Viruses are very tiny particles full of proteins and genetic material. And they have a job to do: infect our bodies/cells and make lots and lots of copies of themselves. The influenza virus in particular targets our lungs, nose, and throat. Then, it invades our cells, sets up shop, and goes to town making millions of […]
Flu season is upon us here in the United States, and it’s not something to be taken lightly. I’m very passionate about flu education and information, and that’s why I’m breaking down everything you need to know about the flu, the influenza virus, and the flu vaccines into three different posts over the next few weeks. […]
The body’s immune system makes antibodies in response to something it believes needs to be destroyed. Most often, antibodies are made to attach to foreign substances, “immunogens”, such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites, animal dander, cancer cells…and the list goes on. Occasionally antibodies are made to our own body’s tissues, as is the case with […]
Worldwide, there are an estimated 1.4 million cases of hepatitis A every year.3 The word “hepatitis” means “inflammation of the liver”. When someone gets hepatitis, the liver’s ability to function becomes compromised. If you’ve been walking this planet for the last decade, you may have heard of the term “hepatitis” thrown around followed by a letter. […]
I have been a huge fan of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) for as long as I have been studying vaccines. Their Vaccine Education Center (VEC) has been one of my go-tos for information that I know I can trust. Being a researcher, I know there’s a lot of bad vaccine information out there. […]