Compiled for your use by central Illinois health departments, hospitals and the Red Cross:

• To help protect yourself and others from the flu, follow the 3Cs:

1. Clean your hands or use hand sanitizer
2. Cover your cough and sneezes with a tissue or your sleeve, not your hands
3. Contain your germs by staying home when ill.

• Get your seasonal flu shot and the H1N1 flu shot; they are different shots.
• It generally takes about 7-10 days to develop best immunity after receiving the vaccine.
• Those who are most at risk of the flu should receive the H1N1 vaccine as soon as it is available. They include:

1. Pregnant women
2. Caregivers of infants less than 6 months old
3. Those 6 months old-24 years old
4. People with chronic health care conditions such as asthma and diabetes.

• Symptoms of both the seasonal and H1N1 flu may include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills, fatigue, and sometimes diarrhea and vomiting.
• H1N1 is another strain of the flu. If you have flu-like symptoms, treat as you would the seasonal flu.
• If you or your child has flu symptoms, stay home and get plenty of liquids and rest. Take Tylenol for a fever.
• Do not return to work or school for at least 24 hours after you no longer have a fever without the use of Tylenol. If you are still using Tylenol to keep the fever down, DO NOT return to work or school.
• Most symptoms can be mild, but if you get worse or have other chronic health conditions, contact your doctor for instructions.
• There are tests for the flu, but these not not routine tests. Some tests can confirm H1N1 flu, but these are special tests usually done only if people are hospitalized. Your healthcare provider can usually diagnose the flu from the flu-like symptoms. Testing does not change how people are treated for the flu.
• You do not get the flu from the flu shots (there are some nasal sprays that are made differently from the shots and those sprays are reserved specifically for more healthy individuals).
• Research shows past flu vaccines are very safe; most complications from a flu shot are redness or soreness at the injection site.
• For questions, call the non-medical Illinois Flu Hotline questions, 866-848-2094 (English) and 866-241-2138 (Espanol).