Sunday, June 7, 2020

The Spanish Flu Comes to McHenry County in 1918-- Part 4: That Coughing and Sneezing


A 1918 health bulletin also included instructions to the public which sound eerily to what we're getting today.

"It is now believed that influenza is always spread from person to person, the germs being carried with the air along with the very small droplets of mucus, expelled by coughing or sneezing, forceful talking, and the like by one who already has the germs of the disease.

"They also may be carried about in the air in the form of dust coming from dried mucus, from coughing or sneezing, or from careless people who spit on the floor or sidewalk.

"As in most other catching diseases, a person has only a mild attack of the disease himself  may give a very severe attack to others.  What should be done by those who catch the disease?   It is very important that every person who becomes sick with influenza should go home at once and go to bed.  This will keep away dangerous complications and will, at the same time, keep the patient from scattering the disease far and wide."

Like I Said, Deja Vu.  --Cooter

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