Too late for a Flu shot?
 

Just 2 weeks ago I had no plans but now, starting Jan 3, I will be traveling for 6 weeks straight. Vail, Houston, NYC and Denver. I know I will be around a bunch of 'bugs' and made a last minute appt today to get a flu shot.
I wonder if it is useless at this point...?
I also got some Airborne and antibacterial hand gel.
That's about all I can do, I suppose.
I am not one to go overboard on this stuff but I got the flu last year (no shot) and it was just horrible. Hoping to take all precautions this year.
Any thoughts?
~Happy New Year~

No a flu shot isn't useless this late, it will take a few days for your body to obtain immunity after getting the shot but you could still get the flu through the winter, so the shot would be helpful if you think you will be exposed to it.

The flu is a virus, so antibacterial hand gels do nothing to combat catching the flu or a cold (and personally, I don't think Airborne will help either although some people do swear by it). Obviously, the best bet is not to be near people who are ill or and don't let them cough on you. In addition, try not to touch your nose or your eyes unless your hands are clean. Also, avoid touching door knobs in public places. Whenever I sign credit/debit card statements now, I use my own pen instead of the merchant's because I think of how many dozens of people, maybe some with a virus, who have used that pen before me. Call me paranoid but I haven't had the flu in years and have rarely had a flu shot.

Andrew

TTP, although I'm not medically qualified to respond to your question, I believe that a flu shot becomes effective about two weeks after it's administered.

TTP, from what I have read, it takes about 2 weeks for the vaccination to take full effect.

Andrew makes a good point about using your own pen - this is something that I try to always do.

I would take along and use a hand sanitizer - I have finally convinced my husband to use them, particularly after shaking hands (discreetly, of course).

Six weeks is a long time to be traveling, particularly for business. My husband, who rarely gets sick, was so stressed from his last run of trips, he ended up sick. I think the best thing that you can do for yourself is to try and get a reasonable amount of rest, eat healthy, and keep your hands clean.

Healthy travels to you!

I am neither a physician nor medically trained, other than claims processing.

Seems like a website like webMD would be a lot more approriate venue for medical advice.

Well, I went and got the shot...
The pen idea is good. I would like to think that I have a certain degree of resistance to common stuff. I travel a lot and it appears that my total lack of concern about these things has served me well for most of my life. But I got the flu last year and it really knocked the crap out of me. It hit me just 2 days into a critical conference. No telling how many people I spread it to, though my buddy from London, who propped me up throughout the entire event never caught it.
Regardless, once bitten, twice shy.
Andrew:
Doesn't alcohol kill viruses?
I know bleach does, but just assumed alcohol did too...
I wonder how long these flu viruses can live outside the body.
I know that HIV can't live very long outside the body.

Alcohol suppresses your immune system
and one needs a healty, strong immune system during flu season.
The flu season continues through March,so just as well you got the shot.
R5

Razzle... I mean the alcohol in the hand stuff not drinking alcohol ;)

LOL, well, you can see where my thoughts
are at !
((D))
R5

The common cold (virus) is wayyyyy more common than the flu. So if you do get sick it will probably be the virus. There is a nice virus I got from a female co-worker with a kid, it lasted like 10 days. Good luck.

Just wanted to mention that if you become infected with influenza virus and haven't had a flu shot (or the infection occurs before your flu shot makes you fully immune) - there are at least three antiviral medications that can be used to reduce the strength and duration of symptoms. They are most effective if used between 24 and 48 hours of onset of symptoms. After that, probably not worth taking the medication.

FWIW, Airborne is a shuck. So a school teacher is making a million bucks out of it? Smart cookie. Put a few vitamins in a pill and market it, pretending that it will "help your immune system". Read the medical journals instead of the commercials....sheesh.

I hope you got the flu shot. Antibacterial hand jel I do not know about, except that if I am out and about and touching unfamiliar objects during a flu outbreak, what can I lose by sanitizing my hands? OK, flu is caused by a virus,not a bacteria, but at least I can prevent a secondary infection, no?

