Ounces of prevention

Staff Sgt. Bradley Beams, 917th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, B-52 aircraft mechanic, receives the mist injection of the flu vaccine from Technical Sgt. Akerele Adeyemi, 917th Medical Squadron, medical services attendant, in the A-10 Hangar at Barksdale Air Base, La., October 4, 2009. Unlike the “flu shot,” which is an inactivated (killed) vaccine injected into the muscle, the flu mist, is a live, attenuated (weakened) influenza vaccine sprayed into the nostrils. Influenza viruses are always changing. Because of this, influenza vaccines are updated every year, and an annual vaccination is recommended, but is mandatory for the military. These “seasonal” influenza vaccines are formulated to prevent annual flu, and do not protect against pandemic H1N1 influenza. It takes up to two weeks for protection to develop after the shot, and protection lasts up to a year. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Jeff Walston)