By Dawn Tay

IT'S the end of the year and with the arrival of the annual flu season, Singaporeans have reason to be concerned.

The world is closer than ever to a global influenza or flu outbreak since the last one that killed one million people in 1968, say World Health Organisation experts.

In Singapore every year, around 600 people die from flu and flu-related complications, says a 1996-2002 study by the Ministry of Health (MOH) and Singapore General Hospital.

Most of the deaths are caused by the A/H3N2 virus - the predominant strain here.

Worldwide, up to 500 million people get flu every year, according to MOH figures.

The experts expect the next epidemic attack to come from the bird-flu strain H5N1 - responsible for over 100 cases in Asian countries like Cambodia and Indonesia. More than half of those sufferers have died.

The Straits Times reported last month that the Health Ministry will spend millions of dollars to boost its stock of anti-viral drugs and H5N1 vaccines, should a pandemic strike.

But even that might not be sufficient. Warned Dr Daniel Chan, vice-president of Parkway-Health primary-care network: "Viruses mutate every now and then. When this happens new vaccines will be needed."

Alarmingly, Singaporeans my paper talked to showed a surprising lack of flu awareness and often confused the virus with the common cold. Said 26-year-old book editor Carina Chua: "I don't really know the difference between the flu and the cold - I thought they were the same."

From vaccinations to vitamins, my paper tells you how to protect yourself against the flu and the cold.

dawnt@sph.com.sg

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