I AM @theessential

Hello Fellow Steemians,

The flu has been making headlines all around the nation this year. It seems like every day we are hearing about more and more deaths associated with the flu and its complications.

We hear things in the news and by word of mouth every day that incites fear in all of us. We go to work and discuss articles we read on facebook about perfectly healthy people contracting and dying from this disease we call the flu..

But how can we separate the truth from the propaganda?

How bad is the flu this year? Is it worse than previous years?

What should we do if we get the flu? Should we get a flu shot?

Today we are going to discuss some of these issues. Let’s see if we can get to the bottom of this...

Before we begin- a little disclaimer:

I am a nurse but I am not offering medical advice. This post is meant to be for entertainment and informative purposes only. I strongly urge you to always follow the advice of a medical doctor/practitioner when it comes to illness or medical questions. All information in this post will be from my personal opinions and from data I’ve gathered from CDC and other sources. Again, this is not medical advice. If you are sick or someone you know is sick- you should see your doctor at the earliest connivence.

WHAT IS THE FLU

It is important to recognize that the flu or Influenza- is a respiratory illness that is caused by a group of viruses categorized by letters A, B and C. The viruses that cause true influenza are of the orthomyxovirus family.

The flu is often mistakenly used to identify symptoms of nasusea, vomiting, and diarrhea. These symptoms are usually caused by a condition called gastroenteritis.

Gastroenteritis is not caused by the influenza virus but rather many other viruses and bacteria that causes irritation to the stomach and intestines.

Symptoms of Influenza include:

• Headache

• Fever

• Chills

• Moderate to severe body aches

• Runny Nose

• Sore throat

• Dry cough (or very little sputum production) with severe chest discomfort

• Malaise (general feeling of sickness or discomfort

• Rarely nausea and vomiting as these symptoms are usually only seen in children with the flu. (Not to be confused by the aforementioned gastroenteritis)

Every person can develop different symptoms from the influenza virus but these are the typical identifiable symptoms.

The common cold and the flu share a lot of the same symptoms. The flu typically has a much quicker onset than a cold. Symptoms of a cold will often appear much more gradually.

With influenza, a cough may occur but is usually dry with very little mucous. A cold will usually have a hacking cough with lots of phlegm and mucous- yellow or green in color.

A cold usually won’t cause a fever and if it does it is low grade. Influenza can cause a much more pronounced fever and include severe body aches and chills. These symptoms are rarely seen in a cold.

if you suspect that your symptoms may be that of influenza, and not a common cold- you should see your doctor immediately for evaluation.

Influenza is classified by its type. There are traditionally three categories of influenza.

• Influenza A

• Influenza B

• Influenza C

Of all the flu categories, type A and B account for the majority of cases during the flu season.

Though influenza Type C causes symptoms, they are typically much less pronounced. Especially when compared to Influenza A and B. It is said that most adults have been exposed to Type C and have antibodies against it.

During the flu season, the annual flu epidemics are caused by Influenza A and B. Usually one becoming the dominating strain of the season.

Type B flu is only carried and transmitted from human to human contact.

Influenza A is the typically the most severe form of the flu. This form of the flu can be further categorized by its subtypes. This is because the Type A strain mutates quickly. Some subtypes of the flu can be carried by animal species other than humans- like birds, swine, dogs, seals and horses.

The bird flu or avian flu is broken down into th H5, H7, and H9 subtypes. The first two being the most severe and the latter usually being the less severe. These strains are most often seen in Asia and Eastern Europe.

WHY DO WE HAVE A FLU SEASON

Well this is a question with a lot of answers. Unfortunately the exact cause of the “Flu Season” is unknown. What we do know, is that the cases of the flu seem to be the most prevalent during the winter months and early spring.

It is hypothesized that the cold dry weather makes it easier for the influenza viruses to thrive and pass from one person to the other. When the weather starts to warm up, there is more moisture in the air. The virus tends to stick to these droplets of moisture in the air- The more moisture, the larger the droplets. Eventually, these droplets become so large that they fall to the ground causing the virus to fall with them. On the ground, the virus is unable to spread through the air and it quickly dies off. This leads to an end of the flu season.

WHICH FLU IS CAUSING THIS YEAR’S PANDEMIC?

This year the most common and widespread strain is also the most severe. It is the influenza A H3N2 subtype- also known as the Aussie Flu. It’s called this because it is the exact same subtype that affected the people of Australia during the Australian winter- in which 170,000 cases were estimated to have occurred.

This subtype of the flu can be transmitted by humans and animals alike. It is the cause of this year’s flu pandemic and has been the culprit of most of the flu related deaths this year.