The problem with the unncessary use of antibacterial hand sanitizer/soap/whatever is that overuse is helping to breed resistant bacteria. In 20-30 years that hand sanitizer may no longer be effective due to the resistant strains of bacteria around. Plus, some bacteria are good - numerous varieties live peacefully and even helpfully within our bodies. We NEED some of them. Whenever you take antibiotic medication, one of the drawbacks is that you kill some of the good bacteria in your body and it takes some time to get them back in your system.

Washing your hands at the bathroom sink and after handling/preparing meat are probably the only times most of us need to use antibacterial soap. It's not a good mindset to think "all bacteria are bad, kill 'em all!" and use these hand sanitizers and soaps constantly.

Andrew

Andrew - think you may be confusing antibacterial soaps with acohol based hand sanitizers.
Agree the antibacterial products are way overused, and the danger of resistance is very real but the hand sanitizer (which does kill most viruses) is another story.

Washing your hands with plain old soap and warm water will kill the viruses too...

Andrew

Due to the shortage last year I wasn't able to get the flu shot and yes, I did get sick late in the season. It also knocked me out. I got the flu shot this year to be safe. Since then, I've heard that vaccines are loaded with toxins and are not good for the body and the best defense is boosting your immune system--eat healthy, exercise, get enough rest, etc. So now I'm thinking twice about getting the flu shot next year. Anyone had bad experiences with the flu shot?

I always keep a pack of disposable hand wipes in my bag (instead of the hand gel) and use it before eating, usually when it's not convenient to wash hands.

There are some people who have severe reactions to the flu vaccine - I am one of them. It only takes one time to know it's not for you.

Andrew, soap and water are wonderful, but it's not always possible to run to the restroom to wash hands.

I work with children. There is a list of yucky things they do with their hands on a daily basis - I'll leave it up to the imagination! You can also bet they don't spend time washing their hands properly (most, I'm sure, don't wash). Beyond the flu, theres pink eye, stomach bugs, etc. to watch out for.

I recently heard that 90,000 patients in hospitals get "hospital infection" each year because doctors and other hospital works fail to wash their hands before seeing new patients. That's because in order to eliminate the germs while washing, you have to spend 15 seconds (as long as the "Happy Birthday to You" song). People generally don't take that long to wash - if they do so to begin with.

Hand sanitizers are the way to go - I will not be convinced otherwise. :D

A nurse once told me that the hand gel is good for only 3 applications (between hand washings), and after that it becomes ineffective and you need to use soap and water. Anyone hear that? Also, my doctor told me to keep away from gels and towelettes that contain Propylene Glycol as it is anti-freeze and does all kinds of damage to your body. It is in just about everything.

In several published studies on infection control in hospitals, hand gels were theoretically as effective or more effective than proper hand washing. And in practice they are more effective since health care providers actually use them more often than hand washing.

Besides lapses in hand washing, the reason patients in hospitals get infections is that hospitals breed very tough organisms because of antibiotic/antiseptic environment.

Many viruses are air-borne - so hand washing will not be effective on them.

And wear a hat - it will not prevent any type of infection but it will make your mother happy!

I have had the flu shot for the last 8 years on the advice on my allergy doctor, and have never had a bad reaction (other than a sore bicep) or the flu. I don't understand the reluctance to get them. I've been told that there is a "mercury-free" variety but I just take whatever Kaiser is offering.

Gail, :D

mlb:

Had the flu shot once and got the flu 3 days after. Kind of counterproductive since its use is to avoid being sick. Never again will I get it.

Again, I've been sick many times since then and my PCP has always told me "virus" and not flu and I've had to wait it out not be given pills to make me feel like something is being done to help alleviate the symptoms.

Do think about your mental attitude towards life. I firmly believe that a good attitude is the best medicine of all. Bad things happen that is for sure, but having faith (whatever faith you have), knowing that "this too will pass", having a dream that is important to you and working on making that dream come true, thinking of others besides yourself IMHO does help one stay healthy.

I took the flu shot for a few years..felt sick after having the shot. Have never taken one since.

Washing hands, always a good idea. And a really good and better idea when out and about is do not put your hands on your mouth, nose, eyes etc. So many people do, it always amazes me when I see that.

Keep positive, get sufficient rest, eat well and healthy along with some "fun" food, enjoy a drink of your choice, keep in touch with family and friends, think of others and their needs instead of your own needs and wants all the time. Enjoy life!!!

