Newsletter & Social Media Messages to Share

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Sample Newsletter Messages

Outreach messages for your organization’s newsletter, website, or partner networks. 

Remembering the 1918 Influenza Pandemic

This year marks the centenary of the 1918 flu pandemic that claimed the lives of an estimated 675,000 Americans and 50 million people worldwide. The 1918 flu produced the greatest influenza death total in recorded history. 100 years later, the world has made major advances in the science of flu prevention and control.  Learn more about the 1918 flu and the great strides made to protect people against flu: 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site

100 Years of Progress in Influenza Prevention

100 years after the 1918 pandemic flu that killed an estimated 50 million people worldwide, we now have tests to diagnose flu, vaccines to help prevent flu, and drugs to help treat flu and its complications. Flu viruses continue to pose one of the world’s greatest challenges, and the risk of pandemic flu is always present. Learn about the major advancements made since the 1918 pandemic, and what we still need to do to protect people against flu: 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site

100 Year Commemoration of the Deadly 1918 Influenza Pandemic

In 1918, a flu pandemic swept across the globe, killing an estimated 50 million people. There were no national systems to monitor influenza activity like there are today, and no laboratory tests were available to detect, isolate, or characterize influenza viruses. During the #1918Flu pandemic, there weren’t vaccines to prevent flu infection, antiviral drugs to treat flu illness, antibiotics to treat secondary infections, mechanical ventilators, intensive care units, or modern respiratory devices.  CDC and our partners have come a long way since 1918, working to address the continuing threat of flu, including preparing for the next flu pandemic. Learn more: 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site.

Sample Social Media Messages

Sample Twitter and Facebook flu prevention messages to share on your organization’s social media channels.

Twitter:

  • DYK: A flu pandemic is a global outbreak of a new flu virus, very different from currently circulating seasonal flu viruses. Most people would not have immunity, so it is likely a lot of people would get sick.  Learn more: cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/1918-pandemic-h1n1.html #1918flu
  • What is a flu pandemic? A flu pandemic happens when a new (non-human) flu virus appears that can easily infect and spread between people. #1918Flu
  • In 1918, a new influenza virus emerged causing a pandemic that killed an estimated 675,000 Americans and at least 50 million people worldwide. #1918Flu
  • The #1918Flu produced the greatest influenza death total in recorded history.
  • The #1918flu pandemic infected an estimated 500 million people worldwide—about one-third of the world’s population.
  • The #1918Flu pandemic killed more people in a year than AIDS has killed in 40 years, and more than the bubonic plague killed in a century.
  • Conditions of World War I (overcrowding & global troop movement) helped the #1918Flu spread. The vulnerability of healthy young adults and lack of vaccines/treatments created a major public health crisis.
  • In 1918, many people got very sick, very quickly. There were reports of some people dying in 24 hours or less. The #1918flu infection often progressed to organ failure and pneumonia, with pneumonia the cause of death for most of those who died.
  • #1918Flu pandemic is sometimes called the “Spanish Flu,” but not because it started in Spain. Spain was neutral in WWI & their news extensively covered the pandemic. The countries at war were less likely to publicize cases, so it looked like Spain was the hub of the pandemic.
  • Most authorities believe the #1918Flu pandemic happened in 3 different waves during 1918-1920 in the U.S.:
    • Wave 1) From Feb to April, some US cities & military camps see a rise in flu & pneumonia deaths
    • Wave 2) Fall of 1918, the greatest amount of death & illness occurred
    • Wave 3) Winter 1918 to spring 2019
  • In 1918, scientists had identified many bacteria that caused illness, but viruses had not been discovered yet, so they could not identify the cause of influenza. #1918Flu
  • During the #1918flu pandemic, these things did not exist:
    • Flu vaccines to prevent infection
    • Flu antiviral drugs to treat illness
    • Antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections, like pneumonia
    • Mechanical ventilators or intensive care units for critically ill patients
  • 100 years after the 1918 flu pandemic, the world has made major advances in the science of flu prevention and control. Since its founding in 1946, CDC has worked to address the continuing threat of flu, including preparing for flu pandemics. Learn more: 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site
  • 100 years after the #1918Flu: We now have tests to diagnose influenza, vaccines to help prevent influenza, and drugs to help treat influenza and its complications. 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site
  • Medical advances since the #1918Flu include: vaccines to help prevent infection; drugs to treat illness; antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections; ventilators and intensive care units to treat severe ill patients; and modern gloves, gowns, and masks to protect care givers. 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site
  • 100 years after the #1918Flu: We now have a global influenza surveillance system to monitor flu activity, and more efficient ways to quickly share information about flu viruses with partners around the world.
  • Flu viruses continue to pose one of the world’s greatest public health challenges, and the risk of a flu pandemic is always there. Learn about the important improvements that have been made since the #1918Flu: 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site
  • Several factors increase the risk that a pandemic flu virus will appear and spread quickly worldwide, including rapid population growth, increased international travel, and the proximity of humans to animals that may carry different flu viruses. #1918Flu
  • While there have been many advances since the #1918Flu, there is still much to do to improve pandemic flu preparedness. Find out more about what CDC is doing and hopes to do in the future: 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site

