From USA Weekend, The Doctors

We’re getting better about it, but we’re not great yet: A new observational study shows that about 85% of adults wash their hands after using public restrooms. That’s up from 77% in 2007, and it’s the most since the American Society of Microbiology and the American Cleaning Institute started the studies almost 15 years ago.

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But more than 60% responded in a telephone survey that they don’t wash their hands after coughing or sneezing. That’s bad, experts say, because many cases of the cold, flu and other respiratory ailments are spread by a cough or sneeze or when dirty, contaminated hands touch the eyes, nose or mouth.

To read more, visit: Want to stay well? Wash your hands

From The Center for Disease Control

Even healthy people can get the flu, and it can be serious. Everyone 6 months of age and older should get a flu vaccine. This season, protect yourself—and those around you—by getting a flu vaccine.

While everyone is recommended to get a flu vaccine, people at high risk of serious flu complications include young children, pregnant women, people with chronic health conditions like asthma, diabetes or heart and lung disease, and people 65 years and older. Encourage those you know who might be pregnant, have asthma, or type 1 or 2 diabetes to get vaccinated today.

National Influenza Vaccination Week (NIVW) is a national observance established to highlight the importance of continuing influenza vaccination now, through the holiday season, and into January and beyond.

From December 5th through 12th, NIVW events and activities around the United States focus on the importance of vaccinating different groups of people, including:

Sunday, December 5
NIVW Kickoff
Get vaccinated on Sunday before getting caught up in your weekly schedule.

Monday, December 6
Family Vaccination Day
Families are great at sharing—but that’s not a good thing when it comes to the flu. Get everyone in your family vaccinated!

Tuesday, December 7
Chronic Conditions Day
If you or your loved ones have asthma, diabetes, or other chronic conditions, a flu shot is especially important.

Wednesday, December 8
Employee Health/Health Care Worker Day
Protecting employee health protects everyone at home and in the workplace. Health care workers, you can make a difference.

Thursday, December 9
Older Adults Vaccination Day
If you’re 65 or older, you’re at increased risk for complications from flu

Friday, December 10
Young Adults Vaccination Day
If you’re 19—24, you can protect yourself, your friends, and your family.

Saturday, December 11 NIVW Wrap-up
The week is done, but you can still get a flu vaccine throughout the winter if you didn’t this week.

To read more, visit: It’s National Influenza Vaccination Week, Get Vaccinated

By Liz Szabo, USA TODAY

In a new survey by Consumer Reports, only 30% of respondents were “very confident” that this year’s flu shot is safe.

That leaves many doctors and scientists perplexed. Of all the many things to fear in the world, they say, vaccines should be at the bottom of the list. USA TODAY’s Liz Szabo talked to vaccine safety experts to address some of the most common myths.

Myth 1: The flu shot causes the flu.

The viruses in the flu shot are dead, so they can’t give people the flu, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its most common side effect is soreness in the arm.

FluMist nasal spray contains weakened viruses, so they don’t cause severe, flu-like symptoms, either. Side effects in children can include a runny nose, wheezing and headache.

So why do some people swear that they got sick right after getting a flu shot? Flu shots tend to be given at a time of year when respiratory viruses are beginning to circulate, doctors say. So it’s only natural that some people will catch a respiratory bug shortly after getting a vaccine. And since it takes about two weeks after getting a vaccine for the body to develop immunity, some of those bugs could be the flu. But the vaccine itself isn’t causing disease.

Myth 2: The flu is just a bad cold.

While some people develop worse symptoms than others, flu symptoms tend to be much more severe than — and come on much more suddenly — than a cold. Many who got H1N1 (swine flu) last year were out of work or school for a week with fever, body aches, sore throat, fatigue, headaches and a runny or congested nose, according to the CDC.

And unlike a cold, which generally goes away on its own after five days or so, the flu can cause life-threatening complications, mostly by causing secondary bacterial infections such as pneumonia.

The flu sends 200,000 people to the hospital and kills 30,000 in a typical year, the CDC says.

California obstetrician-gynecologist Jennifer Gunter says her 7-year-old son, Oliver, who was born prematurely, has been hospitalized for the flu twice. Both times, he came home from the hospital with an oxygen machine. Gunter caught H1N1 last year, before the vaccine was available.

“It was horrible,” Gunter says. “I was off work for six days until I was no longer infectious.”

