This year marks the centennial of a worldwide flu pandemic that sickened more about 500 million people, of whom 50 million died, including 675,000 Americans. Despite the totality of the pandemic, what many more found shocking was the amount of victims who were young (between the ages of 20-40) and otherwise healthy. After all, this was in the midst of World War I as if there wasn’t enough death and destruction in the world. Today, the flu can be prevented or at least mitigated with a simple ... [Read More]
Flu season
Why is the flu so bad this year?
Each year, influenza, or the “flu” causes widespread illness, hospitalizations, and even death. But in the 2017-18 flu season, the entire continental US was shown by the Centers for Disease Control to have widespread flu activity this winter. It is the first time since the CDC started monitoring flu activity in this way 13 years ago. Why is the flu so bad this year? The strain of flu that people catch varies from year to year, and there is a typical “flu season” every year. It varies ... [Read More]
Guarding Against the Flu
Flu season, much like winter, can come at you pretty hard. On top of bundling up and preparing for the cold, now you have to watch out for the spread of germs that run rampant around the same time of year. Millions are affected by influenza, or the flu, each year. Some may be hospitalized for their symptoms and a few of those people might even die from effects of the flu. That’s why knowing how to avoid the flu and protect yourself is so important. The feeling of a running nose, fever, cough, ... [Read More]
