Last flu season 179 children died from flu related illnesses. Hundreds more were hospitalized, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Yet one third of parents aren't going to get their kids a flu shot this year according to WQAD.

I don't remember getting a flu shot as a kid so that's not surprising to me. Yet I sure remember two to three visits to the doctor every flu season, most ending up with a Penicillin shot in the behind. I don't know if my five year old self would agree, but my adult self would rather get the flu shot instead of suffering through the flu.

So why don't parents get their kids flu shots? The top three reasons: concerns over side effects, that it doesn't work very well and that their children are healthy enough without being vaccinated.

Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine told WQAD the flu vaccine doesn't get the credit it deserves. "The vaccine is not perfect, none of us believe it is, but it's the best thing we have for preventing influenza, and even if it doesn't prevent the illness completely, and this is very important, it tends to make the illness milder."

I know I've gotten the flu less since I've gotten the vaccine every year. I wonder if I wouldn't have spent as much time at the doctor's office as a kid if I had gotten the flu shot then.

 

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