Flu of old Flu of new

The irony of the current outbreak is that cold and flu season does not officially begin until the fall. When we compare predecessors to this current flu we see this same scenario unfold. First, a mild-strain hits in the spring. Second, the heat of the summer generally diminishes the strength of a virus, so it remains inactive or harmless for the summer months. Finally, by winter when everyone is inside and cold, it is in the perfect environment for replicating and spreading.

The flu pandemic of 1918 saw a similar pattern. When the 1918 flu struck the United States in the spring it was a mild strain that did little damage. Once summer ended and the fall began, the virus began to take the death toll that it was famous for of that year: half a million Americans lost their lives.

On a lighter note, the 1976 swine flu outbreak was far milder, even in the winter phase. In fact the U.S. was able to jump on a vaccine in the late spring and early summer months. An aggressive vaccination strategy was implemented to counter the growing hysteria of the Swine Flu outbreak at the time. Half-way through the implemented vaccination plan, the Ford Administration had to call off the plans due to the deaths of several elderly people who had used the vaccine. A counter wave of hysteria was created, people began to fear the vaccine more than the flu.