healthmedicinet

NEW YORK — Some pivotal things to know about a influenza season:

THE SITUATION: The annual influenza deteriorate strike about a month early this year, and illness is now widespread in 47 states. Many cases are caused by a influenza aria that tends to make people sicker. But so distant experts contend it’s too early to know either this will finish adult being a bad season. Maybe not: There are signs a influenza competence have already appearance in a few states, yet it’s too early to tell for sure, health officials say.

THE VACCINE: This season’s vaccine is good matched to a present strains, and there’s still some available. It is 62 percent effective, according to supervision investigate formula expelled Friday, that is flattering good for a influenza vaccine. Health officials are propelling people to get vaccinated; it’s endorsed for everybody 6 months or older.

THE DEFENSE: Besides removing a influenza shot, rinse hands with soap and comfortable water, and equivocate touching your eyes, nose and mouth. Keep divided from ill people.

THE TREATMENT: Most people will get a amiable box and can assistance themselves and strengthen others by staying home and resting. But people with serious symptoms should see a doctor. They competence be given antiviral drugs or other drugs to palliate symptoms.

COLD OR FLU?: Influenza is not a customarily bug creation people sick. The cold pathogen and a nasty stomach pathogen are also going around. It can infrequently be tough to tell a difference, yet cold symptoms embody bleak or runny nose, bruise throat and sneezing. Flu customarily involves fever, along with chills, headache and moderate-to-severe physique aches and tiredness. Symptoms can come on rapidly, within 3 to 6 hours.

Also on HuffPost:

Loading Slideshow

• Myth: The Flu Shot Can Give You The Flu

  strongFact:/strong This parable customarily will not die. So let’s transparent this up: You emcannot/em get a influenza from your influenza shot.

  Why? That vaccine is done from a passed or dead pathogen that can no longer widespread a fever-spiking properties. a href=”http://www.everydayhealth.com/cs-cold-flu-pictures-myths/colds-and-flu-whats-true.aspx#/slide-4?In singular cases, a chairman competence knowledge a greeting to a shot/a that includes a low-grade fever, yet these reactions are not emThe Flu/em, Everyday Health reported. Note: Even yet a influenza shot can’t means a flu, there are a series of other a href=”http://www.everydayhealth.com/cold-and-flu/flu-vaccines.aspx”reasons not to get a vaccine/a, including for some people with an allergy to eggs or a story of Guillain-Barre Syndrome.

• Myth: If You’ve Already Had Your Shot, You Are Guaranteed To Be Flu-Free

  strongFact:/strong Unfortunately, even after slapping a gauze on that injection site, we a href=”http://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/qa/vaccineeffect.htm”may customarily be about 60 percent protected/a, according to a CDC. That means, yes, we a href=”http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/01/08/168814935/can-you-get-a-flu-shot-and-still-get-the-flu”can still get a influenza after your shot/a. Some people competence be unprotected to a influenza in a dual weeks it takes for a vaccine to take effect, reports NPR. Others competence be unprotected to a aria not lonesome in a vaccine, that is done any year a href=”http://www.flu.gov/prevention-vaccination/vaccination/index.html”based on a viruses experts envision will be a many common/a, according to Flu.gov. (This year’s collection seems to have been matched good to what is indeed going around, NPR reports.)

• Myth: Antibiotics Can Fight The Flu

  strongFact:/strong Plain and simply, antibiotics quarrel embacteria/em, not viruses. The influenza — and colds, for that matter — are caused by viruses. In fact, a href=”http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYou/ucm078494.htm”antibiotics kill off a “good” bacteria/a that assistance to quarrel off infections, so that viral influenza competence customarily get emworse/em.

• Myth: The Stomach Flu Is A Type Of Influenza

  strongFact:/strong Nausea, queasiness or diarrhea, while mostly dubbed a “stomach flu,” are a href=”http://www.flu.gov/about_the_flu/seasonal/”not typically symptoms of anniversary influenza/a, which, initial and foremost, is a respiratory disease, according to Flu.gov. The influenza can infrequently means these issues, yet they won’t customarily be a emmain/em symptoms — and are some-more common signs of anniversary influenza in children than adults.

• Myth: If You’re Young And Healthy, You Don’t Need The Shot

  strongFact:/strong Younger, healthy adults aren’t among a a href=”http://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/qa/flushot.htm#high-risk”people a CDC urges many strongly to get vaccinated/a, like profound women, people over 65 and those with certain ongoing medical conditions.

  The immature and healthy will some-more mostly than not redeem customarily excellent from a flu, with or though a shot. But safeguarding yourself even if we don’t consider we need safeguarding can indeed be an act of good. The a href=”http://healthland.time.com/2011/10/13/no-excuses-a-brief-guide-to-the-flu-shot/”more people are vaccinated, a fewer cases of influenza we all pass around/a, that in spin offers larger insurance to those at-risk groups.

• Myth: You Can Get The Flu From Being In The Cold Without A Coat (Or With Wet Hair)

  strongFact:/strong Mom or Grandma substantially told we this one during some point, and while we competence not feel so friendly if we conduct out a doorway true from a shower, doing so doesn’t accurately reject we to bed. a href=”http://www.health.harvard.edu/flu-resource-center/10-flu-myths.htm”The emonly/em approach to locate a influenza is to come into hit with a virus/a that causes it. That competence occur emwhile/em we are outward in a cold, and influenza deteriorate does positively occur during cold weather, yet it’s not since you’re cold that we locate a bug.

• Myth: There’s No Treatment For The Flu

  strongFact:/strong It’s not antibiotics that cure-seekers should be looking for. While a dual antiviral drugs accessible to quarrel a influenza aren’t a discerning fix, they emcan/em a href=”http://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/features/top-13-flu-myths?page=2?reduce a length of your hitch of a influenza and make we reduction contagious/a to others, according to WebMD. This year’s earlier-than-usual influenza deteriorate has already led to a href=”http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/10/flu-vaccine-shortage-tamiflu-_n_2448519.html”shortages of one of a drugs, Tamiflu/a, in a children’s glass formulation, according to a medication’s manufacturers.

  However, a series of experts in countries around a universe have questioned Tamiflu’s efficiency in fighting a flu, and some have even a href=”http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/12/tamiflu-evidence-british-medical-journal-cochrane_n_2117287.html”suggested a protest until serve information is published/a.