BATON ROUGE - Health officials are advising people to prepare for this year's flu season.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says thousands of people die from the flu and related illnesses each year. 

Medical professionals say it's important to get the vaccine before flu season, which is supposed to start in October.

Early predictions from Australia are showing physicians that the flu is coming early and its spreading worse than before. Since the U.S. flu season often correlates with Australia’s, physicians can predict what's in store for the U.S. ahead of time.

Australia's number of flu cases tripled this year compared to last year.