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Three people have been admitted to Taranaki Base Hospital with swine flu so far this season.
But national data shows influenza levels are still on the low side, Taranaki District Health Board public health medicine specialist Jonathan Jarman said.
"We are only just starting to enter what is called the ?flu season'."
Swine flu, or H1N1, is not as deadly as it used to be because a vaccine has been available for four years and a lot of people now have some immunity, he said.
In 2009 the H1N1 strain was a new virus that infected a lot of people around the world in a short period of time. "At the time we did not know how severe it was going to be and no-one had any immunity to it. Also in 2009 there was no vaccine."
But national data shows influenza levels are still on the low side, Taranaki District Health Board public health medicine specialist Jonathan Jarman said.
"We are only just starting to enter what is called the ?flu season'."
Swine flu, or H1N1, is not as deadly as it used to be because a vaccine has been available for four years and a lot of people now have some immunity, he said.
In 2009 the H1N1 strain was a new virus that infected a lot of people around the world in a short period of time. "At the time we did not know how severe it was going to be and no-one had any immunity to it. Also in 2009 there was no vaccine."
