Adult Vaccinations: What Do You Actually Need?
Although most people are conscientious about their children's vaccinations, they tend to forget or neglect their own as adults. Once you leave childhood behind, you do not escape the need to receive certain shots to immunize you against some dangerous conditions. If you haven't had any vaccines lately, you need to check with your primary care physician to see what shots you may have missed.
Flu Shots
Medical experts recommend that almost all adults need to be vaccinated against the flu. Even healthy adults need this yearly shot. Of course, those adults with chronic illnesses are the most vulnerable to the sometimes devastating effects of the flu. The composition of the vaccine varies each year because the flu strains differ. The shot must always be administered yearly. Before you get the injection, you should confer with your physician to make sure you have no condition that could make the shot dangerous for you.
TP and Tdap Shot
The tetanus-diphtheria vaccine needs to be continued into adulthood. You should have a booster shot every ten years. If you are exposed to tetanus, you will need to have an additional shot at that time. Also, if you did not receive the Tdap shot, a combination tetanus/whooping cough vaccine, as a teenager, you will need to have one after age 19. Pregnant women are also given the Tdap later in their terms to protect their unborn children.
Shingles
Medical professionals recommend that you get a shingles shot when you reach sixty years old, even if you have already had shingles. The shingles virus is the same as the chickenpox virus. If you had chickenpox as a child, you are still carrying the virus in your body. As you age, that virus is more likely to be reactivated, causing an extremely painful rash that can linger for weeks. You cannot get shingles from someone else. The danger comes from your own body. The vaccine is given once and can cause mild side effects, including redness at the injection site and a headache.
If you have given up on vaccines as an adult, you are missing some important injections. The above are just three that every grownup needs to have. Although you may be focused on keeping your children's immunizations up to date, you cannot afford to neglect your own vaccine schedule. Consult with your primary care physician to make certain you are currently up-to-date with all your shots.