National flu vaccine awareness week-December 6th – 12th

(NEW BERN, N.C.) – In 1960, the US Surgeon General, in response to substantial morbidity and mortality during the 1957-58 pandemic, recommended annual influenza vaccination for people with chronic debilitating disease, people aged 65 years or older, and pregnant women. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have chosen the week of December 6th thru the 12th this year to bring awareness to the fact that it is not too late to get a flu vaccination. 

People 65 years and older are at high risk of developing serious complications from flu, compared with young healthy adults. This risk is due in part to changes in immune defenses with increasing age. While flu seasons vary in severity during most seasons, people 65 years and older bear the greatest burden of severe flu disease. It is estimated that between 70 percent and 85 percent of seasonal flu-related deaths in the United States occur among people 65 years and older.

There are many reasons to get a flu vaccine. It can reduce your risk of flu and its potentially serious complications. It also can reduce the severity of your illness, even if you still get sick. However, flu vaccination is not just about keeping you healthy; it is also about helping to protect everyone around you who may be vulnerable to becoming very sick from flu.

People 65 years and older should get a flu shot, not a nasal spray vaccine. There are regular flu shots and there are also enhanced vaccines approved for use in people 65 and older that may provide a better immune response.

Flu Fact: Flu vaccination cannot cause flu illness because the vaccines are made with inactivated (dead) and weakened viruses, or they only contain a single gene from a flu virus, which cannot cause illness. You can learn more facts and misconceptions about the common flu by going to www. cdc.gov/flu

Eastern Carolina Council Area Agency on Aging can help find locations in your area that are providing Flu Vaccinations.