The IU Health Center is already giving flu shots, though, and is encouraging students to get their vaccinations now.
Flu season doesn’t have set parameters but can start as early as this month and can go as late as March or April, said Nancy Macklin, director of nursing at the IU health center.
“Because the start of flu season is so unpredictable, it’s good to get it now,” Macklin said.
It takes two weeks for your body to become immune to the flu after a flu shot, she said.
“The other thing is, sometimes people run out of flu vaccine,” Macklin said. “You don’t want to get caught in that.”
While the immunity given by a flu shot can last up to a year, Macklin said students should still get a new vaccine every year.
“You should get one every year because the content, what viruses are predicted to be the most virulent, changes in the flu shot every year,” Macklin said.
This year, the health center is providing a shot with four different strains of the flu: A(H1N1), more commonly referred to as swine flu, A(H3N2), a V strain and a B strain, named Yamagata.
Some places are only covering three out of four of the strains, Macklin said.
The strains that go into the flu vaccine are based off what the World Health Organization and the US Center for Disease Control predict are going to be the most prevalent forms each year.
“Over the years they’ve been pretty good about getting their predictions to match what is circulating in the country for the flu,” Macklin said. “Some years there’s a mish-match and that’s when you get bad disease because the flu vaccine didn’t cover it.”
The other times when flu becomes particularly bad is when a new strain is introduced that there isn’t a vaccine for, she said. This was the case in 2009 with the swine flu.
Those who get the vaccine cannot get the flu from it, Macklin said.
“That’s an absolute impossibility,” she said.
Some may have a sore muscle where the shot was given for a couple days, and a slim few have a vaccine reaction with a mild fever that lasts only a day or two, Macklin said.
“The CCD is recommending that everybody over the age of six months of age gets a flu shot,” she said.
The only exceptions are those who are allergic to something in the shot, currently have a serious illness — in which case you should get the flu shot after you recover — or have the paralysis illness Guillain-Barré Syndrome.
In addition to getting the flu shot, Macklin recommends that students try to stay healthy, and avoid those who are sick. If you are sick, stay home and away from class and outside activities.
“Just try to be healthy, and that is, of course, also very hard for college students,” she said. “And by that I mean, getting adequate sleep, eating a good diet and take care of your stress.”
Get your flu shot.
The IU Health Center will be having a number of clinics set up throughout campus to make it easier for students to get vaccinated. Here’s where they’ll be for the next two weeks.
Tuesday, Oct. 7
9 - 10 a.m. at the School of Education
Wednesday, Oct. 8
12 - 2:30 p.m. at the School of Optometry
Thursday, Oct. 9
10 a.m. - 2:30 a.m. at the IMU Health Fair
Tuesday, Oct. 14
9 - 10:30 a.m. at Assembly Hall
2 - 4 p.m. at Poplars Research and Conference Center
Wednesday, Oct. 15
11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. at the Service Building on Range Road
Visit healthcenter.indiana.edu for more information.
