Many people have strong opinions about getting their annual Influenza shot. Getting a flu shot can help prevent the disease, but some people feel strongly that they either don’t help, or that it makes it worse. Often the people that really need it the most feel the strongest that the flu vaccine each year is worthless or doesn’t work.

And most of the time they do not have any actual evidence to back up their belief, just a "feeling."

Well, now a new study refutes this type of anecdotal feelings, especially on the part of older workers in the America. Those workers who are aged 50 years of age to 64 years of age are less likely to miss work, and less likely to get Influenza when they have been administered the annual Influenza vaccine.

The new study is being published in the February 1st issue of "Clinical Infectious Diseases Journal." It details a study performed by the University of Minnesota, and the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Previously there just has not been a great deal of information that has been available, so people that are older especially feel strongly one way or another about getting a flu shot. Many people experience and work to try and confirm their "feeling," but they often are still left just with their opinion without any hard data or evidence.

Well this new study confirms that Influenza shots work, especially in older clients and patients.

Up to now, despite a push for vaccination of older citizens that has been occurring since about 2000, much of the issue with older citizens and getting flu shots is that no one seems to have any proof that the Vaccines work, until now.

Dr. Kristin L. Nichol and her medical associates that worked on the study said they gave out surveys periodically since October 2006. Each of the surveys asked questions about how the participants felt, whether they got the flu, whether or not they missed work.

Of the nearly 500 people in the study, about 81 percent had received a flu shot. Of that total that got a flu shot only 17 percent wound up getting the flu.

Originally 497 people participated in the study, and 85 got the flu of the 404 who had the flu shot. But of the 93 people that did not get the influenza shot it appeared that nearly 69 people got the flu, a huge difference in numbers compared to those that did get the flu vaccine.