The fall season brings the flu season. An individual shouldn't ignore the advertisements and signs for the flu shot. The influenza virus is a quite infectious respiratory illness and results into a lot of symptoms. In some cases, the flu means a week of cough, congestion, muscle pains, and fevers, but for many people, mainly elderly and young children the flu can mean severe symptoms, leading to hospitalization and even death.

The flu virus is highly infectious and spreads in no time through small droplets in the air that come when infected people cough, sneeze, or even talk. An individual can't even realize that he is spreading the virus because the virus can replicate even a day before sickness and continuing up to seven days after feeling sick.

Prevention has always been called the greatest treatment. The infection can be avoided by following simple steps, including limited contact with sick people, covering mouth while coughing and sneezing.

Another important way to prevent infection is vaccination. The flu virus comes in different strains that mutate and change every year. Every year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tries its level best to find out which strains will probably emerge. As a result new vaccines are introduced every year.

By taking proper vaccinations, an individual can cut the risk of getting sick. It is best to take the shot as early as possible as vaccines can take 2 weeks to become effective.

"Fifty years ago the number of people who died from influenza was very high. Now, there are still people that die-mostly the very young or the very old-but it is still a lot less than what it was years ago. The CDC doesn't get it exactly right every year, but they try and look at trends and do have a high percentage of success," comments Roberge.

"If you've ever had the flu, it can put you down for a week. You feel tired, have muscle aches, and feel like you've just run 10 miles. You can't really afford to lose a week of school, so if there's something you can do to prevent that from happening, I would highly recommend it. The other thing is that students live in very close quarters, but when you live in a resident hall, you are sharing a bathroom with 20 or 30 people and chances of getting something are much greater," states Roberge. Along with the vaccination, there are other natural ways to prevent getting the flu.