Cold and flu season not hitting as many Albertans as last year

It's that time of year when you sit at home, hot mug of tea in hand, warm under a blanket … because you're sick and want to feel better.

Cold and flu season is in full swing, but cases of influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and COVID-19 appear to be down across the province compared to last year.

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In Canada, flu season tends to start in late fall and last through the winter, peaking between December and February.

"When it's really cool, people tend to be indoors more and when people are in a smaller, indoor confined space, it's easier to pass viruses among people," said Dr. Stephanie Liu, a family physician and the founder of Dr. Mom.

This is also a time of the year when people tend to get together, but if you're sick, you should avoid those gatherings.

"We know that (a) virus is spread by touching surfaces that are contaminated with respiratory droplets," Liu said.

"If you're feeling quite unwell, you're having a fever, a cough, it really is best to just stay at home and work from home, because all we need is one person to go out there and (they) can pretty much get an entire office sick."

In the whole of the 2023-24 flu season, 16,229 laboratory-confirmed influenza cases, 5,046 laboratory-confirmed RSV cases and 23,922 laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases were reported by Alberta Health Services.

By Dec. 9, 2023, there were 5,827 confirmed cases of influenza, 1,056 confirmed RSV cases and 11,102 confirmed COVID-19 cases.

By Dec. 7 this year, there were 806 confirmed cases of influenza, 981 confirmed RSV cases and 7,609 confirmed COVID-19 cases.

So far, 18.5 per cent of the population has gotten a flu shot this year and 12.2 per cent got a COVID-19 shot.

By the end of the 2023-24 flu season, 25 per cent of Albertans had received a flu shot.

What to do when you're sick

When you do get sick, pharmacist Mauli Patel recommends avoiding people for up to three days, even when you're feeling better, if you can.

"If you still decide to go make sure you mask up. I know it doesn't look very pretty during holiday gatherings, but it is something to protect your near and dear ones," Patel said.

"Follow good hand hygiene, wash your hands more often and try to have a little bit of distance while you're talking, cover up your cough if you can."

If you're having shortness of breath and difficulty breathing, have a persistent fever that lasts for more than three to five days or cannot maintain your fluid intake, Liu recommends contacting your doctor.

Once you are sick, there's plenty of options for medicine at the pharmacy and it can be confusing what to use.

"There are so many formulations available over the counter, but pharmacists are there to help," Patel said. "Ask the questions, tell them your symptoms, or even call in ahead and tell them your symptoms, and they can get something ready for you, ready to go for pickup."

If you want to prevent getting sick, there are some things you can do.

"The first thing I recommend is making sure you're getting enough sleep, there's study after study that shows that if you're not getting enough sleep, that can actually weaken your immune system and increase your risk of getting the common cold," Liu said.

"Other things that are important are to avoid touching your face, if you touch a surface that's contaminated with a virus, and then you touch your face, it can go into your mucosal membranes, and you can get sick as a result."

"Nourish your body with lots of fruits and veggies, studies show that if you have a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, it can reduce your risk of getting sick," she added. "Another thing is to make sure you're taking vitamin D."

There are also studies that have shown honey can help reduce cough severity and frequency and chicken soup can help reduce symptoms of the common cold.

For those holiday buffets and potlucks, Liu suggests having hand sanitizer at the start of the food line, to help prevent someone from getting others sick.

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Miriam Valdes-Carletti