Caution: Flu season is here, are you prepared?

Also, author Thomas J. Balcerski discusses Pennsylvania's lone president

• Justin Kocis
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The United States is preparing for a potentially dangerous flu season this winter. This is based on data from Australia, as they have experienced one of their deadliest flu seasons on record. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention uses Australia as a predictor for our flu season.

The last severe outbreak that followed an Australian flu pattern was in 2017. Over 48 million people fell ill resulting in 79,400 deaths in the US, according to the CDC. Asthma and diabetes patients are three times more likely to die as a result of flu complications than other patients. Minnesota has already recorded one fatality this flu season.

While there is no official start date for flu season it typically spikes between October and February, petering off in April. The influenza virus causes a highly contagious illness that includes nausea, fatigue, fever, and headaches.

On Thursday’s Smart Talk we’ll discuss flu prevention, minimizing the virus, and the importance of flu vaccinations with Dr. John Goldman, MD., Infectious Disease Specialist at UPMC Pinnacle.

Also, President James Buchanan was the only president from Pennsylvania and the only US President who remained unmarried. Much speculation about Buchanan’s bachelorhood has come into question.

Appearing on Smart Talk is author of Bosom Friends: The Intimate World of James Buchanan and William Rufus King, Thomas J. Balcerski, Ph.D. He looks to a new perspective on their relationship and challenges modern assumptions on past same-sex relationships.