People all over the world are affected by the flu. Especially with COVID-19, it’s important to stay healthy and get a flu shot.
The flu vaccine definitely helps people and has many benefits. It has been proven to protect and help your immune system defend against the flu. It also helps prevent millions of people from getting sick and decreases the spread of the flu.
Maya Wik, a freshman at Woodside High School, is one of the many students who believes getting a flu shot is important.
“I don’t get as sick as often,” Wik explained. “Especially now with Coronavirus, we don’t want another sickness on top of this one.”
Wik has gotten her flu shot many times and, besides a sore arm, there aren’t many side effects from the vaccine.
“When I was five, my mom, brother and I got the stomach flu, and it was really bad,” Wik said. “We used antibiotics and rested a lot.”
Because of Wik’s experience with the stomach flu, she believes that she should get the flu shot to prevent the spread of the disease.
“Everyone please, please, please get your flu shot,” Wik proclaimed. “It’s super important. COVID is still around, and getting a flu shot will minimize the risk of getting the flu. We don’t need another pandemic!”
Wik believes it’s important to get a flu shot because it can decrease the amount of deaths and prevent the spread of the flu. Some experts say “you should get a flu vaccine before flu viruses begin spreading in your community.”
Caroline Dang, a pharmacist at Rite Aid and an expert on flu shots, spoke about to the Paw Print about the flu.
“Efficacy-wise, every year is going to vary,” Dang said. “Every year, [specialists are] going to guess how the virus is going to react or what the virus will be like because it’s always transforming.”
Dang says that since the flu virus transforms every year, it’s good to prevent the disease and get a flu shot annually.
“Normal side effects are a sore arm for one or two days; some patients experience a low fever,” Dang said. “Always wash your hands and make sure that you sneeze in your elbow.”
People should definitely get their flu vaccine before viruses begin to spread around their community. The vaccine takes full effect once two weeks pass because antibodies need time to develop. The virus affects everyone, no matter how healthy the are.
“Get your flu shot if you haven’t.” Dang said.
