Skip to content
Link copied to clipboard

Flu season is the time to appreciate the value of adult vaccinations

It’s flu season and there’s no excuse not to get your flu shot. Doctors, employers and just about every corner pharmacy is offering this potentially lifesaving vaccine. It’s hard to know how bad the flu season will be or how effective this year's vaccine will be, but it’s clear that the vaccine protects you and your loved ones.

It's flu season and there's no excuse not to get your flu shot. Doctors, employers and just about every corner pharmacy is offering this potentially lifesaving vaccine. It's hard to know how bad the flu season will be or how effective this year's vaccine will be, but it's clear that the vaccine protects you and your loved ones.

The CDC warns us that yearly flu-associated deaths range from 3,000 to 49,000 people. While 80% of more of these people will be 65 years or older, it's important to remember that there's a good chance they caught the bug from a healthier unvaccinated friend or relative who was infected with this nasty disease. I've said it before: vaccines are more like stop signs than seat belts because they protect you and the at-risk people around you.

Flu isn't the only vaccine-preventable disease adults get. Vaccines are available to prevent other adult diseases such as hepatitis A, hepatitis B, herpes zoster (shingles), pneumococcal (pneumonia), meningococcal disease, and human papilloma virus (HPV—the virus that can cause cervical and other cancers).

Of course, adults are often susceptible to childhood diseases like measles, rubella (German measles), mumps, and chicken pox. Remember that President Roosevelt was 39 when paralyzed by polio. Vaccines don't always provide lifelong protection. Pertussis is of particular concern because over time teens and adults lose immunity and can develop mild cases that then spread to babies too young to be vaccinated, sometimes resulting in their hospitalization and death. So it's very important that everyone who comes near the baby be up to date with their shots.

Some folks complain about the large number of shots we adults (and children) need. Frankly, it's great that researchers have provided us with so many opportunities to limit and prevent previously serious diseases. This is medical progress at its best.

Unfortunately, many people are not taking full advantage of the available vaccine protection. A recent study citing CDC statistics found that last year only 42% of adults received the flu vaccine.

Since this blog is called "Health Cents," I should also point out that in 2015 alone, the economic cost of missed vaccination opportunities in adults was $7.1 billion. This is what we have to pay for all the medical care, medicine, missed days of work and avoidable deaths. Each vaccine-preventable disease contributes a different amount to the overall economic burden, but flu is the big one costing the nation $5.79 billion dollars—much of which could be prevented if more people rolled up their sleeves.

The lesson is clear: when the flu clinic comes to your workplace or pharmacy, take the shot and be sure to ask what other vaccinations are right for you.

-----

Have a health care question or frustration? Share your story »