Help stop spread of flu

Flu shots are both personal protection and a way to prevent infection of others.

Forty eight states, including South Carolina, are reporting widespread flu activity. If you were hesitant about getting a flu shot to protect yourself, think about getting one to protect someone else.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control reported this week that the high level of flu activity this early in the season is unprecedented. Hospitalization rates are higher than expected for this time of the year — similar to the peak during an ordinary flu season — and they are rising.

The good news? Almost all of the influenze viruses identified so far are the 2009 H1N1 influenza A virus — the so-called swine flu — which is susceptible to the 2009 vaccine developed by scientists.

Unfortunately, while the H1N1 vaccine apparently is effective, there isn't much of it to go around yet. Manufacturers are rushing to produce and distribute the vaccine nationwide.

The vaccine developed last year to combat other flu viruses has been widely available for months. Doctors recommend getting that shot as soon as possible.

The available swine-flu vaccine, however, will be administered first to those in the highest risk groups. Those groups include: pregnant women; people who are in contact with infants under 6 months old; children and young adults from 6 months to 24 years old; people with chronic health problems; teachers and child-care workers. It might be as late as December or January before the vaccine becomes available to anyone who wants it.

Swine flu, however, appears to be more serious among young people, hitting them harder than older adults. So far, 119 children have died in the United States from the virus.

Some might be reluctant for a variety of reasons to get a flu shot or have their children vaccinated. While no one can be forced to get the shot, failure to get vaccinated not only increases the odds that an individual will become infected with the virus but also that he or she will spread it to someone else.

Getting the vaccine is not simply a means of protecting ourselves, it also is a means of containing the pandemic. We humans are a herd, and the more of us who are vaccinated, the less likely the disease is to spread to others in the herd.

The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control estimates, based on data from previous years, that at least 10 percent of the state's population — or about 400,000 people — will get the flu by the end of the season. But if people shy away from getting flu shots, the numbers could be much higher.

And remember, the H1N1 vaccine itself is not dangerous. It already has been administered to thousands of people with only minor side effects, such as a sore arm. The vaccine does not cause the flu; it enables the body to resist infection.

Think of a flu shot both as personal protection and a social obligation. You don't want to get sick and you don't want to make other people sick, either.