New Delhi, Oct. 12 -- The flu season began in Japan earlier than usual. Local media cited Japan's health ministry as saying on October 3 that the country experienced the second-earliest flu outbreak in the past 20 years.

Setting aside 2023, as flu cases were high throughout that year, 2009 had the earliest start for the flu season on record, the Japan Times reported.

According to Time magazine, more than 4,000 people in Japan were treated for influenza between September 22 and September 28. The number of patients treated for influenza increased to over 6,000 people from September 29 to October 5, according to the health ministry's data.

"Influenza season has begun," Japan's Ministry of Health posted on X on October 3.

But not just in ...