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Flu Shots Reduce Children’s Hospitalizations

A natural experiment suggests that flu shots may offer big benefits for little kids. Back in 2006, US authorities recommended vaccinating healthy children two to five years old against the flu. In Canada, a similar recommendation was not made until 2010. Scientists have compared the rate of emergency treatment for influenza like illness in two pediatric hospitals from 2000 to 2009. The major difference between Boston and Quebec at that time was the national policy on influenza vaccination.

Statistical analysis showed that hospitalization for flu-like illness among youngsters two to four years old dropped by 34 percent in Boston after 2006 but did not change in Quebec. The benefits for older children were more modest, between 11 and 18 percent. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now recommend that everyone over six months old get a flu shot.

[Canadian Medical Association Journal, Sept. 20, 2011]

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About the Author
Terry Graedon, PhD, is a medical anthropologist and co-host of The People’s Pharmacy radio show, co-author of The People’s Pharmacy syndicated newspaper columns and numerous books, and co-founder of The People’s Pharmacy website. Terry taught in the Duke University School of Nursing and was an adjunct assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology. She is a Fellow of the Society of Applied Anthropology. Terry is one of the country's leading authorities on the science behind folk remedies..
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