National Influenza Vaccination Week

Submitted by: Alta Lockley

County Extension Agent – 4-H/Family & Consumer Sciences

U of A System Division of Agriculture

The holiday season is here and that means more time to spend with your children, family and friends. However, as the holiday cheer spreads so can flu. You definitely can’t do what you want to do when battling the possible extreme symptoms of fever, chills, muscle or body aches, vomiting, diarrhea, cough, sore throat, headache, tiredness. Depending on the severity of your illness, some people experience all or some of the symptoms.

National Influenza Vaccination Week is December 5-9 and focuses on highlighting the importance of the influenza vaccination. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC),

Flu vaccines prevent millions of flu illnesses, tens of thousands of flu hospitalizations, and thousands of deaths every year. Flu vaccines have been used for more than 50 years to safely vaccinate hundreds of millions of Americans. This season, getting a flu vaccine is more important than ever. By getting vaccinated, you are helping to protect yourself AND the people around you from flu as families gather to celebrate the holiday season.

While it’s unclear what impact COVID-19 will have on the upcoming flu season, it’s very clear that a flu vaccine is the best way to reduce the risk from flu and its potentially serious

complications.

For more information visit the Center for Disease Control and Prevention at https://www.cdc.gov/flu/ or contact the Arkansas County Cooperative Extension Service at

(870) 659-2058.

The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs to all eligible persons regardless of race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual

orientation, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally protected status, is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity

Employer.