Do not take flu lightly, get vaccinated every year

The biggest misconception is that people consider flu to be a common cold. Whereas according to doctors, flu is caused by a completely different virus from the common cold and can take a very serious form. Healthy people recover in a few days, but for those who already have some disease, it can prove fatal. Especially people with diabetes, high blood pressure, asthma, heart disease, kidney and liver problems are at greater risk. This is why it is not right to take it lightly.

Many people think that even if they get flu, they can be cured by taking medicine, so what is the need to get vaccinated. But doctors say that prevention is always better than cure. Flu is a disease that can be prevented by vaccine, and getting vaccinated significantly reduces the risk of serious illness, hospitalization, and even death. This virus can also give rise to diseases like pneumonia and can aggravate already existing asthma or heart disease, due to which many times there is a need for hospitalization.

Another big misconception is that getting the flu vaccine automatically causes flu. Doctors clearly say that this vaccine cannot cause flu. Yes, some people may feel mild pain or swelling at the site of vaccination, mild fever, body ache or fatigue for a day or two. But these symptoms are temporary and mean that the body’s immune system is responding properly to the vaccine. This should not be considered a disease, but a sign that the body is ready to protect itself.

Unlike polio or measles vaccination, flu vaccination does not give relief by getting it once in a lifetime. In fact, the flu virus keeps changing its form continuously and new strains spread every season, due to which the effect of the old vaccine also reduces with time. Therefore, doctors advise that a new vaccine should be administered every year, which is made according to the strain of the virus spreading at that time. Besides, the misconception that only children and the elderly need this vaccine is also wrong. Everyone above 18 years of age is advised to get the flu vaccine annually, this is especially important for people above 50 years of age, pregnant women, health workers and patients with diabetes and high blood pressure.

According to doctors, this vaccine should be taken every year before the flu season starts. In most parts of India, the best time for this is considered to be the month of April or May, i.e. before the onset of monsoon, because after this time the cases of flu start increasing. By getting vaccinated ahead of time, the body gets enough time to build good immunity. Doctors usually recommend getting the quadrivalent flu vaccine, which protects against four different virus strains that are likely to spread that season.