Bad flu season ahead?

Flu season is just getting underway in the United States, and it's too early to predict whether the season will shape up to be mild or severe. But the verdict in Britain is in, and it's bad.

The United Kingdom is having its worst flu season since 1999-2000, according to a story in the Daily Mail. The culprit is an H3N2 flu strain known as A/Brisbane/10/2007. As usually is the case with flu, the elderly are most at risk for life-threatening complications. But even large numbers of young and middle-aged adults are falling ill, in part, doctors say, because they are the least likely to have gotten a "jab," or a flu shot.

Trends over the last 30 years show that when an H3N2 strain circulates, the influenza season tends to be more severe, according to Dr. Carolyn Bridges of the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Those are the years that you're more likely to see higher numbers of severe illnesses and deaths," she said in a telephone interview.

The good news is that the Brisbane strain is one of three strains targeted by this year's flu vaccine, in the United States as well as in Britain.

It's not too late to get a flu shot, Bridges said. It takes about two weeks after a shot for the body to develop antibodies, but flu season doesn't usually peak until February.

Unlike in previous years, there is an ample supply of vaccine this year. And unlike last year, the vaccine appears to be a good match for both of the influenza A strains circulating, the H3N2 and an H1N1 strain. This American Lung Assn. website can help you locate a clinic giving flu shots.

A Consumer Reports telephone survey last fall of 2,011 adults found that only 52% planned to get a flu shot. Among the excuses: Nearly half said they don't  get sick; 67% said it was better to build up natural immunity; and 5% said they'd rather get sick than go to work. A particularly bad flu season could change their minds.

-- Mary Engel

Comments

[mark]

I don't get why people don't get flu shots. I started getting them in the army 25 yrs ago and never got the flu. Then when I got out of the army and forgot about the shots I would get the flu and it sucked. I started getting them again and I haven't had the flu since.

The problem is that these people get sick and spread it around to everyone else. So it isn't a totally personal choice. I don't want your flu and neither do your co- workers and relatives. Get the darn shot.

[Patricia]

Some people -- like people with autoimmune disorders, for example -- aren't allowed by their doctors to get flu shots because their medication conflicts with the vaccine.

Those people are only protected from dying of the flu when members of the general population get their flu shots. When people who aren't immune-suppressed get flu shots, they protect more than just themselves.

I wish you would advertise that fact in your newspaper. I think many more healthy people would get flu shots if they knew they could be saving the lives of vulnerable individuals who have to take immune suppressants to live.

[Ingrid]

Some people don't get the flu shot because it contains nasty chemicals that are bad for the body - like mercury. I've had the flu shot once in the past 15 years and that was the year I got the flu. Otherwise, I haven't had the flu in over 15 years. Besides, the flu shot doesn't always work - it doesn't necessarily catch that particular strain of flu for that year.

There are other ways people can avoid the flu besides the shot. Wash your hands, eat healthy foods, get some exercise. I have a friend who is an organic dairy farmer. I asked his wife the other day what they do when he gets sick - who milks the cows and does all the work? She said - he just doesn't get sick. Ever. To boot - he drives a schoolbus everyday in the morning and afternoon - exposing himself to many "germy" kids in a small contained space.

What's his secret to avoiding the flu? Well, look at his lifestyle -he drinks fresh raw organic milk from his organic cows every day. He gets a good dose of exercise at 5am and at 5pm every day milking and caring for the cows. He eats organic food. He gets fresh air. He follows a very routined schedule with his life - waking up early, going to bed early. These are rare things for most people.