How Lou Got the Flu
![red-haired girl sick in bed holding a globe with New York labeled](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/china-nyc/3030258-2-eng-US/china-nyc_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/china-nyc/3030258-2-eng-US/china-nyc_full_990.png 960w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/china-nyc/3030258-2-eng-US/china-nyc_full_1468.png 960w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/china-nyc/3030258-2-eng-US/china-nyc_full_1980.png 960w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/china-nyc/3030258-2-eng-US/china-nyc_full_2475.png 960w)
Hi, I'm Louise. Most people call me Lou and I live in New York. I feel pretty rotten right now. I have a sore throat, a cough, and achy muscles. My doctor said I caught the flu — that's short for influenza , a type of virus.
My friends Sue, Hugh, and Stu also caught it. I hear it's going around, and not just to people whose names rhyme!
My dad's giving me lots of stuff to drink and is making sure I sleep a lot. I asked my doctor, "Where does the flu come from?" He said, "Scientists think this flu strain comes from ducks on a farm."
![ducks](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-0/3030414-2-eng-US/step-0_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-0/3030414-2-eng-US/step-0_full_990.png 800w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-0/3030414-2-eng-US/step-0_full_1468.png 800w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-0/3030414-2-eng-US/step-0_full_1980.png 800w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-0/3030414-2-eng-US/step-0_full_2475.png 800w)
How can a virus travel around the world?
You'll see, my friend, you'll see...
Six months ago on a farm far away, there was a duck that carried a flu virus in its body.
So, how did the virus travel from the duck me ?
a pig
a tick
3 Simple Ways to Prevent Getting and Spreading the Flu
![boy hiking in the woods and sneezing](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-9/3030522-5-eng-US/step-9_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-9/3030522-5-eng-US/step-9_full_990.png 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-9/3030522-5-eng-US/step-9_full_1468.png 1000w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-9/3030522-5-eng-US/step-9_full_1980.png 1000w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-9/3030522-5-eng-US/step-9_full_2475.png 1000w)
Sneeze and Cough Into a Tissue
When you cough, sneeze, or talk, droplets of saliva and mucus can travel from your nose or mouth into the air and then to others. And if you're sick, the flu virus travels with them! Coughing and sneezing into a tissue and then throwing it away will help prevent spreading the flu. And if you don't have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your elbow instead of your hands.
![girl washing her hands at the sink](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-8/3030510-5-eng-US/step-8_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-8/3030510-5-eng-US/step-8_full_990.png 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-8/3030510-5-eng-US/step-8_full_1468.png 1000w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-8/3030510-5-eng-US/step-8_full_1980.png 1000w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-8/3030510-5-eng-US/step-8_full_2475.png 1000w)
Wash My Hands Often With Soap
Soap and warm water will get rid of the viruses and germs that stick to the oil on your hands. And if you use plain old soap instead of antibacterial soap or gel, it won't get rid of healthy microbes that live on your skin!
![doctor giving a flu shot to a boy](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-7/3030498-6-eng-US/step-7_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-7/3030498-6-eng-US/step-7_full_990.png 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-7/3030498-6-eng-US/step-7_full_1468.png 1000w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-7/3030498-6-eng-US/step-7_full_1980.png 1000w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/microbiology/how-lou-got-the-flu/step-7/3030498-6-eng-US/step-7_full_2475.png 1000w)
Get a Flu Shot Every Year
Some infectious diseases, like smallpox and polio, can be prevented with a single vaccination. But
influenza
is trickier to outsmart because this virus can easily mutate. Even if your body has built up antibodies for one kind of flu, it doesn't mean that it has protection against all kinds. Each year scientists try to predict what type of flu viruses will be traveling around the world. Sometimes the scientists create the right vaccine and many people are protected. Other times they're wrong and the flu wins.
Image Credits:
All illustrations by Daryll Collins