This influenza subtype has caused many outbreaks over the last decade and a half or so. When Has been the season’s predominant strait, there are often more death that occur, compared to other years- with the exclusion of the H1N1 outbreak of 2009.

Severe symptoms can be expected form the H3N2 flu. This is why we are seeing so many deaths and flu complications.

ARE PEOPLE REALLY DYING? IF SO, HOW MANY?

Every year we see thousands of influenza related deaths. This number has been debated but The CDC estimates that we see between 3000 and 56,000 deaths per year. In the more recent years, the estimate might be closer to 12,000 to 56,000. The latter number representing the worse year.

these number represent the number of deaths from the flu in the United States.

This year certainly will be one of the bad ones. We are seeing more and more people under the age of 65 dying from this flu subtype- especially children. This is often the focus of identifying which years are going to be the worst. Unfortunately as the body ages, the immune system becomes less and less effective. With that being said, the majority of the flu related deaths are from those of advanced ages. Although this is certainly a cause for alarm- this is also typical for mortality rates of any severe illness.

This doesn’t mean you should ignore the risks if you under the age of 65 and have been diagnosed with the flu (or suspect you might have it). Each year, plenty of healthy individuals die from complications of the flu.

WHAT CAUSES THESE FLU RELATED DEATHS?

The flu itself is a pretty severe illness but it’s what the flu does to the body that leaves it susceptible to the even deadlier infections.

When a person has the flu, their immune system is working hard to combat the virus inside their cells. During this time, our bodies are left open to be blindsided by other viruses and disease causing bacteria.

Deaths from influenza are often from these complications that arise from the weakened immune state.

Pneumonia is often a complication of the flu that can cause death. When the immune system is low, the lungs become infected with pneumonia. This causes the lungs to lack the ability to sufficiently exchange oxygen to the cells.

Pneumonia and other flu complications can also lead to sepsis or septic shock. These conditions lead to a lack of perfusion- an absence of normal blood flow. If the body cannot perfuse- oxygen will not be able to reach the vital organs and tissues.

HOW CAN I PREVENT THE FLU

During the flu season it is important to keep hygiene at the first line of defense. Hand washing is very important to stop the spread of illness from one person to another.

The flu is extremely contagious. It is easily spread from one person to the other. It is also important to stay away from those who are sick or who have been diagnosed with the flu. Stay out of other personally space during this time of year. If you have a family member with the flu, consider wearing a mask and keeping at a distance.

This becomes more difficult if you are a parent taking care of a child. If this is the case, you must do your best to prevent the illness from spreading from them to you. If your child is sick, who’s going to take care of them when you get sick also? Keep in mind that the flu is spread by droplets. This comes from coughing, sneezing etc. It is being speculated this year that enough droplets may pass into the air to spread the flu just from breathing. If this is the case, it may be harder to avoid the flu than we thought.

The Flu Shot

Every year a flu vaccine is offered to the public. I recognize that there are risks associated with receiving vaccines and further more- not every person agrees with receiving them. I’m not hear to debate one way or the other.

The CDC recommends that getting your yearly flu shot is the best way to reduce your chances of getting sick. This year, the effectiveness of the flu shot has been debated. The figure seems to be between 10%- 40%. The CDC states that even if the shot is not completely effective in preventing illness altogether, it could be effective in reducing severity and duration of the illness.

WHAT DO I DO IF I HAVE THE FLU, OR SUSPECT THAT I HAVE THE FLU?

If you suspect that you have the flu but have not been diagnosed. You should see your doctor for evaluation and testing.

If you already have the flu and have tested positive. One option is Tamiflu. This is a medication that may help fight the flu virus. It is thought to be most effective when started on the onset of symptoms.

** THIS IS WHY GOING TO THE DOCTOR IS SO IMPORTANT**

Tamiflu may reduce symptoms of the flu and even shorten its duration if taken before symptoms are severe.

The flu itself has no other specific treatment. Even tamiflu is not a cute. If you have the flu you will most likely be given supportive and symptomatic treatment. This means that only symptoms of the flu can be treated.

With that being said, rest and fluids are a good staple when you are sick with anything. Influenza included.

When you rest, the body can focus on fighting off the infection. Keep up your fluid intake because it is easy to become dehydrated during times of sickness. Being hydrated helps the body function appropriately for fighting off whatever it is facing.

Tylenol and ibuprofen can also be helpful in easing symptoms of the flu. These medications will reduce a fever and help with the body aches associated with the flu.

Citations

All images posted are royalty free from pexels.com

Information was retrieved from CDC.GOV

All other information was written based on my knowledge and experience in the field.

Thank you for stopping by Steemians

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