I don't understand all of the recent hype regarding Google Flu Trends. Big deal. The CDC also has a map that they update, only the CDC uses real numbers. Google's map is entirely based on search trends and supposedly provides a 2-week lead.
What's the point of this if you haven't gotten a flu shot? If you don't want to get a flu shot, fine, but what good is Google's 2-week lead when it takes 2 weeks for the flu vaccine to take full effect? I also question the validity of finding influenza outbreaks based on search terms. In states like Florida, where there are lots of elderly retired people who truly need the annual vaccine, wouldn't searches using the word "flu" increase this time of year anyway even though there is no flu outbreak? Lots of people are looking for the nearest place to get their flu vaccine.
Nice bit of PR for Google, though.
My kids and I got our flu shots last night, BTW. What are you waiting for?
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4 comments:
Hi Lou,
Google Flu Trends will help track seasonal influenza outbreaks but more importantly it will help us pinpoint outbreaks of pandemic influenza when the pandemic begins.
A pandemic is quite different than seasonal influenza. It is an outbreak with a novel strain of influenza which no one has immunity to and there is no vaccine for it and won't be for at least 6 months into the pandemic and then only in limited quantities.
We will need the information that Google Flu Trends will provide so that in our communities we will know when to close schools proactively, wear masks, and stay in if we are ill.
A pandemic could happen at any time and it typically strikes those with robust immune systems like children and young adults. We need strong immune systems in order to fight it off but our own system causes a type of rebound effect that can be deadly.
Pandemic flu and seasonal flu are two completely different things as far as severity is concerned.
I hope that you and all of your readers are preparing by stocking up. Three months of food, water, OTC medicines and prescription medicines, etc. is recommended.
For more information visit pandemicflu.gov
Flu vaccines are for people who actually get the flu. As one of your links state, only 20% of the population get the flu (i.e. some strain of influenza virus). The rest of us who get sick and call it the flu, are actually getting severe colds caused by rhinoviruses, for which there are no vaccines. I belong to the 80% who don't get the flu, so I don't ask for vaccines.
I belong to the 80% who don't get the flu
Keera, you are not immune from the influenza virus. Perhaps you don't get the flu because you have limited exposure to others. That is most likely the reason.
If you get a bad cold you'll miss a couple of days and feel tired and sickly.
If you get the flu you will be flat on your back for a week and out of work/school for 2 weeks, minimum.
Not a chance most want to take when many other people are lined up for their job.
Most of us can't stay home or pull our kids our of school for several months voluntarily, so we get the flu shot.
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