Flu, short for influenza, is a contagious disease. It’s caused by a virus that affects the upper airways and the lungs, and it’s is usually self-diagnosable.
Common symptoms of flu are fever, cough, runny nose, headaches, and fatigue. Other symptoms are body pain, dehydration, loss of appetite, sore throat, and regular sneezing.
Who Can Get The Flu?
Anybody who has not had the shot can get the disease if exposed to the virus. However, some people are more susceptible to the disease, such as babies, infants and children, elderly people, and other people with weak immune systems.
How Does The Flu Spread?
Flu spreads through various means, the most popular being airborne. It could be contracted through exposure to droplets of an infected person’s sneeze, or cough.
Other means by which flu spreads is by bodily contact with the infected person either through handshakes, hugs; by exchanging saliva (kissing, or sharing a cup or water bottle), and by touching contaminated surfaces (Tv remote, for example).
Why Should You Get A Flu Shot?
Statistically, quite a number of people are infected with the flu yearly. The flu shot is the most effective way to prevent yourself from the disease.
When Should You Get A Flu Shot?
Flu shots can be taken anytime. You don’t have to wait to get the flu, or for someone around you to before you protect yourself from it.
You can visit a community care center around you to get your flu shot. Go with your family and friends, too. No one around you should be left out.
When Does A Flu Shot Start Working?
Sometimes, people complain about getting the flu disease, even after getting a flu shot. Contrary to what they think, the vaccine they received wasn’t fake or bad.
Vaccines generally help to develop antibodies in your body to fight viruses and diseases. However, they do not immediately surface after vaccination. It takes about fourteen days for the antibodies to be activated.
So, if you were exposed to the flu before taking the vaccine, you might have contacted it, only for symptoms to spring up after you got vaccinated.
Also, within the estimated fourteen days the antibodies in your system may take to develop, you probably got exposed to the flu virus.
So, since the flu vaccine takes about two weeks to begin its job, you should isolate yourself before and after the vaccine, for 2 weeks each. That would give your body time for antibody development.
How Long Does a Flu Shot Last?
After getting vaccinated and given the necessary 2 weeks interval for the development of your antibodies, you’d certainly be protected from the flu for 5 to 8 months.
You can reach out to us for further inquiry, or to visit our primary care center and get your flu shot.
What Should I Do When Diagnosed With Flu?
There are times when our caution will not be enough in preventing the virus from getting into our systems.
Relax. It’s not the end of the world. It’s also not a death sentence. You can take deliberate steps to feel better.
- Drink lots of water for rehydration
Since a symptom of flu is dehydration, you will need to regularly rehydrate your body for it to function normally. A means of doing that is by drinking water, or by Oral Rehydration Therapy (ORT).
- Get lots of rest
This also helps to increase your immune system’s power of fighting the infection. This isn’t the time to be a workaholic or worry about making money. You should give yourself time to recuperate and feel better.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, influenza can be fatal if not properly taken care of. Proper precautions should be taken.
However, the surest and most effective way of preventing the flu from getting into your body is getting a flu shot, and going back for the regular seasonal ones.
