MACON, Ga. — The first day of fall is two weeks away, but flu season seems to be ramping up earlier in Georgia than in previous years.
According to the Georgia Department of Public Health, flu season starts in early October and can run as late as May.
So how can you prepare for this year's flu season? Primary Pediatrics pediatrician Lance Slade talked about the importance of flu shots.
"This year it's now starting once kids go back to school and around each other," Slade said. "It ramps up as the season progresses. As soon as flu comes, then you get more and more demands for it."
Slade also talked about what age groups are mainly affected by flu season.
"The infants, the elderly, the immunocompromised," Slade said. "We love them especially to be protected, but then you also got to think about the kids that have asthma, heart disease and stuff like that, they're that much more of a risk and so we want to protect everybody if we can"
And when it comes to protection, a parent's main priority is for their kids to be protected.
Christa Stavely was out enjoying some mid-day shopping at The Shoppes with her son when asked about the flu shot.
"It's important for my kid," Stavely said. "I like to keep him protected the best way and every parent's gonna protect their child in their own way."
Stavely makes sure she and her family get the flu shot every year.
"I mean we get it, my son gets it, it's just overall an important thing to protect," Stavely said. "I work with people who have respiratory issues so definitely if you have an underlying respiratory issue, it is very important,"
With the additional rise in COVID-19 variants, it's even more important to update your vaccination card.
"The flu can have different strains every year and we're starting to see with COVID it's the same way," Slade said. "So that's the idea by doing a flu vaccine every year and that one changes each year."
Overall, when should you get the flu vaccine?
"It's all about when you can go and get it," Stavely said. "I mean the sooner you can get it obviously the better and at least annually But some people will go and get it twice a year and that's good too."
Slade says now is the best time to get your flu shot. Primary Pediatrics is extending its hours and opening more appointments for shots this month.