Health: Tracking Flu Outbreaks On Your Own
By Stephanie Stahl
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Flu season is here and it can spread quickly. Some are asking: who has the flu, am I being exposed? Well, forget word of mouth and get your smart phone. Now you can track outbreaks on your own. Flu Near You is a free website and mobile app that uses the power of crowdsourcing to track and monitor flu symptoms around the county. "It increases awareness around the flu in your area and countrywide," says Jasmine Meyer
Once you register, there's a questionnaire with boxes to check for signs of the flu like headache, fever, chills and fatigue. People with those symptoms can easily spread it, which is why it's important to know where they might be. You can check for illnesses based on zip codes. Meyer says, "It tracks them based on blue dots for no symptoms, yellow for symptoms but not a flu like illness or red dot for flu like illness."
Personal information including email addresses are kept completely confidential. Flu Near You was created by Boston Children's Hospital, and the American Public Health Association. They're especially interested in getting people under 30 to sign up. "They don't feel as vulnerable they may not be in positions where their parents are getting older where they feel like as carriers they make their parents more vulnerable," Meyer said.
Doctors say the best way to prevent the flu is getting a yearly flu shot. They take two weeks to become effective. The CDC says the flu is sporadic around the country, including in our area. All three states are reporting confirmed cases of influenza, including almost two hundred in Pennsylvania.
For more information, visit: https://flunearyou.org/
