This year’s flu season is underway. If your parent got the flu vaccine, it will help keep the troublesome symptoms to a minimum. It may also ensure they don’t pick up a strain that’s prevalent in their area. Here are four things that people don’t realize about the influenza virus and flu shots.
Flu Shots Don’t Cause the Flu.
Getting a flu shot does not cause the flu. It can take almost two weeks for symptoms to appear. You can be a carrier of the virus and not yet have symptoms. If you get the flu shot and end up with the flu, it’s because someone you were around in the past two weeks was a carrier.
Flu Shots Can Be Hit or Miss.
As flu vaccines are developed before the flu season hits, there’s no way for experts to know if they’re targeting the right strains. They base their predictions on trends. Some years will have the flu vaccine offering protection against the current year’s strains, but other years may not protect against every strain that’s passed around.
What the flu shot does do is offer some protection. It also helps people who do get the flu get through the symptoms quicker.
Being Healthy Doesn’t Guarantee Your Survival.
One of the biggest myths is that a healthy person will easily get over the flu. That’s not the case. There’s a case where a young weightlifter passed away after having the flu and a high fever for a few days. A marathon runner also died a few days after being diagnosed with the flu and developing pneumonia. In both cases, the flu worsened to the point that septic shock set in.
Keeping Your Distance is Enough to Keep From Getting the Flu.
Keeping your distance from someone who clearly has the flu can help, but it only helps if you’re far enough away. The problem is that spray from a sneeze or a cough can travel quite a distance. MIT did a study and found fluids from a sneeze can travel up to 26 feet. The spray from a cough can travel 19 feet. The spray can also stay suspended in the air for as much as 10 minutes.
If seniors come down with key symptoms of the flu, it’s important that they call their doctor. Flu medications can help them get over the virus faster. They should also have someone around to help them get enough rest and stay hydrated and nourished.
Senior care services include help with housework and meal preparation. A caregiver can make sure plenty of water, juice, and tea are sipped throughout the day. With a caregiver on hand, there’s also someone there to call if symptoms worsen.
If you or an aging loved one needs senior care in Rancho Cordova, CA, remember Senior Home Care Services. Call us at (916) 514-7006 for more information.
Sources:
- Four Key Steps to Better Self-Care for Your Aging Loved One - November 13, 2024
- Know the Symptoms of Pneumonia - November 7, 2024
- Nighttime Delirium Symptoms and Home Treatment - October 29, 2024
