An ounce of prevention
“Getting a flu shot each and every year is the single most important step people can take to protect themselves from getting the flu,” says Tom Skinner, spokesperson for the Centers for Disease Control. “We know that influenza can be life-threatening for some people, especially young children, the elderly, pregnant women, and people with underlying health conditions.” He adds vaccination is essential for those who have contact with people at high risk of complications, such as people in nursing homes, child care centers, and similar facilities or those who cannot be vaccinated because of age, allergies, or other personal histories.
Other ways to protect yourself and others include:
■ During flu season, be especially careful to wash your hands frequently with soap and water for at least 10 seconds. If this is impossible, use an alcohol-based hand rub. Flu victims can be contagious even before they experience symptoms.
■ Keep your hands away from your mouth, eyes, and nose because all can be avenues for viruses.
■ Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
■ Get a flu shot every year.
■ Keep your immune system healthy by getting regular exercise that increases your heart rate and gets your blood circulating vigorously, maintaining a healthy diet, and keeping regular sleep patterns.
■ Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze, and discard the tissue promptly.
■ If you get the flu, prescription drugs from your doctor can help make it milder and shorter. If you are sick, keep your germs at home. Stay home at least 24 hours after your fever is gone without fever-reducing medications.
MO
— Marilyn Pribus is a Virginia-based freelance writer and retired Air Force spouse. Her last article for Military Officer was “Beating the Blues,” January 2012.
THE 1918 FLU EPIDEMIC
I asked my Army veteran father, “What did you do in World War I?” He replied, “I survived the flu!” I discovered he was one of 10,008 soldiers who fell ill in an influenza epidemic that killed 702 soldiers at Camp Dodge, Iowa, from September to October 1918. Globally, an estimated 50 million people died of this epidemic from 1918-19.
The Great Flu Pandemic of 1918 has passed from the memory of most Americans. But before immunizations could be developed to prevent the flu, deaths from this disease dwarfed all American deaths from wars and natural disasters in the 20th century. For many victims, influenza turned into a deadly pneumonia, where victims drowned in their body fluids and suffocated. From onset to death, the flu killed within days. Those who survived returned to normal life within weeks.
Evidence points toward the epidemic starting in Kansas in 1918, according to John Berry, author of The Great Influenza (Penguin Books, 2005). Army reports note 15,170 falling ill and 941 dying at the base hospital at Fort Riley, Kan. It quickly spread throughout training camps in the continental U.S., embarkation ports, naval transports to Europe, and the American Expeditionary Force, attacking 26 percent of the 4 million-person Army.
From April 6, 1917, to July 1, 1919, combat deaths in World War I accounted for 43 percent (50,280) of all Army deaths (according to L.P. Ayres in a 1919 report, The War With Germany: A Statistical Summary). During that same period, 45 percent — more than 52,000 — died from influenza/pneumonia.
In 1918, according to the Navy History and Heritage Command, 121,225 sailors were hospitalized for influenza/pneumonia, causing 4,158 deaths. Great Lakes Naval Training Center had the largest number of flu cases (9,623) in the fall of 1918, with 924 deaths — a nearly 10-percent fatality rate. The Navy reported 11,385 flu cases on troop transports, with 733 deaths. In the fleet, 337 sailors reportedly died of influenza.
At the same time, servicemembers worried about the health of their families back home. The flu spread from military training camps in the U.S. to the civilian population, infecting 1 in 4 Americans (25.8 million out of 105 million people), and killing 675,000 American civilians from 1918-19, touching every corner of the U.S. The U.S. Public Health Service reported mass casualties in American cities: 31,960 deaths in New York, 15,556 in Philadelphia, and 13,176 in Chicago.
— Cmdr. David Thompson, USN (Ret)
70 MILITARY OFFICER DECEMBER 2012
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