No, not the nCoV, just the regular flu

While 2019-nCoV has gotten the world's attention because it airborne and transmission is person-to-person, the truly scary virus is the one that hits every year when people tend to stay indoors, the flu.

At a Glance

* An estimated 15 million have been stricken with the flu in the U.S. so far.

* The virus has killed some 8,200 in the U.S. alone.

* Youth flu deaths have more than doubled compared to last season.

Several schools in the U.S., and in some cases entire districts, have canceled classes in recent days due to a high percentage of students sick with the flu and other seasonal illnesses. Schools were closed Monday and Tuesday in Jefferson County, Tennessee, about 30 miles east of Knoxville, WBIR.com reported. Classes were canceled Friday and Monday in Union County, Tennessee, the report added.

In Ohio, the Zane Trace School District was closed Monday, according to the Chillicothe Gazette.

Zane Trace Superintendent Jerry Mowery told the newspaper on Monday that all activities and classes were canceled and school buildings were disinfected. Mowery estimated that about one in four students in the school system, about 40 miles south of Columbus, had the flu.

"We might be just a little under that, however, we seem to see it increasing in the last couple school days, Thursday to Friday and then today it's kind of hit our staff," he said. "It's rolling into our staff ... and we have it with our bus drivers, so we're getting into personnel."

Public health officials have said this year's flu season is unique because two strains of the virus – influenza B and influenza A – are spreading at almost equal rates.

Influenza B was dominant at the beginning of the season. Since that particular strain doesn't affect older people as much, officials predicted there might be fewer flu deaths this year.

But that also means the flu has hit children especially hard.

At least 54 children have died of the flu this season, according to the CDC, compared to 22 pediatric deaths reported by this time last year. More than 50% of those who have tested positive for the flu have been under the age of 25.

The Weather Channel (weather.com), Jan. 27, 2020 - With 8,000-Plus Deaths in U.S. Alone, Flu Far More Deadly Than Coronavirus.

That was from Monday! So there are 2 viruses out there. Here is what the flu vaccine gaurds against

Flu vaccines are updated to better match viruses expected to be circulating in the United States.

* The A(H1N1)pdm09 vaccine component was updated from an A/Michigan/45/2015 (H1N1)pdm09-like virus to an A/Brisbane/02/2018 (H1N1)pdm09-like virus.
* The A(H3N2) vaccine component was updated from an A/Singapore/INFIMH-16-0019/2016 A(H3N2)-like virus to an A/Kansas/14/2017 (H3N2)-like virus.
* Both B/Victoria and B/Yamagata virus components from the 2018-2019 flu vaccine remain the same for the 2019-2020 flu vaccine.

All regular-dose flu shots will be quadrivalent. (No trivalent regular-dose flu shots will be available this season.)

cdc.gov - Frequently Asked Influenza (Flu) Questions: 2019-2020 Season.

H1N1, and H3N2.

H1N1 is also known as the "Swine flu" and has been around since 2009. H3N2 is a sub-type of influenza A virus. But the real world is seeing the influenza B virus which the vaccine doesn't seem to cover.

That is kind of scary! I think the swine flu was the big scare from the 70s so I hope I have had enough exposure over the years from my injection. I am not an anti vaxxer, but don't fall into the groups that really need them so tend to not get a yearly shot.

It is a gamble that I live with (no booster) but it looks like this year's soup mix completely misses the B strain (if I am mistaken, it is my fault).

This "season" sounds awful! And there is already an out break raging at a low boil. The vaccine helps with symptoms and shortens the total sick time, so it is not a complete waste of your effort. If you are older, or have kids, please see to their and yours (and in so doing, all of our) health.

8,200 deaths is a serious matter. It is already here (45 states). It doesn't come from China. And it is still January! There are 2 more months to go this "season" (usually ends in April).



PS - The vaccine is grown in cells, not eggs. Last Monday's numbers were 13 million so we added another 2 million in a week!