In developed countries, influenza kills more people than any other vaccine-preventable disease, says pediatrician Jon Abramson of Wake Forest University School of Medicine and Families Fighting Flu, a non-profit health group.

To read more, visit: 5 myths about the flu

By Liz Szabo, USA TODAY

Only a year after the swine flu pandemic led Americans to line up for flu shots, many people are now spurning vaccines, two studies suggest.

Only 37% of people plan to definitely get vaccinated this year, a Consumer Reports survey shows. About 30% say they definitely won’t get a shot, while 31% of respondents are undecided, the survey of 1,500 says.

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In another survey of 1,300 adults by retailer CVS, 59% of respondents say they were “likely” to get a flu shot this year.

Nearly two-thirds of CVS survey respondents knew that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now recommends flu shots for everyone over 6 months old. But only half of those said that advice influenced their decision.

Among people who say they’ll skip the flu shot this year, 44% told Consumer Reports they’re concerned about side effects, 41% said they’re concerned about safety and 45% said fear about last year’s pandemic was overblown, the survey says.

To read more, visit: Fewer may get flu shots this year, surveys find

By KIM ROLLMAN, The Times Leader

As the leaves begin to fall from the trees and the bright reds, oranges and yellows of autumn disappear, it is time to start thinking about taking precautions against influenza, also known as seasonal flu.

According to Ted Kross, director of the Wilkes-Barre City Health Department, the flu virus has shown up earlier than usual in Pennsylvania this year, with outbreaks of the contagious respiratory illness already being reported in the southern part of the state. The typical flu season runs from November through March, and possibly as late as May. With the flu virus spreading in the state, now is the time to take action to keep yourself and your loved ones healthy throughout the winter.

Flu shots are now available in Wilkes-Barre and throughout Luzerne County and Northeastern Pennsylvania. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that all people older than 6 months get vaccinated against the flu, unless they have an allergy to eggs. People in high-risk groups should be especially vigilant and get the vaccine as soon as possible. High-risk groups include the elderly, the very young, people with chronic respiratory conditions such as asthma and emphysema, and anyone whose immune system may be compromised because of a chronic health condition such as diabetes or cancer.

To read more, visit: Flu season is almost here

BY FRED TASKER
FTASKER@MIAMIHERALD.COM
There’s no worldwide flu pandemic this year, no shuttered schools, no crisis atmosphere. But doctors, health officials and especially private pharmacies are ready to needle us again, anyway.

The 2010-2011 influenza season, which begins Friday, will be different in several ways. First, the H1N1 “swine flu” that disrupted our lives last year is still around, but without its old punch. And it’ll be joined by two other flu viruses more typical of seasons past.

Second, last season’s flu struck children and pregnant women hardest. This year’s more typical season could be tougher for senior citizens. Drug makers have even created a stronger vaccine for them.

Read more here:http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/09/28/1845522/flu-season-starts-friday-heres.html

Increase your productivity and wellness with our no rinse non alcohol foam hand sanitizer.

By Catherine Donaldson-Evans, AOLHealth

Hand sanitizers have become trendy since last year’s swine flu scare, and dispensers pumping them out have cropped up everywhere from airports and office buildings to restaurants and stores.

But new research has taken the sanitizer craze a step further, claiming that the alcohol-based variety can improve on-the-job productivity and reduce the number of days employees are out sick.

A research team from Germany led by Nils-Olaf Hubner found that absenteeism among public administrations due to colds, fever and coughs dropped dramatically when hand sanitizers were used by staff.

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The authors of the study, published in the open access journal BMC Infectious Diseases, looked at the data on sick days and health symptoms for 129 participants. Subjects were divided into two groups, with those in the control group told to keep up their usual hand-washing rituals and those in the other group instructed to use hand sanitizer at least five times during the workday.

The researchers urged those given the disinfectant to use it liberally — particularly after activities likely to expose them to germs.

“Our study found that hand disinfection reduced the number of episodes of illness for the majority of the investigated symptoms,” Hubner wrote, according to a bulletin about the research.

Researchers saw fewer symptoms of common illnesses even during periods when participants weren’t out sick. They surmised that those results translated into a rise in at-work productivity and wellness.

Hubner did not respond to AOL Health’s requests for comment.

Prior studies have documented the positive effects of hand sanitizers in hospitals, child care centers and other public places where bacterial infections and viruses thrive.

To read more, visit: http://www.aolhealth.com/2010/08/24/hand-sanitizers-boost-wellness-productivity-at-work/