But we do see that influenza can kill healthy young people." The only defense, infectious-disease officials say, is a flu shot, and this year, for the first time, the CDC recommends seasonal flu shots for all children ages 6 months to 18.

"People look at influenza as a mere nuisance," says Micah Skinner, a spokesperson for the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The two Maryland teenagers who died suddenly of the flu late last month € 13-year-old Ian Elias of Urbana and 15-year-old Erhard Weiland of Woodbine € seemed to be having the typical miserable, achy run-in with the flu, until their symptoms suddenly worsened. The Flu Kills Healthy Kids, but Flu Shots Can Still Help Flu can kill healthy kids, and the scariest part for parents is that it's impossible to know if your child will be one of those horrible rare cases. With the flu season running through the end of.

In both cases, the parents took their child swiftly to the emergency room, but doctors weren't able to save the boys.