Add Knoxville/Knox county schools are closed until next Tuesday. I spoke with my Doc this morning, they have been busy for a few weeks.

a reply to: TEOTWAWKIAIFF

We know what we're getting with the flu though... And most of us can catch it and be done with it no problem.

The new Coronavirus is novel... And a lot of the people who have caught it still have it, so we don't know the true mortality rates. We also don't know how bad transmission is... Since it's only now getting footing.

I've been throwing a lot of shade towards China for not being forthright... And to be honest, I'm almost as skeptical about my own country being honest. No one wants panic as it could deliver a blow to markets and cause mayhem.

Hopefully this blows over like the rest of the scares we've had.

Whelp, it's for true that standard, non-weaponized influenza is a harsh mistress ... thigh high black boots and all.

Wash your hands, stay hydrated, eat well, avoid people like the plague and a tip that seems effective is to get some UV light in winter (or take some vit d3) and take vit c in amounts that seem unnecessary.

I'd ask for reports to test the methodology, but the failures might not get reported!

I’ll be scared when the flu shuts down a country of over a billion and plummets the worlds economy. Till then you guys be scared of the flu.

a reply to: TEOTWAWKIAIFF

Bet the real numbers in China surpass an entire year of the flu within just a month.

Gotta wait till the real facts get out.

Never trust China.

There are also riots happening with the workers at their new hospitals that are being built.

They even shut down their Stock Exchange..

With these statistics, if they gave the flu a new name, we would see panicking like never before

Sorry all. Had a "must be done in an hour" report thing come up.

a reply to: Nickn3

It is amazing whole districts get it at once! At least it will be over done with!

The reason I put "flu season" in quotes, is that there is not really a season for it, just a better chance of getting it during this time period due to being indoors with sick people.

a reply to: CriticalStinker

The guessing game on what goes into the flu vaccine is rather inefficient. And most people BM&C about the vaccine making them sick anyways.

Hope this passes as quickly as it showed up (seriously! Someone down the hall coughed as I typed that! Ah, Universe is not without its own sense of irony!).

Nice thing about nCoV is that we can watch from the sidelines and get our Big Gulp of Doom Porn on the side!

a reply to: Baddogma

Oh, and don't drink bleach trying to kill off the virus!! Seriously, there was a report of people drinking bleach because they feared the coronavirus and TPTB had to issue a warning to not drink bleach! I know I shouldn't laugh but I really did...

20 seconds of hand washing, with soap is all you need. "Maybe if I had some Lava or something... this stuff is hard to get off!"

Or, if you live in a cold weather area, were gloves and don't touch cigarettes you find on the bus with your bare hands while you smoke it!

*shakes his head* "Bleach..."

a reply to: IrateCanadian

Never trust China.

Hey citizen.

Stop read rumors. Online full liars. People hate CCP because success communism. World health organization say good job today. China numba wan. Numbers reported by government low. Stop scaring family. Wash hands, continue production.

This just cold. Normal cold, not from bat soup.

Don't mind construction... Definitely not crematorium.new smelters.

Previous research suggested low temperatures and humidity in the winter create a favorable environment for transmitting the flu virus. However, the 2017-2018 flu season was one of warmest on record and yet also one of the deadliest. The Centers for Disease Control reported 186 children's deaths during the 2017-2018 season. The previous high was 171 during the 2012-2013 season.

During the 2017-2018 flu season, scientists found that the extreme fluctuations in weather during the autumn months essentially kick-started the flu, building a patient population early in the season that snowballed in densely populated areas given the contagious nature of the virus.

phys.org, Jan. 30, 2020 - Rapid weather swings increase flu risk.

Thank you Universe!

It seems that the whiplash weather changes also play some role in flu.

Besides AGW, would anyone venture a guess why?