Facebook

  • Did you know? A flu pandemic is a global outbreak of disease in people caused by a new flu virus. The new virus would probably be very different from current and recent circulating seasonal influenza viruses. Most people around the world would not have immunity to the new influenza virus, so it is likely a lot of people would get sick. 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site
  • All 4 of the flu pandemics that have happened in the past 100 years were caused by new viruses with genes that came from birds. Wild birds are hosts to some bird flu viruses that do not normally make people sick. However, influenza viruses are change all the time and can exchange genes. Rarely, this makes it possible for an animal flu to change so that it also makes people sick. 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site
  • There have been four influenza pandemics in the last 100 years: 1918, 1957, 1968, and 2009. Past Pandemics
  • In 1918, a new influenza virus emerged causing a pandemic that killed an estimated 675,000 Americans and at least 50 million people worldwide. The 1918 pandemic produced the greatest influenza death total in recorded history.
  • Typically, seasonal flu mortality is greatest among the youngest and oldest in a population. During the 1918 flu pandemic, the virus was more severe among young adults between 20-40 years of age. The average age of death was 28 years old.
  • The 1918 flu pandemic is sometimes called the “Spanish Flu,” but not because the pandemic started in Spain. Spain was neutral in WWI & their news extensively covered the pandemic. The countries involved in World War I were less likely to publicize cases, so it looked like Spain was the hub of the pandemic.
  • Most authorities believe the 1918 pandemic happened in three different waves during 1918-1920 in the United States:
    • Wave 1: From February to April of 1918, some US cities & military camps see a rise in flu and pneumonia deaths
    • Wave 2: In the fall of 1918, the greatest amount of death & illness occurred.
    • Wave 3: The winter of 1918 and the spring of 1919. The pandemic decreased in the US by the summer of 1919.
  • During the 1918 flu pandemic, these things did not exist:
    • Flu vaccines to prevent infection
    • Flu antiviral drugs to treat illness
    • Antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections, like pneumonia
    • Mechanical ventilators or intensive care units for critically ill patients
    • Modern protective respiratory devices to prevent influenza virus transmission
  • Treatment tools for the 1918 flu pandemic were basic and limited to supportive care and unproven remedies (e.g., aspirin, quinine, opium, ammonium, iodine, turpentine, beef tea). We know now that some of these interventions can be harmful.
  • 100 years after the 1918 flu pandemic, the world has made major advances in the science of flu prevention and control. Since its founding in 1946, CDC has worked to address the continuing threat of flu, including preparing for the next flu pandemic. Learn more: 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site
  • 100 years after the 1918 flu pandemic, we now have tests to diagnose influenza, vaccines to help prevent influenza, and drugs to help treat influenza and its complications. We also have situational awareness tools to help monitor influenza activity, and evidence-based actions individuals and communities can take to lessen the impact of influenza. These improvements better equip the world to prepare for and respond to the next influenza pandemic. Find out more about CDC’s pandemic flu preparedness: Pandemic Influenza
  • Compared to 1918, we are better at monitoring illnesses, deaths, and the spread of diseases. We can now detect the appearance of new influenza viruses.
  • 100 years after the 1918 flu pandemic, we have a greater ability to: assess flu complications and the effectiveness of flu treatments, develop pandemic flu vaccines, prevent illnesses by prescribing drugs, and we know more about stopping the spread of germs to prevent disease (by handwashing, covering sneezes, closing schools, etc.). Learn more about the 1918 pandemic: 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site
  • Flu viruses continue to pose one of the world’s greatest public health challenges, and the risk of another flu pandemic flu is ever-present. Several factors increase the risk that a pandemic influenza virus will appear and spread quickly worldwide, including rapid population growth, increased international travel, and the proximity of humans to animals that may carry flu viruses. Learn more about what CDC is doing to protect people from flu: 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site
  • Flu viruses constantly change, making it possible on very rare occasions for animal flu viruses to infect and spread among people. This means flu pandemics will likely continue to occur. Learn about the vast public health improvements made in the 100 years since the 1918 flu pandemic: 1918 Pandemic Flu Commemoration Site
  • While there have been many advancements since the #1918Flu, there is still much to do to improve our pandemic flu preparedness. Find out more about what CDC is doing to protect us: Are We Prepared?