Alabama was one of 19 states reporting high levels of influenza at the end of 2018, and 2019 is proving no different, with a “widespread” strain continuing to spread, according to reports.

As of Jan. 5, the Alabama Department of Public Health had detected significant activity or had lab-confirmed cases of influenza-like illness in each county in the state. To qualify as significant, a county or district must have reports of flu-like illness activity and positive influenza specimens from the previous three weeks.

“Influenza season generally begins in October and can last through May, with peak activity usually between December and February,” said Dr. Spencer Durham, an assistant clinical professor and infectious disease specialist with Auburn University.

He advised patients to get a vaccine, noting the strain included in the vaccine has been updated to better match the strain making its way across Alabama.

“Even if a patient gets the flu after receiving the vaccine, it is not usually as severe as if the patient had not received the vaccine at all,” Durham said. “This is one of the reasons it is so important to get vaccinated.”

Dr. Benjamin Barlow, chief medical officer of American Family Care, also encouraged the vaccine, though he said the season’s peak generally isn’t until March.

“The flu is serious business,” he said. “… Last season, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recorded 80,000 deaths, which was the deadliest season in 40 years.”

The CDC recommends annual flu vaccinations for everyone age 6 months or older. However, a recent survey found 41 percent of adults did not intend to vaccinate, with 1 in 4 people over age 60 — a group at higher risk for complications from flu — refusing the shot.

According to AFC, children under 6, pregnant women and adults over 65 are at high risk for serious complications like inflammation of the heart, brain or muscle tissues or multi-organ failure. People who are infected with the flu virus can expose others from up to 6 feet away and risk exposing others even when they don’t show many symptoms.

Those symptoms include fever, aches, chills, fatigue, sneezing, stuffy nose, sore throat, coughing and headache.

Preventing flu

Here are some other ways to prevent the flu, in addition to a vaccination, courtesy of AFC and the CDC:

• Wash your hands often with warm running water and soap;

• Use a tissue or your upper sleeve to cover your face when coughing or sneezing;

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth;

• Use a knuckle to punch in your PIN at the ATM or cash register so that if you do touch your eye or mouth, you’re less likely to have germs from those surfaces on your fingertip;

• Stay home if you have had a fever of 100 degrees Fahrenheit or higher within the last 24 hours, and review personnel policies that penalize staff for staying home when they have a fever;

• Clean and disinfect door knobs, phones, faucets and food-preparation areas frequently;

• Avoid handshakes when possible, and wash or sanitize hands immediately after if not possible; and

• Avoid sharing ink pens at work or in public.