germs

Nearly every year I ask my mother the same question: "Are you getting your flu shot?"

Inevitably, she has the same answer: "Not if I can help it."

My mother isn't some vaccination skeptic. She isn't lazy or afraid of needles. In fact, she knows how valuable flu vaccines are for public health: She's been a nurse for more than 30 years.

But the vaccination sometimes makes her sick, and, in the years she hasn't been required by her employer to get the vaccine, she's never contracted the flu.

Neither have I. Ever. But I get my flu shot anyway. You should, too. Here's why:

Vaccination is the most effective protection against the flu. Unfortunately, not everyone believes this. In a recent survey conducted by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, 71 percent of respondents said there are other effective ways to prevent the flu.

According to a recent study, many older people—among the most vulnerable to the illness—don't get the flu vaccine because they believe that traditional methods such as hand washing and alternative medicine can protect as well as or better than the vaccine.

But this isn't true. While washing your hands can help keep you from getting infected, nothing is as effective as the vaccine in protecting against the flu, according to the Centers for Disease Control and numerous studies.

It probably won't make you sick (despite what my mother says). Only a small percentage of people who get the flu vaccine will have some kind of side effect, most frequently soreness at the site of the shot. Some people experience mild cold symptoms and fever for one or two days. Rarely, someone experiences an allergic reaction to the flu vaccine.

Someone around you may not be able to get it. This is why I've become a flu vaccine convert. Until a few years ago, I eschewed the shot. But my son is allergic to eggs, one of the reasons a person might not get the vaccination, which is grown in chicken eggs. In order to protect him from the flu—he also has asthma, which puts him in a high-risk category for flu—we try to cocoon him, surrounding him with people who've had the shot. Because you never know when you'll be around someone vulnerable like him or any infant under the age of six months, it pays to get the vaccine.

It's cheap. The flu shot typically costs between $10 and $50 a dose. But many employers offer them for free as do many community groups. Even at the high end, the vaccine is a bargain compared to getting the flu, according to cost-benefit studies. Getting the vaccine reduces lost work days and physician co-pays.

There's still time. Although peak flu season varies each year, February is typically the most active month. But the pesky bug begins showing up in October and hangs out until mid-May, which means it's never too early or too late to get the vaccination. Ask your doctor's office if they have the vaccination or use this handy tool to locate a dose near you.

For more flu vaccine basics, visit http://www.flu.gov/.

Related Links:

Just because your sick, doesn't mean you need antibiotics.

Seven flu-fighting mistakes.

Since penicillin became available to the public in the mid-20th century, antibiotics have changed the face of health care. Infections that routinely were fatal 60 years ago are today little more than inconveniences.

Despite these amazing advances, we face critical problems: Bacteria are becoming increasingly resistant to available antibiotics. One cause is the unnecessary use of antibiotics in minor respiratory infections. Next time you see your doctor for a cold or other minor respiratory infection, remember three things:

You may not need antibiotics.
Most upper respiratory tract infections—the common cold, minor sinus infections, and sore throats—are viral and do not respond to antibiotics. (The exception is strep throat, for which there are specific tests available.)

Studies show that we expect antibiotics and a quick fix when we go to the doctor's office for these problems. Unfortunately, physicians sometimes feel obliged to meet those expectations, even though these viral infections usually resolve in a few days without antibiotics.

Antibiotics can be associated with allergic reactions.
Sometimes those reactions can even be life-threatening. Even appropriate use of antibiotics can be associated with Clostridium difficile colitis, a secondary bacterial infection of the colon accompanied by severe diarrhea and fever, occasionally requiring hospitalization.

Antibiotics can also have important interactions with other medications, especially drugs like blood thinners and heart medications.

Taking unnecessary antibiotics can make you more susceptible to resistant bacteria.
Resistant bacteria can be more difficult and expensive to treat. Plus, patients can remain sick longer because of the delay in effective treatment. Children's ear infections, for example, can be hard to clear up, and we even encounter infections in hospitals for which there are no viable antibiotic options.

The next time you or your child goes to the doctor for a cold, remember that medicines to fight symptoms may be all you need. Don't be upset if your doctor doesn't write a prescription for an antibiotic. He or she may be doing you—and the rest of us—a favor.

For more information on antibiotic resistance, see the Centers for Disease Control's website.

The original “hyper-chondriac,” comedian Brian Frazer complains that some friends are much too generous with their germs.

A picture really is worth a thousand words in a college dormitory bathroom. Dr. Bruce Dan looks at a graphic campaign to make students wash their hands.

As summer draws to a close, many of us will be hitting the beach for one last hurrah. If, like some members of my family, you prefer building sandcastles over swimming because the ocean seems dirty and disgusting, I have some unsettling news: The sand is even worse.

Scientists have found that levels of E. coli bacteria in sand tend to be higher than those in the water. The result, according to a recently-published study in the American Journal of Epidemiology, is that people who dig in the sand are more likely to get sick than those who take a dip in the ocean or walk on the beach.

The scientists interviewed more than 27,000 visitors at seven U.S. beaches and asked about the beachgoers' activities. Ten to 12 days later, participants were contacted by phone and asked about any illnesses they had experienced since their trip to the beach.

Those who had dug in the sand were slightly more likely to develop stomach illnesses and diarrhea than those who had not dug in the sand. The risk was further increased among people who had been buried in the sand. As you might expect, kids were especially vulnerable.

Fortunately, you don't need to forfeit that sandcastle-building contest to stay well. According to another new study, this one in the Journal of Water and Health, there's a simple solution: Wash your hands. The researchers found that subjects with sand-covered hands who rinsed in clean water removed 92% of E. coli that might otherwise have ended up in their mouths and led to illness. Rinsing four times removed virtually 100%.

Of course, it's best to use soap or an alcohol-based hand sanitizer. If you don't have access to either, though, rinsing your hands with clean water several times before you dig into your picnic basket or leave the beach can do the trick.

It's a reminder that even on vacation, Mom's advice to wash your hands still applies. To find out other surprising places where potentially harmful germs lurk and how to protect yourself, watch this video.

Brian Frazer's friend is afraid to shake his hand. Hear Brian's side of the story.

Can you really catch a cold by going outside with a wet head? Dr. Charlotte Grayson answers this germy question.

Can't figure out why you sneeze? Dr. Charlotte Grayson explains the science around sneezes.

Keeping your teeth clean may help you prevent heart attacks. Here's how.

How clean is your office? Dr. Bruce Dan looks at the germiest jobs and where around the office germs tend to collect.

Which is less germy, a toilet seat or your office desk? How long can germs survive on surfaces? Test your knowledge of germs with our Everwell Challenge.

Can you drink milk a week after the sell-by date? What's the germiest item in your kitchen and how do you clean it? Test your food safety knowledge with our Everwell Challenge.