17 deaths from the flu in north carolina. seven in washington. six in kentucky. four in arkansas and three in south dakota. so how can we protect ourselves this flu season? dr. da sew at thats is a board certified internist and medical weight loss specialist. good to see you. thanks for having me. this is really horrible numbers. i want to clarify the flu normally does reach epidemic proportions. but it s earlier. it seems to be. last week the case doubled. i think that s what s scaring a lot of people at the c d.c we re just at the beginning of this. the flu season can extend until may. many times in new york, we don t really see a lot of flu cases until february march. then there is this whole notion of the current vaccine, it doesn t really work against that strain of flu that s out there. so a, is it even worth getting the flu shot? otherwise how do you protect flu? i think everyone should still get the shot. everyone over the age of six