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SIHF Healthcare Brings Awareness To The Importance Of Adult Immunizations
August is National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM), and SIHF Healthcare is highlighting the importance of getting recommended vaccines throughout all stages of life, not just during childhood.
People often think that they don’t need to get immunizations as often or at all. Reasons being that adult immune systems are fully developed or because a person received immunizations as a child and shouldn’t require any more. However, SIHF is urging patients to think again. Even though adult immunities develop significantly from childhood, there are still numerous factors that play a part in genetics that can make a person susceptible to infectious diseases.
Why Do You Need Adult Immunizations?
Many of the vaccines received as children to create immunities to infectious diseases last a lifetime, but this isn’t the case for all. For example, tetanus and diphtheria vaccines need to be updated with a new vaccine and then with booster shots every 10 years to maintain immunity. As an adult, vaccinations can help the body stay ahead of any future health complications. The Hepatitis B vaccine lowers risk of liver cancer and the HPV vaccine lowers your risk of cervical cancer.
There are other reasons why adult immunizations may be necessary:
- Some adults never received immunizations as children.
- Vaccine recommendations and vaccines change over the years. Certain vaccines may not have been available when some adults were children.
- Immunity can fade over time.
- With age, people become more susceptible to serious diseases caused by common infections like the flu, pneumonia or even shingles. These are serious illnesses, and even more concerning with older adults, as they can cause hospitalization and even death.
- Adults may also be at risk for illnesses due to a job, lifestyle, travel or community.
“Immunizations are a safe, easy and effective tool in helping protect individuals from disease and illness”, says Dr. Anne Nash, Family Medicine Physician at SIHF Healthcare. “It is especially important during a pandemic or other public health emergencies to maintain routine immunizations to prevent further outbreaks and to help ensure that?you, your family and community remain healthy and protected against widespread?diseases,” notes Nash.
At SIHF Healthcare, we want our patients and their families to live happy and healthy. Regular immunizations are crucial to overall health. Our medical providers encourage patients to ask questions and spend some time learning what vaccines are best to ensure they are protected against serious diseases and illnesses.
Visit sihf.org to learn more about the vaccination services we offer for patients of all ages.
SIHF Healthcare is always accepting new patients, regardless of insurance status. Find your local health center today!