Each year, healthcare providers who offer telemedicine services in Texas encourage individuals to receive their flu vaccine. However, with the onslaught of COVID-19 cases, it has never been more important.
While flu vaccines do not prevent COVID, they do lessen the number of people who contract influenza, which decreases hospitalizations and allows healthcare professionals to focus on those with COVID.
Getting vaccinated is one of the essentials of health prevention & promotion. Here are the reasons why you should get your flu shot:
- It Saves Lives
The flu can be life-threatening. Last year, 490,600 people were hospitalized due to influenza. Furthermore, 32,000 individuals died b because of flu-related complications.
Staying up-to-date on your flu vaccines each year greatly reduces your risk of catching the flu. By getting vaccinated, you also help children and older adults. - It Doesn’t Let You Catch the Flu
Whether you get the flu shot or the nasal version of the flu vaccine, you will not get the flu as a side effect.
Rather, the reason why you might get the flu is that it takes approximately 2 weeks for your body to develop the antibodies needed to fight the virus. - It Lowers the Intensity of Illness
The flu vaccine does not completely make you immune from the influenza virus, but those who get sick despite being vaccinated either spend fewer days in the hospital or do not get admitted to the ICU.
It is almost flu season, so you should make sure that you get your shot ahead. Contact Dr. Ken Park MD PLLC, an internal medicine physician in McKinney, Texas, to schedule an appointment for your vaccine.