QUESTION:

Can getting the flu shot early be effective?

ANSWER:

Experts say yes, this is beneficial.

SOURCES:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Devin Minor: Banner Health, American

PROCESS:

As we say get ready to welcome fall, is it too soon to start talking about the flu shot already? With cases of the flu already reported in North Dakota and Washington state.

Our Verify team is all about getting you the facts on things you see online-- like the discussion of the flu shot, like can getting vaccinated too early not be as effective?

So our Verify team reached out to the Centers for Disease and Control along with medical experts for answers.

The CDC said it is not possible to predict how severe the flu season with the timing and length of it varying every season but flu activity in the US begins to increase in October and November, peaking between December and February and lasting as late as May.

The CDC said it's key to get a flu vaccine before influenza starts spreading in your community, recommending getting the shot if it's available now between the end of October. We then spoke with a physician at Banner Health, about the effectiveness of getting vaccinated before the start of flu season.

"I recommend getting it earlier because it takes a few weeks for that flu shot to really become effective. You don't want to wait until the middle of the flu season because you don't know when the peak season will be. Flu shot doesn't typically wear off," said Dr. Devin Minior.

Dr. Minior also said the flu shot doesn't typically wear off.

"Getting a flu shot as soon as the vaccine is available in your community should be on every parent's checklist, along with other back-to-school routines," Experts at The American Academy of Pediatrics advised.