I truly believe a good mental outlook on life does as much to keep one healthy and maybe more so than all the so called medications.

If you have a disease of course you need medications. But all the OTC meds are a waste of money IMO and most of them are not good for your body and health.

Wishing all good health in 2006 and along with many happy and joyous days!

FWIW, my husband got a flu shot when he went for chemo this morning. The nurse told him it takes about a month to become fully effective. But she said that since the flu season lasts through March, she felt it was worthwhile. They'd discussed giving him the shot earlier in the season. But, for one reason or another, they didn't get to it until today.

Unfortunately, I guess most of your travel will be over by the time the shot fully "kicks in". But I suspect it's still worth it.

Stephanie, it takes a few days up to two weeks after getting a flu shot for your body to build up the immunity. If you got the flu three days after you got the shot, that means you were exposed to the flu virus before your body developed immunity, not that the flu shot gave you the flu.

I finally got my flu shot today - arm was really sore for a couple of hours but that's about it. I've never had side effects from getting the shot other than that. Actually you may get a slight fever as your immune system works against the dead viruses (some flu shots protect against more than one strain) that are in the vaccine.

Andrew

Andrew:

All of us are exposed to virus and bacteria on a daily basis. There is no real valid point to your argument. I was totally healthy before I got the shot. I'm someone who washes their hands religiously and handles doorknobs in fall/winter with paper towels instead of directly. If I get the shot again I will get the flu again. That is how my body acts unique to having a dead bacteria organism being injected into my body. By the way after that injection and sickness I got 4 viruses afterwards by the time May came around.

Another point, I listened to Bev Smith on the radio and she had a top notch doc from the D.C. area and was telling people if they get sick before the end of December its probably a virus and more people get misdiagnosed with flu by GPs and Internal Med docs than people imagine. Patients want the meds, no matter how useless, for a disease instead of hearing from their doctor's office that they have to wait it out and don't go home with an Rx drug.

Stephanie, according to Centers for Disease Control (CDC), you CANNOT get the flu from a flu shot. You could have an allergic reaction to the shot (allergy to eggs) and you could get mild flu symptoms but not the actual flu (and it's dead virus, not bacteria, that is in the flu shot).

I'm not sure why you think it is impossible that you could have been exposed to the flu virus in the time before your body developed the immunity from the shot? Obviously we are all exposed to viruses all the time (most of which our bodies silently dispense with), but we don't all get the flu all the time - you have to be exposed to one PARTICULAR virus to get the flu, and that doesn't happen every day.

Andrew

Stephanie, you are misleading yourself and drawing the wrong conclusion. You didn't get the flu from the shot, you got a virus roughly at the same time that may well have been some OTHER virus other than the flu for which that year's shot was designed. It's true that the shot will not protect you from a lot of other viruses, but it's also true that the strain of flu that the shot's designed to protect you from can be far more debilitating. It is a gamble, sure, whether you "need" the inoculation or not, but one of these years, you will get that flu and it will flatten you -- AND you will give it to other people. Either you or those other people may be in weakened condition at that time (children, elderly, on chemo, already sick, react unexpectedly to it, etc.), and people DO die from it -- that's why we have the immunization program.

One of the most common ways that people get "sick from the flu shot" is because most people get immunized in large immunization clinics run by medical groups, hospitals, towns, etc.

Just being exposed to that many people at one time is unusual for most people - think of all the germs flying around there - all the people touching the backs of chairs, handrails, etc.

It's part of a dead virus - it can not give you the flu. It can give you a sore arm, an allergic reaction, etc - and in rare cases make you feel rotten - but it is not the flu.

Socc:

A vast majority of people who get sick get the common cold they do not get the flu. Its just that they like to say they have the flu because they'd like a some little pill to take to make them feel something is being done to alleviate their problems. I haven't had the flu in eight years and that was diagnosed by a PCP and I'm someone who has had pneumonia twice as a child so I know the differences in sicknesses.

Also what your body does when it detects any kind of virus or bacteria in the body is raise the temp so the organism cannot reproduce itself again. It has nothing to do with what the organism does in your body its what your body does to protect itself that make you feel like crap.