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As if the news isn’t bad enough now, health experts warn that this year’s flu season is shaping up to be the worst in more than a decade.
“The data are ominous,” William Schaffner, medical director for the nonprofit National Foundation for Infectious Diseases and a professor of infectious diseases at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, told the Washington Post. “Not only is flu early, it also looks very severe. This is not just a preview of coming attractions. We’re already starting to see this movie. I would call it a scary movie.”
Flu season, which typically runs from October to May, arrived earlier this year, with more severe consequences than usual, the paper reported. There are already high rates of infections in the Southeast and the illness is expected to make its way up the Atlantic coast.
Fortunately, there is something you can do to help avoid the flu or minimize its impact if you do get sick.
Vaccines are available at pharmacies, clinics and doctors offices throughout the state. The sooner you get one, the better. And you can get a flu shot at the same time as a COVID vaccine if you haven’t received that immunization or booster yet.
Nationally, the number of flu vaccines administered so far this year is lagging, compared with what’s seen typically at this time of year.
“That makes me doubly worried,” Schaffner said. He added that data suggest this “certainly looks like the start of what could be the worst flu season in 13 years.”
Medical visits for flu-like symptoms are already twice the annual average for recent years, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As of last week, there have already been 360 deaths in the U.S. attributed to the flu, including one child.
Influenza, which is contagious, is a respiratory infection. Symptoms can include fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, body aches and an upset stomach. Many of the symptoms are similar to those of COVID. If you’ve been exposed to COVID and believe you may have COVID, at-home tests or PCR tests, which are available at many pharmacies, can help confirm a diagnosis.
With both viruses currently circulating, basic illness prevention such as frequent handwashing, covering coughs and sneezes, avoiding crowds, staying home if you are sick, and wearing masks are important preventive measures.
“Each flu season is different and it is difficult to predict the severity or timing of any given season. Though we can not predict what the upcoming influenza season will look like here in Maine, we do know that influenza has been detected in our state and most of the country is seeing an increase in activity,” Anna Krueger, a Maine Center for Disease Control epidemiologist who specializes in influenza surveillance, told the BDN editorial board. “Now is a great time to get a flu vaccine to protect you and your loved ones from influenza.”
Krueger said that the Maine and federal health officials recommend everyone 6 months and older get a flu vaccine every season.
Getting vaccinated, and taking other health precautions, isn’t a guarantee of avoiding the flu, but it can boost your chances of avoiding the illness that is making its seasonal appearance in Maine.
