It’s been a busier than normal flu season for the Northern Health Authority with still quite a bit of time to go in the season.
“We’re still in the midst of the peak right now; we don’t have definitive indicators of influenza because most people who get influenza don’t get tested or don’t see a doctor and they don’t need to,” says Northern Health’s Dr. Andrew Gray.
“But it does appear that we’re seeing more cases than we would in an average year at this point in Northern BC.”
Dr. Gray says there is a unique reason why they are seeing this influx in numbers.
“There are different strains of influenza, there is “A” and “B” strains, usually you have the “A” strain seep through and then later in the season the “B” strain comes through which is not as severe,” he explains.
“But this year we’ve actually both at once which is probably contributing to why we’re seeing higher levels right now than we normally would.”
When asked what the best way to avoid catching the flu is, Dr. Gray responded with washing your hands.
Getting vaccinated and limiting exposure to the virus are other ways he listed to keep yourself healthy during the peak of flu season.