Making sense of slimming

No one wants to catch the flu - it hits you suddenly and can really knock you sideways - giving you a fever, a runny nose, and a nasty cough. You ache all over and it can be very hard to sleep, making your symptoms feel even worse.

Plus, for those considered ‘at risk’, the consequences can be very serious, and sometimes even fatal. In fact, flu kills thousands of people in the UK every year. Among those in the ‘at risk’ group, poultry workers are currently being urged to get their free flu jab.

Poultry workers include people who work in areas where poultry are kept for rearing or egg production purposes. If you handle or catch live poultry, you sort eggs in poultry houses, or you slaughter or clean poultry, you are also entitled to the vaccine.

A new flu?

Free flu vaccination is being offered to poultry workers because people who work in close contact with poultry may have a slight risk of catching bird flu if an outbreak occurred.

If the bird flu and human flu viruses were to mix, a new flu virus could be made. A flu vaccination protects against human flu, reducing the risk of the viruses mixing due to a person having both human flu and bird flu at the same time. If this happened, the new virus could be very infectious, but the flu jab will reduce the chances of this occurring.

The chances of this happening are slight, and the Department of Health has made it clear that this is a precautionary measure. It does not mean there is an increased risk of a bird flu outbreak in the UK. This risk remains low.

Low risk workers

The following workers are not considered to be at higher than normal risk of exposure to avian influenza viruses:

• workers in poultry units that do not require statutory registration,

• workers in and around farms that have registered poultry units, but do not enter the enclosed poultry management areas or egg sorting facilities,
• workers delivering materials to poultry units,
• workers collecting or delivering eggs or poultry (live or dead) from poultry premises (unless also undertaking duties included in regularly accessing enclosed poultry rearing or egg production areas; performing initial sorting of poultry eggs if the sorting area is an integral part of the production unit; catching or culling poultry within enclosed poultry rearing or egg production areas; or performing final clean down of poultry sheds following depopulation of a poultry house),
• workers in poultry processing units handling poultry carcasses but not involved in killing or eviscerating (gutting) poultry (unless also undertaking duties included in catching and handling live birds, killing and eviscerating (gutting) birds, or cleansing and disinfecting areas and equipment contaminated by poultry faeces).

You should not be vaccinated if you:

• are allergic to hens’ eggs,

• have had a serious reaction to flu vaccine in the past,
• currently have flu symptoms, for example a temperature of 39°C and above. However, you can have the vaccine when you are better, or
• have already had a flu jab this year. You should have it again next autumn.

Slight side effects

Some people get a slight temperature and aching muscles for a couple of days afterwards, and your arm may feel a bit sore where you were injected. Other reactions are very rare.

Remember, the flu vaccine does not protect against bird flu. However, you can lower your chances of getting bird flu by following health and safety guidance for working with poultry and by making sure simple hygiene measures at work are followed.

More advice is available on the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs website or Health and Safety Executive website.

Glossary

Ache

An ache is a constant dull pain in a part of the body.

Fever

A fever is when you have a high body temperature (over 38C or 100.4F).

Vaccination

Vaccination or immunisation is usually given by an injection that makes the body’s immune system produce antibodies that will fight off a virus.