Chris O'Donnell, who stars as Special Agent "G" Callen on NCIS Los Angeles, chose Fluzone for his flu vaccination this year. The 90% smaller needle makes this tough guy feel less squeamish.
It’s another gorgeous November afternoon in Southern California, and actor Chris O’Donnell is phoning in from his trailer at a downtown location shoot for NCIS Los Angeles. As Special Agent “G” Callen on the popular CBS Tuesday night action drama, he’s a tough guy. “I’m walking around this park in downtown L.A. today dressed like an LAPD cop, and nobody’s messing with me right now,” he jokes.
But when it’s time to roll up his sleeve during flu season, he’s a bit squeamish. “I’m the biggest baby when it comes to getting a shot,” O’Donnell says.
Still, the father of five kids ages “almost 5” to 13 makes sure the whole family is vaccinated every year. Parenting presents constant challenges, he explains, but some decisions are just common sense. “Kids are like little Petri dishes,” he jokes. “My age group, you think you’re impervious to that,” but it’s important to prevent the spread of flu to others who are more vulnerable.
Staying healthy also gives the 42-year-old actor – who played Robin in two “Batman” films and has starred on NCIS Los Angeles since 2009 – more time to boogie board and play volley ball at the beach with the family. The Chicago native says he still can’t get used to the constant sunny weather in his adopted home.
He also needs to stay healthy to juggle the demands of work and family. With NCIS-LA in its fourth season, O’Donnell doesn’t have time for movies or other side projects. He missed a recent round of parent-teacher conferences, but was able to take advantage of a surprise afternoon break to run across town to see his son play football.
He also managed to find time to get his annual flu shot, and says it was a bit easier this year because of Fluzone, a vaccine delivered via a needle that is 90 percent smaller than those on traditional syringes. Squeamish though he is, he barely felt the shot, and headed right back out to his tough guy duties on the NCIS set.
With the U.S. on its way to a record-breaking number of whooping cough cases this year, an advisory panel for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended Oct. 24 that all pregnant women be vaccinated against the illness – even if they had already received the vaccine before they became pregnant.
It seems like we’ve hardly left summer, but now is the time to get ready for flu season. Experts are anticipating this will be a busy one, and manufacturers of influenza vaccine are cranked up and producing around 150 million doses – up 17 million from last year. This means that even though we’re in the middle of October, it is time to round up your family for a flu shot (or flu mist, which works just as well).
The switch to a whooping cough vaccine with fewer side effects more than a decade ago may have left children slightly more vulnerable to the illness – a highly contagious respiratory infection where thick mucus in the windpipe can make it difficult to eat, drink and breathe.
As part of their ongoing campaign to get older kids – think tweens and teens – to get the immunizations they need, public health experts have declared Feb. 12-18 Preteen Vaccine Week. Here is some information from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health about updated vaccine recommendations and changes to state law that apply to this age group. Ideally, these vaccines are given as part of routine doctor visits, to give healthcare providers a chance to discuss other health issues.
The new news about the upcoming 2011-12 flu season is … there is no new news. Experts have determined that the same three strains of flu will be circulating this season as last, and manufacturers have already delivered a vaccine – exactly the same vaccine in use last season – well ahead of schedule.
On the heels of L.A. County’s worst whooping cough epidemic in 60 years, California schools are requiring proof of pertussis booster shots for 7th to 12th graders entering public or private school in the fall. But the push to vaccinate extends beyond these kids.
If you’re allergic to eggs (Egg allergy is most common in kids, and somewhere around 2% of children have it.), take care before getting a flu vaccine. They commonly contain egg and could cause a reaction.
Health officials are saying that more cases of pertussis were reported in L.A. County in October than during any month yet recorded, and are urging anyone not yet vaccinated to take time this weekend and get a Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis) shot.
