pA:9, v10.41 — The Good Life — Mountain Views News

The Good Life

Mountain Views News, Pasadena Edition [Sierra Madre] Saturday, October 8, 2016

MVNews this week: Page A:9

THE GOOD LIFE

Mountain Views-News Saturday, October 8, 2016

FLU VACCINES DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR SENIORS

Your InvItatIon to an EvEnt at thE KEnsIngton sIErra MadrERCFE License198601953www.theKensingtonsierraMadre.comthursdaY, octobEr 13, 2016From: 2:00pm – 5:00pm
at the Kensington
245 West sierra Madre blvd.
sierra Madre, ca 91024(626) 355-5700EvEnt dEtaIlsProtect Yourself From This Season’s Flu.
Get Your Flu Shot Here at The Kensington.
The Kensington Sierra Madre is
putting on a Flu Shot Clinic brought
to you by Rite Aid Pharmacy. Most
insurances taken. For more information
call Julie Lacey at 626-355-5700.
Dear Savvy Senior,

Are there any specific flu shots that are better suited
for seniors? I just turned 65 and would like to find
out what’s recommended and how Medicare covers
it.

Semi-Healthy Senior

Dear Semi-Healthy,

There are actually two different flu vaccines
available this year that are designed specifically for
seniors age 65 and older. One option is the Fluzone
High-Dose, which has been available since 2010,
and the other is the new FDA approved FLUAD
vaccine (you only need to get one of these).

The Fluzone High-Dose (see Fluzone.com) is
a high-potency vaccine that contains four times
the amount of antigen as a regular flu shot does,
which creates a stronger immune response for
better protection. While the new FLUAD vaccine
(FLUAD.com) contains an added ingredient called
adjuvant MF59 that also helps create a stronger
immune response.

The extra protection these vaccines provide
is particularly helpful to seniors who have
weaker immune defenses and have a great risk of
developing dangerous flu complications. The CDC
estimates that the flu puts more than 200,000
people in the hospital each year and kills an
average of 24,000 – 80 to 90 percent of whom are
seniors.

But be aware that both the Fluzone High-Dose
and FLUAD are not recommended for seniors who
are allergic to chicken eggs, or those who have had
a severe reaction to a flu vaccine in the past.

You should also know that the Center for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) does not
recommend one vaccination over the other, and
to date, there have been no studies comparing the
two vaccines.

If you decide you don’t want to get a senior-
specific flu shot, there are other options available
to people 65 years and older including the standard
(trivalent) flu shot, the quadrivalent flu shot which
protects against four different flu viruses, and the
FluBlok vaccine for those who have egg allergies.

To locate a vaccination site that offers any of
these flu shots, visit Vaccines.gov and type in your
ZIP code. You’ll also be happy to know that as a
Medicare beneficiary, Part B will cover 100 percent
of the costs of any flu shot, as long as your doctor,
health clinic or pharmacy agrees not to charge you
more than Medicare pays.

Pneumonia Vaccines

Two other important vaccinations the CDC
recommends to seniors, especially this time of year,
are the pneumococcal vaccines for pneumonia.
Around 1 million Americans are hospitalized with
pneumonia each year, and about 50,000 people die
from it.

The CDC is now recommending that all seniors,
65 or older, get two vaccinations –Prevnar 13
and Pneumovax 23. Both vaccines, which are
administered just once at different times, work in
different ways to provide maximum protection.

If you haven’t yet received any pneumococcal
vaccine you should get the Prevnar 13 first,
followed by Pneumovax 23 six to 12 months
later. But if you’ve already been vaccinated with
Pneumovax 23, wait at least one year before getting
the Prevnar 13.

Medicare Part B covers both shots, if they are
taken at least 11 months apart.

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O.
Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.
org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today
show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.

KATIE Tse..........This and That

Happy Fall! My parents and I
recently made our annual visit
to Oak Glen. If you’ve never
been you must go there. Nestled
in the foothills of Yucaipa,
Oak Glen is close enough for a day trip, and far
away enough to get you out of the congestion of
L.A. And, of course, there’s the apples. Not only
are there all kinds of exotic varieties like Mutsu,
Winesap, and Pippin, but there’s also an endless
number of apple-inspired breads, pastries, and
jams. This year I finally gave in and bought a bag
of freshly fried donuts from Snow Line, worth
every calorie. But perhaps the most unusual thing
at Oak Glen is its “museum.” We did not go there
this time. But the one and only time we went was
memorable enough.

A short walk up from the main thoroughfare,
the front of the museum is essentially a pet shop.
There are several parrots in cages, pet food, toys,
and a box with large, unusual beetles on the
counter (that should have been the first tip off).
A nice lady who worked there talked with us for
a while and then asked if we’d like to take a $3
tour of the museum in the back. “It has over 500
different species of animals” she said. As we paid
she added, “Some are even live.” (That should’ve
been the second tip off).

The first thing I noticed on our self-guided
“tour” was the abundance of textured plaster
on the interior walls, reminiscent of the line for
“Thunder Mountain” at Disney Land. We turned
the corner and were met by a large polar bear and
two small seals --all stuffed. The polar bear was
fixed in a walking position, facing the viewer,
teeth bared. The seals, on the other hand, were
lying there stiff as bloated boards. This just isn’t
the sort of thing one expects to see, especially in
southern California. We must have lingered there
for a moment with our mouths open. “So, I guess
this isn’t the live portion” my dad remarked.

The following displays included a bobcat,
mountain goat, and a wolverine. It didn’t seem to
matter whether or not these animals would have
actually shared the same habitat in real life. In
death they were all brought together in one big,
stiff family. Eventually we came along to the live
exhibits.

In most of the small enclosures the animals
were either hiding or being attended to by a
museum worker I supposed (more on that later).
There wasn’t anything as dramatic as a giant
polar bear, but they had some frogs, lizards,
snakes, and spiders. Eventually we came to the
rabbits, chickens, parakeets, and a large, energetic
iguana. Most of them were roaming around in
open-air pens. One of the rabbits was missing an
ear. The iguana was by far the most lively of the
bunch. It took a keen interest in my mom, and
kept vigorously nodding its head and sticking out
its tongue at her. When she moved to the other
side it followed after her, and climbed up the cage
walls to get closer. There were two huge “things”
on its neck that looked like thick slices of zucchini.
Maybe it had iguana goiter. Although it seemed
bent on captivating Mom, we eventually pulled
ourselves free from it and exited the museum.

Driving home, we laughed about the odd
displays and their unusual use of taxidermy. “You
know, a lot of those cages weren’t secure” Dad said.
“What do you mean?” we asked. “Well, a lot of
them were closed, but not actually locked. That’s
why I was real careful where I was stepping.”
“Well, I guess it would be bad to squish one of their
frogs or lizards,” I remarked. “No,” Dad replied,
“I was more concerned about the scorpions. They
appeared to be missing.” And so ended another
exciting trip to Oak Glen. I’m sure we’ll be back,
but we’ll probably skip the museum next time (we
did).

DAY AT THE MUSEUM

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