One of the few bright spots during the pandemic was a sharp decline in the number of influenza cases. The flu was responsible for tens of thousands of deaths in America each winter until this year, when the focus on COVID-19 and precautions such as hand-washing, masks and social distancing all but eliminated the flu.
Unfortunately, a recent report by NBC News quotes health experts as predicting the flu may return with a vengeance after taking a year off.
“We’ve gone over a year without a significant portion of the population getting infected with flu and getting immunity because of that,” said Dr. Andy Pekosz, a microbiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “That could mean that the susceptible people in the population to flu are going to be increasing.”
The doctors interviewed by NBC said that with reduced immunity to the influenza virus, it will be especially important this fall for people to consider getting a flu vaccine. Get ready to roll up your sleeves.
