Time To Get Shot...A Flu Shot!

At Safety4Kids we're always trying to give parents the information they need to empower them to keep their kids safe and healthy. And at this time of year our attention turns to the flu. We don't have to tell you that flu season is here! Your kids are probably already coming home and telling you which of their friends didn't come to school because they weren't feeling well. We asked our own Dr. Bruce Bonanno, an ER doc with lots of experience and chair of the Public Relations committee of the American College of Emergency Physcians, to give us some basic information that could just help prevent the spread of this nasty bug!

Here's what Dr. Bonanno had to say:

The flu season is now approaching and it is time to receive your yearly vaccination. You and your children should get the flu shot because it will usually protect you from getting the flu this year. Even children as young as six months should get the shot. Without the shot, there's a greater chance of getting a serious case of the flue, which means more days of school missed and more days of work missed. If any of your family falls into the high-risk group, it will help protect them from getting the complications of the flu, which is mainly pneumonia, or worsening the medical problems they normally have.

There is also a nasal spray Flu vaccine now available and approved for use in healthy people 2-49 years of age who are not pregnant.

Why should healthy people get the flu vaccination?
Healthy people should get the vaccination because it will help prevent the large outbreaks in the community that always seem to occur. You know the ones where the kids in school get affected first, then the parents catch it next, and they spread it to their office co-workers, who spread it to their kids, who then take it to school and give it to their friends who then give it to their parents. It's a vicious and somewhat preventable cycle.

Some people are afraid of getting a flu shot because they think they will get the flu from the shot. Is this true?
You do not get the flu from getting the flu shot. The vaccine is created from dead, or inactivated virus. Unless you are sick at the time of vaccination or you are allergic to eggs, you should not experience symptoms.

Can you still get the flu if you get the vaccination?
The bad news about getting vaccinated is that ten to twenty percent of those given the shot may still get the flu, although it will be a milder case. In addition, the vaccine is made up of three different strains of flu. These strains are picked out of the large number that are possible by research that shows these three strains are the most likely to occur this year. The strains chosen may be different every year.

How long does it take before vaccination works?
Average is 2-3 weeks.

When we talk about the getting the "flu", what exactly are we talking about?
When we talk about getting the "flu", short for "influenza", what we are talking about is an infection of the air passages that is caused by a virus, much like the common cold.

How is the flu different than the common cold?
Getting a cold is like getting hit with a scooter, getting the flu is like getting hit by a train! In addition to the usual dry cough, sneezing, watery nasal discharge, and stuffy nose, it also has an effect on the whole body. This may include fever, headache, runny eyes, muscle or joint aches, and generalized weakness.

When does the influenza virus occur?
The influenza virus is present all year but we hear about it mostly in the late fall and winter months because that is when people are starting to stay indoors more and this causes the outbreaks which occur. People are usually affected between late October to April. Peak flu season is January and February.

(c) Robert Byron. Image from BigStockPhoto.com

Pediatric Cold and Cough Medicines: First Do No Harm

Update 10/19/2007: With today's news about the recommendation to expand the withdrawal of pediatric cold and cough medicines, we asked Dr. Baum to update his comments below. Here's what he said:

"To date, the problem has been that pediatric dosing for these drugs was extrapolated, sometimes erroneously, from adult data. Finally, everyone is starting to understand the expression, "children are not little adults" (although I prefer "adults are not big children").

The overarching question remains the same, however: are these drugs safe AND effective in children of any age? For the most part, we don't have the data. Are these drugs safer in a 6-year-old than in a 2-year-old? Maybe. Are the drugs more effective in a 6-year-old than in a 2-year-old? Maybe. Maybe not."

The health and safety of children is our primary focus at Safety4Kids. So when medicine for children is withdrawn from the shelves, we share the concern of parents everywhere. We turn to our own Dr. Carl Baum for his thoughts.

Here's what he has to say:

The Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) announced on October 11th a voluntary withdrawal of over-the-counter (OTC) cough and cold medicines for children under two "out of an abundance of caution." (http://otcsafety.org/)

The industry has acknowledged that infants under the age of two are most vulnerable to misuse of these medicines. While I applaud the industry's voluntary action in the absence of a mandatory recall, I would question the general claim on the website, above, that "kids' OTC cough and cold medicines are both safe and effective when used correctly..." Apparently the industry would have us continue to dispense these drugs to older kids.

Even if you gloss over the safety issues--and I see children over the age of two in our Pediatric Emergency Department who overdose on these drugs and occasionally have significant side effects--how effective are cough and cold medicines?

As the Latin saying goes, primum non nocere, or "first do no harm." We are often willing to accept some risk in medicine, but the hope is that the intervention will also bring some benefit. If you look at studies of OTC drugs and upper respiratory tract infections in children, however, there is little convincing evidence for the effectiveness of most OTC components: antitussives (allegedly for cough), expectorants and mucolytics (to thin mucous), as well as antihistamines and decongestants (to dry secretions and open up passageways).

But we can't place all the blame on the multi-billion dollar OTC industry. We pediatricians are often responsible for recommending these drugs as we cave to parental pressure to "do something" for symptoms of upper respiratory infections. And remember, these infections are invariably viral processes that run their course no matter what we do. What's the alternative? Salt-water drops in the nose can help to loosen mucous. And a little education goes a long way.

(c) Nolte Lourens. Image from BigStockPhoto.com

Technorati Tags: pediatrics, cold, cough, medicine, FDA, recall

Election 2008: Let's Start a Revolution!

If you read our blog, and we hope you do, then you know at Safety4Kids we worry about everything! We worry about the safety and well-being of children of all ages. We devote much of our time to creating tools that help parents keep their kids safe; we think of it as empowering parents. So here's a question:

How do we empower the teachers as well?

How can we convince our lawmakers that safety and wellness need to be part of the curriculum, alongside reading, writing and math?

Change is not easy. But it is election season--in case you couldn't tell! This is the time to exert pressure on all of the candidates, across party lines, to put the welfare of children at the top of their agenda.

These are extraordinary times and they demand extraordinary measures. We have talked about Internet Safety in this blog, and the scary place the online world can be for some children. Internet Safety is a hot topic and one that gets the attention of the media and therefore the public. It's not as "exciting" to talk about school bus safety and playground safety, but it's all part of the bigger picture.

And then there is the startling and disturbing issue of childhood obesity and the dangerous effects on the health of the child and the impact on the health care system. Diabetes and other diseases, once the purview of older adults, is now very much a concern for overweight children. There is so much in the news about this, and there is some very good work being done to raise awareness and begin to create change. But this is a cultural issue in our country and the problem runs deep. We're gong to have to get organized to get anything done.

At Safety4Kids we are preparing to move forward on the work we began at our National Task Force on Children's Safety in Washington. We want all the candidates to work hard on this, and to be accountable to the children in this country. You'll be hearing from many of our contributors about these important initiatives. We have the support of the PTA, the American Red Cross, and many of our partners and collaborators.

So let's start a revolution! One that's good for children. Let's get them eating healthy foods in school and learning safe habits before it's too late. If you want to join us and raise your voices, then leave a comment, share a story, and tell us what you'd like to see happen in your schools and in your community.

How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before beginning to improve the world. --Anne Frank

(c) Image from Joanne and Daniel. BigStockPhoto.com

Related Topics:

• Election 2008: Compare Candidates
• Health Matters in the 2008 Election

Technorati Tags: election 2008, safety, chldren's health, wellness, safety4kids