Protection takes effect about two weeks after you're vaccinated. For most people, flu means a few days to two weeks of misery with such symptoms as fever, headache, muscle aches, sore throat, cough, weakness and fatigue. But for those in high-risk groups, influenza can lead to pneumonia or even death. State health officials urge high-risk individuals to also get a pneumococcal vaccination if they've never had one. Authorities don't dismiss that idea but say hard proof is lacking and that it would be difficult to link any increase in the flu or colds to worry about terrorism.
Stress is hard to measure.
Yet some University of Washington research does suggest that stressed animals suffer more illness, she said. In any case, it wouldn't hurt to take extra-good care of yourself, get plenty of sleep and eat healthfully during flu and cold season, said Dr. Margaret Dimond, a University of Washington professor of behavioral nursing. However, flu shots are the best defense against influenza, experts agree. Studies of healthy young adults have shown the vaccine to be 70 to 90 percent effective in preventing illness, say the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Three firms make shots This year's vaccine will arrive in stages because of delays in production, but officials say you'll still be able to be immunized well before the peak flu season hits.