Alberta’s flu season is underway, AHS encouraging vaccination

CALGARY (660 NEWS) — A very contagious virus is back for another year.

It’s flu season until April or May, and Alberta Health Services (AHS) is encouraging all Albertans six months of age and older to get the free vaccine.

AHS explains most cases of influenza show up in January or later, depending on the year.

Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Chief Medical Officer with Alberta Health, says our flu season could be similar to Australia’s.

“They had an early flu season, but not a severe one, so even though we look to Australia as a predictor of some seasons, it’s not a guarantee that we’ll see the same thing and so far we have no indication of an early season,” she said.

READ MORE: Flu numbers are down but experts say Alberta not out of the woods 

Unfortunately, according to AHS, catching the virus is as simple as breathing in after an infected person coughs, sneezes or even talks, or by touching an inanimate object previously touched by a person who has influenza.

“The exact strains that are going to be the dominate ones this year, whether it’s H3N2, H1N1, how much Influenza-B plays into it, those are all things we have to see from our surveillance data,” she said.

Not sure if you caught the virus? The flu is different than a cold. It starts faster, lasts longer, and the symptoms are much worse. AHS describes the initial symptoms as; a headache, chills and a cough, followed by things such as a fever, loss of appetite, achy muscles, fatigue, runny nose, watery eyes, and even a sore throat.

AHS adds if you have health problems like diabetes or asthma, the flu can make your health problems worse.

READ MORE: Alberta Doctors hope to influence vaccinations to stop influenza 

To prevent the spread of flu germs, AHS suggests Albertans get immunized annually, therefore decreasing your risk of getting influenza by about half or lessening your symptoms if you do get the virus.

Children under the age of 9 will need two doses of the vaccine, at least four weeks apart, everyone over that age will just need one dose. Hinshaw says they have a plan in place in case they run out of the vaccine.

“We know that the highest priority is to immunize those who are at high-risk for complications, so if at some point we determined that there was going to be a shortage, we would have to re-evaluate our criteria,” she said.

For more information on anything flu-related, visit the AHS website.

— With files from CityNews