All about Flu Vaccines

During flu season, despite staying cautious and safe, a vast majority of the people get affected anyway. The best way to avoid the seasonal flu outbreak is to get vaccinated.  Usually the government spends to alert the society to get vaccinated during the flu season, and provides hospitals, schools and major job sectors with supplies of the vaccine so that people have easy access to it.

2 types of vaccines are available for dealing with the flu:

• The Traditional Shot Vaccine
• The Nasal Spray Flu Vaccine

Usually the vaccines consist of 3 different influenza viruses. However, they tend to change each year because seasonal flu varies in its viral components each year, and scientists make estimations before they market the vaccinations. Although the influenza season starts off in October, the outbreak does not occur until January according to various statistical analyses. This is why the vaccines should be taken as soon as they are available in the market. The antibodies that fight influenza in the system take about 2 weeks to develop after the vaccination, so it is better to be safe than sorry. The effectiveness of the vaccine depends on the person’s age group as well as how strong his or her immune system is. Vaccination is recommended for all age groups, although nasal vaccination is prohibited in case of pregnant women. Considering how seasonal flu has a global impact every year and sometimes cripples daily life (as observed from the results of the 2009 H1N1 outbreak) it is a wise option to be vaccinated before the virus regroups.