Baddogma said to "wash your hands". Along with that suggestion, I would say, "Stop touching your face". Your finger tips are where the dirt dance congregates. So think. If you touch your nose with funky fingers, that funk is now on your nose. It is even more direct if you touch your eyes (remember those mucus membrane warnings??).

The weather whipping around dirt, moisture, dried spit, powdered dog poo, and influenza viruses, is probably a good reason for the article! As the low pressure move out the high pressure system, the winds pick up, and all the stuff on the ground gets whipped around. And probably in your eyes.

TEOT's theory. I can be totally off the mark. But it makes sense if you think about it.

a reply to: TEOTWAWKIAIFF

The more I read about this coronavirus, the more I think of Stephen King's book - "The Stand".

I haven't read it in 30 years. It might be time to dust it off and give it a re-read.

I just feel bad for anyone who is susceptible to getting the flu. Especially the people who seem to get it every singke year, even after receiving a flu shot.

Makes me feel fortunate that I'm apparently immune to all the strains so far. I've yet to fall ill to it.

Now seasonal pollen allergies, JHCDoublehickeysticks do those absolutely wreck me.

Living here in Tennessee and none of my friends have been told to keep their kids home. So I guess Rutherford and Williamson counties are alright. Maybe Davidson county as well. Oh and Coffee county seems alright too.

you didn't know!! 5 people have wu-flu in murica EVERYBODY IS GOING TO DIE AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

a reply to: Riffrafter

Remember to listen to The Alarm, The Stand, before you meet your maker. That is another 30 year reference!

The new kid on the block does sound like bad news. One “novel” I don’t want to pick up!

(Yeah, beer has reached my brain stem. Sorry for the puns! But my day can use some humor, so I swing for the fences...)

a reply to: CriticalStinker

Hahahahaha star for you.

All those people did not die from the flu....many of those deaths are from secondary problems like sepsis and pneumonia. Sepsis is when your own immune system overreacts and attacks you. A cytokine storm. The flu can weaken you, that can make you more apt to get pneumonia, but Sepsis is from too strong of an immune response. Some things might lower your risk of cytokine storms, like avoiding pickles with allum or foods made with aluminum based baking powders or aluminum preservatives in prepared goods and supplies. Making sure not to overeat these aluminum chemistries is good, a little aluminum won't kill us, but it is a neuroexcitant and should not be overconsumed. A couple of pickles is usually not a problem, a half a bottle would probably be a problem. Some pickles do not have allum in them, and it does not have to be listed unless above two percent. When you taste the two, with and without, you will be able to tell better if that brand contains the chemistry, it reacts somehow and gives the pickles a different taste. I and my family can taste the difference, maybe some people who do not get enough zinc might not.

Eight children have died from the flu in Tennessee so far this season. Im glad these counties are taking disinfection seriously. www.wvlt.tv...

www.wvlt.tv...

do you think with everyone taking precautions via wearing masks & handwashing from the scare of this virus that maybe it can also help lessen the overall spread of general virus such as the normal flu and other disease spread?

Imagining if I could wear a mask at work in childcare, none of those lil booger kids could sneeze in my face and give me gastro anymore

/ta reply to: TEOTWAWKIAIFF

a reply to: AutomateThis1

Knock on wood I'm kinda the same. I just moved from the Boro to Northern VA and both strains have hit pretty hard. We all get the vaccinations but only my wife got the flu. Unfortunately she had a B strain over christmas, and is just now getting over the A strain (she is a teacher)...

a reply to: TEOTWAWKIAIFF

Drinking bleach, huh? Well, expect utter stupidity from most people and you won't be disappointed... even from the smartest of us at some points.

The thing is, and this is speaking towards other bigger things in this world, we shouldn't make models from the dumbest of us ... we should model from the best of us and allow the rest to catch up.

But sure, some PSAs to 'not drink bleach' might be kind , but then it takes up precious resources for communicating real novel information that might save someone who already knows not to drink the stupid bleach.

An interesting moral conundrum... and one that's easily figured out by Darwinist(as).