“Influenza (flu) is a contagious viral infection that can cause mild to severe symptoms and life-threatening complications, including death, even in healthy children and adults.
There was an epidemic of H1N1 Influenza that began in 1918 and petered out in about 1950. At the time, the spread of “The Flu” was blamed by many on the electrification of homes. Another H1N1 pandemic began from 1970 and is still with us today. A more severe flu variant, H3N2, has been running parallel. Electrification has nothing to do with any of it.
Like COVID, influenza viruses spread mainly from one individual to another through coughing or sneezing. Less often, they can also spread through touching a contaminated surface and then touching the mouth, eyes, or nose. Individuals can pass flu on to others even before their own symptoms start and for a week or more after symptoms begin.
In the US, millions of individuals get sick, and tens of thousands die from flu and related complications each year. Flu costs an estimated $10 billion in direct and indirect costs in the US annually. During the 2019-2020 flu season, flu vaccination prevented approximately 7.5 million flu illnesses, 100,000 hospitalizations, and 6,000 deaths.”
