plenty of time to vaccinate and it takes about one to two weeks for the vaccine to take effect. Right now that would be perfect for the holidays before everyone starts to congregate with friends and family. This is so people can protect themselves and their loved ones from the flu.”

The CDC recommends people to always be proactive with personal hygiene. They also recommend that individuals clean and disinfect surfaces and objects that may be contaminated with germs like flu. For more information and recommendations from the CDC you can click here.