"The advice generally is if you are sick, you are best to stay at home. Avoid getting out and about and spreading it about," she said.
Asked what rugby fans should do if they found themselves standing next to someone sneezing and coughing , Dr Poore said all that could be done was to maintain as much distance as possible.
At this stage, however, flu rates in the South are not particularly high with the most recent reports from the general practice surveillance sites showing an estimated 60 cases per 100,000 people.
Dr Poore said that was similar to previous years or slightly lower than usual, although many people appeared to have colds.
The traditional pattern was that flu rates were higher in the North Island initially and moved down the country.
News reports yesterday suggested Auckland hospitals were inundated with patients with flu-like illnesses.
