Children have been neglected in flu prevention strategy

The northern hemisphere is bracing itself for a severe influenza season this winter, with reported deaths in Europe and North America surpassing the early seasonal figures from recent years and a new strain of the virus circulating in the population.

Type A Fujian flu made headlines in Australia during that country's winter, when about 3000 people succumbed to flu and its complications. In Britain, two English and three Scottish children died from the Fujian flu in November. That is considered a high toll so early in the season.

France, Spain, Norway, and Portugal are reporting high infection rates among children. The southwestern United States has also seen an early onset, with vaccine demand outstripping production. “People wishing to be vaccinated may need to be persistent to …