COLLEYVILLE, Texas — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is pushing influenza vaccination ahead of a busy Christmas travel season.
The CDC observes "National Influenza Vaccination Week" from Dec. 4 through Dec. 8. Because flu shots typically take about two weeks to become most effective, a vaccination during this window offers protection by Christmas Day.
"We're travelling, we're seeing family, and we're seeing friends," Cook Children's pediatrician Sandeepa Rajadhyaksha said. "Not only are you protecting yourself, you're giving that gift to others that you're going to go see."
Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth recorded 56 positive influenza tests among patients from Nov. 26 through Dec. 2. The case count eclipsed 500 during the same week last year, the first flu season after many Americans stopped wearing masks to prevent COVID-19 infections.
Rajadhyaksha noted flu season is just beginning and it's too early to tell whether this year's strain is especially severe or infectious.
The CDC recommends flu shots for most adults and most children older than 6 months. To find the nearest clinic offering the vaccine, click here.
"Flu vaccines have been around for years," she said. "They are safe. Everything has a side effect, but the side effects from flu vaccines are typically very mild."
Colleyville parents Joe and Jennifer Lastinger want other adults to prioritize scheduling a vaccination for themselves and their children. In 2004, the couple's daughter died from an influenza infection.
The 3-year-old, Emily, was not vaccinated against the flu. At the time, the CDC did not recommend the shot for healthy children her age.
Emily's parents noticed their child, who was often energetic and "took up more than her space," was unusually lethargic. A doctor confirmed her influenza infection on a Wednesday. She died the following Monday.
"Influenza is something you have to take seriously," said Joe Lastinger.
The couple helped found Families Fighting Flu, an organization that aims to educate about influenza's dangerous potential and promote vaccination.
"Most people are just kind of busy or it's not on their radar," Joe Lastinger said. "Just make sure you do it."
"Not a day goes by when I don't ask, 'What if I would've made a different choice?'" Jennifer Lastinger said. "We are an incomplete family. Everything we do, we're missing one."
The couple says they consider the time they spend advocating for vaccination time they would otherwise have spent with their daughter.
"The stuff we do with Families Fighting Flu is for Emily," said Jennifer.
"If anyone can learn from what we think of as a mistake and not go through the pain that we've had to go through, then that's what we want to happen," Joe concluded.