Trick question. The answer for the flu vaccine is most who are age 6 months and older. For the COVID booster, it’s most folks age 5 and older.

I’m joining many public health experts in encouraging you and your family to get the Influenza vaccine ASAP. Why? Here are a number of reasons you should consider. I think it’s well worth your time to read this carefully.

Flu-related hospitalizations in the U.S. reach highest levels in over a decade, CDC says

ABC News reported, “Flu season is making an early comeback as flu-related hospitalizations are the highest in over a decade for this point in the season, according to” CDC data issued last Friday.

The data revealed that “there have been an estimated 880,000 cases of lab-confirmed influenza illnesses, 6,900 hospitalizations and 360 flu-related deaths nationally this season.”

The article added, “H3N2 is the predominant viral strain currently spreading.” It is this variant that tends to be particularly hard on people, especially young children and the elderly.

NBC News reported, “Flu hospitalizations are rising across all age groups, especially children.” While The Hill reported, “The highest rates of flu activity are in the Southeast and South-Central states from Texas to Georgia, and are starting to move up the Atlantic coast.”

Epidemic flu levels in Chile may portend a severe season for northern hemisphere

The Southern Hemisphere always has its flu season before ours. And theirs tends to foreshadow how ours will go.

Healio reported, “Influenza reached epidemic levels in Chile months earlier than a typical influenza season, just like in several other Southern Hemisphere countries, researchers reported.”

And while “influenza activity in the Southern Hemisphere does not always predict what will happen in the United States, the findings suggest the U.S. and other nations in the Northern Hemisphere should prepare for ‘influenza activity with atypical timing and intensity’ this season, researchers from the CDC, Chile and the Pan American Health Organization wrote.”

These data were published in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Newer COVID variants are likely resistant to some of our best COVID treatments
CNN reported, “The Omicron BA.5 subvariant is no longer the dominant cause of COVID-19 infections in the United States, according to estimates released Friday by the” CDC.

And “instead, a host of new sublineages – offshoots of BA.2, BA.4 and BA.5 – are now responsible for the majority of new infections in this country.”

Here’s the problem, as reported by CNBC, the new variants “are likely resistant to”  to two of our best treatments, tixagevimab/cilgavimab (Evusheld) “and bebtelovimab, according to the National Institutes of Health.” However, the COVID booster appears to cover these variants.

Respiratory viruses could triple team you with a ‘Tripledemic”

Not only are flu cases higher than usual for this time of year and are expected to soar in the coming weeks, but another respirator virus, RSV, is already straining pediatric hospitals in some states.

Add to this the growing possibility for a ‘Tripledemic’ of influenza (Flu), RSV. and COVID which are increasingly likely to collide this winter, anything you can do to protect yourself and your family will likely significantly reduce your risk of serious illness or hospitalization.

My advice …

Get yourself and your family to your local pharmacy or your personal physician to find out if you qualify for one of both of these vaccines ASAP.

© Copyright WLL, INC. 2022. This blog provides healthcare tips and advice that you can trust about a wide variety of general health information only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment from your regular physician. If you are concerned about your health, take what you learn from this blog and meet with your personal doctor to discuss your concerns.