Better Ways to Protect Against the Flu
Better Ways to Protect Against the Flu
Recent research findings from the United Kingdom indicate that, for
adults, vaccination against the flu may be better than taking antiviral
drugs after flu symptoms begin to occur. These researchers reviewed
over 20 studies involving two antiviral drugs, oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and
zanamivir (Relenza). Taking these drugs caused flu symptoms to go
away one-half day to one full day earlier than without any drug having
been taken. One lead researcher in the group indicated that such antiflu
drugs are not likely to be the best approach. Getting more people
vaccinated, according to them, would be a better approach for protecting
adults.
Another research group has prepared predictive models based on
what might happen if a flu virus like the one that caused world wide
pandemic outbreaks in 1918 and 1957 were to occur again. One theoretical
finding was that the number of deaths could be cut in more than half
if vaccination programs targeted specific age groups – children age 5 to
19 and adults in their 30s, compared to typical vaccination programs in
the past which have focused on children under 5 and adults over 50.