Is the sickness season starting early this year?

It may be a long winter, judging from the way the season has started at the Gibbon Public Schools.

The schools were closed after 104 of the district's 300 elementary students were sick, according to Superintendent Larry Witt. A few high school students and two custodians were also out with the illness this week, Witt said.

Officials say it's likely the students contracted a stomach virus that causes diarrhea and vomiting -- but don't call it the flu.

The flu can cause nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but children are more likely to have those symptoms than adults.

The "real" flu is more likely to cause fever, headache, extreme tiredness, dry cough, sore throat, a runny or stuffy nose and muscle aches.

Every year, 5 to 20 percent of us contract the flu, more than 200,000 are hospitalized from complications and about 36,000 people die from it, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

And, it's easy to get. Flu viruses spread mainly from person to person through coughing or sneezing, or by touching something with flu viruses on it, then touching the mouth or nose.

Most healthy adults may be able to infect others beginning a day before symptoms develop and up to 5 days after becoming sick.

That means you may be able to pass on the flu to someone else before you even know you are sick, according to the CDC, as well as while you are sick.

But there is something you can do. Now through November is the best time to receive a vaccination against the flu season, which can last as late as May.

Anyone who wants to reduce the chance of getting the flu may do so, but it's especially important for the following to get a flu shot:

* Children age 6-59 months

* Pregnant women

* People 50 years of age and older

* People of any age with certain chronic medical conditions

* People who live in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.

You can contact your doctor, clinic or health department for more information on flu vaccinations, which should be in adequate supply this year.

But while not all of us may choose to be vaccinated, there are things all of us can do to protect ourselves and others.

* Stay away from other people when there's flu involved. Stay home when you're sick -- you're contagious even before you show symptoms and for three to five days following.

* Use a tissue when you cough or sneeze.

* Wash your hands often, and clean your working environment more often than normal.

* Maintain a healthy lifestyle: Avoid smoking and second-hand smoke, eat healthy foods, drink plenty of water, exercise regularly, get enough sleep and reduce stress.

If you get the flu drink plenty of liquid, use a humidifier, sleep with your head elevated, and take over-the-counter pain reliever.

See your doctor, but don't expect a prescription for an antibiotic -- it simply won't work on viral infections like the flu.