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Vaccine Safety

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December 2, 2020
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Vaccine Safety

Vaccines play an important role in keeping us healthy and, with vaccines in the news, you may have questions. MedlinePlus has information on:

Vaccines
Vaccine Safety
COVID-19 Vaccines

World AIDS Day

World AIDS Day was December 1st and was first observed in 1988. AIDS (autoimmune deficiency syndrome) is the final stage of HIV (human immunodeficiency virus). HIV remains a global public health concern. Treatment and prevention begin with knowing your HIV status. Here are some strategies that can help reduce the risk HIV:

  • Get tested for HIV
  • Choose less risky sexual behaviors. Limit the number of sexual partners you have and using condoms every time you have sex.
  • Get tested and treated for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)
  • Don’t inject drugs
  • Talk to your health care provider about medicines to prevent  HIV:
    • PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) is for people who don’t already have HIV but are at very high risk of getting it. PrEP is daily medicine that can reduce this risk.
    • PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis) is for people who have possibly been exposed to HIV. It is only for emergency situations. PEP must be started within 72 hours after a possible exposure to HIV.

Preparing for Cold Weather

It’s a smart idea to have a plan for winter weather emergencies. Check out these tips and reminders for keeping yourself and your loved ones safe during the colder months.

Treating Cholesterol with Medicines

If you have high cholesterol, lifestyle changes can help you to lower your cholesterol level. But sometimes lifestyle changes are not enough, and you need to take medication. There are several types of cholesterol-lowering drugs available including:

Statins block the liver from making cholesterol.

Bile acid sequestrants decrease the amount of fat absorbed from food.

Cholesterol absorption inhibitors decrease the amount of cholesterol absorbed from food and lower triglycerides.

Nicotinic acid (niacin) lowers LDL (bad) cholesterol and triglycerides and raises HDL (good) cholesterol. Even though you can buy niacin without a prescription, you should talk to your health care provider before taking it to lower your cholesterol. High doses of niacin can cause serious side effects.

PCSK9 inhibitors block a protein called PCSK9. This helps your liver remove and clear LDL cholesterol from your blood.

Fibrates lower triglycerides. They may also raise HDL (good) cholesterol. If you take them with statins, they may increase the risk of muscle problems.

Combination medicines include more than one type of cholesterol-lowering medicine

Learn more about treating high cholesterol with medicines.

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Creamy Potato Leek Soup

Try this light version of classic Creamy Potato Leek Soup to warm you up this week.

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