A month into flu season, health officials continue to stress that a shot in the arm is one of the best weapons in the battle against the bug.
And many area health clinics, pharmacies, hospitals and medical professionals are doing their part to spread the message.
The Brazos County Health Department will offer strategies to avoid the flu at a Thursday seminar.
"We are going to be talking about flu prevention, different stages of the virus and how to get vaccinated," said Wanda Mason, a St. Joseph Healthy Communities representative. "Our goal is to make the public aware of what to do to stay well and how to get help if they are worried about getting the flu."
The easiest way to prevent the spread of the flu, she said, is to practice good hygiene.
"Keeping your hands clean, avoiding real close contact and not rubbing your nose and eyes all the time -- those are really the best ways to make sure you don't get sick," she said.
There is no shortage of vaccine like there was in 2004, said Jan Shay, the director of infection control at St. Joseph Regional Health Center in Bryan.
There's also no shortage of opportunities to get a shot.
Scott & White Clinic in College Station has a walk-in flu clinic open weekdays through Nov. 9. In addition to the flu shot, Scott & White offers FluMist, a form of the vaccine administered as a nasal spray.
Many local pharmacies are also offering flu shots.
"I've done two or three clinics giving out shots, " said Linde McAdams, pharmacy manager for Walgreens in Bryan. "We have seen a pretty moderate response."
But McAdams recommends only the needle form of the vaccine.
"FluMist contains a small amount of live virus, so you might actually get sick if you take it," McAdams said. "Some doctors may carry it, but for the most part, they all recommend getting the actual shot."
Dr. Linda Lekawski, director of Beutel Health Center on the Texas A&M campus, also prefers the conventional vaccine. Because of FluMist's storage requirements and cost, Beutel doesn't offer the nasal spray, she said.
"The vaccine shot is the way to go," she said.
The health center gave 4,500 free flu shots to students last month, Lekawski said, noting a steady demand for the vaccine.
The Texas Department of State Health Services encourages vaccination for everyone 6 months and older, especially those at high risk of catching the flu. High-risk individuals include children 6 months to 5 years old, women more than 12 weeks pregnant, people with chronic medical conditions, adults over age 50 and residents of long-term facilities.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 5 percent and 20 percent of the U.S. population contracts the flu every year, and about 36,000 people die from it. Those figures stress the importance of annual vaccinations, officials said.
"Everyone should be vaccinated on a yearly basis," McAdams said. "After about four months, the vaccine will start to wane, and every year the chemical makeup of the vaccine could be a little different."
According to the CDC, experts decide each year which flu strains they believe will be prevalent and then develop a vaccine that targets those strains. The vaccine, which does not contain a live virus, targets antibodies in the blood and helps build immunity to the viral strain.
"It's a rumor that you can get flu from a flu shot," Lekawski said. "Because there is no live virus in the vaccine, you can't get sick. It takes three or four days for the shot to take full effect, so if you do get ill between then, you were probably already infected."
Even after you're infected, there are things you can do to avoid getting sick.
The CDC recommends two antiviral drugs, Tamiflu and Relenza, for treatment if the patient recognizes the symptoms within three days of infection. After that time, the virus will run its course, and only the symptoms can be treated.
"After a couple of days, all we can really recommend is some Tylenol, sleep and lots of fluids," McAdams said.
• Travis Measley's e-mail address is travis.measley@theeagle.com.
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