With Labor Day behind us, flu season is right around the corner. Doctors offices and pharmacies around the metro area are already offering flu shots. So, when is the right time to get one?
While we usually don't see flu peaking until January, for most healthy children and adults, now is a perfectly good time to get the shot. Earlier is better than too late, or not at all.
The CDC tweeted Monday that almost 180 children died from the flu last season, one of the worst totals in recent memory. About 80 percent of those deaths were children who were not vaccinated.
TheAmerican Academy of Pediatrics is urging the parents of children 6 months and older to get their kids vaccinated as soon as its available. The CDC and CDPHE recommend getting the vaccine by the end of October.
This year, the CDC is recommending the FluMist nasal spray as an option for children for the first time in two years. The American Academy of Pediatrics however is advising children to get the shot form, citing concerns with the effectiveness of the nasal spray.
Some doctors recommend older adults over 65 should wait until October to get the flu shot. The elderly don't have as strong of an immune response to the vaccine, so they may not be protected through the entire season if they get the shot too early.