The Flu bug has been hungry this season in Saskatchewan with above-average numbers of lab-confirmed cases being reported in the province.

The Ministry of Health recently released stats for the heavy portion of the flu season with 1,571 confirmed cases in the province. 

"The reason for the larger volume of cases at this point in the season is that influenza activity started earlier than other years," said Shelly Svedahl, Senior Media Relations Consultant, in a release from the Ministry of Health. 

The number isn't due to fewer people getting their vaccination shots. In fact, the number of vaccinations performed in the province is more than 280,000 which is an 8% increase province-wide for this time of year. 

"We continue to encourage people to get their flu shot, particularly those at higher risk this season, including children."

With the peak of the flu season behind us, the Ministry of Health doesn't expect the number of lab-confirmed cases to rise much higher than it currently is. 

"Depending on the point in time that influenza activity begins to increase, the number of labs tests will begin to accunulate. Influenza activity may start to increase at any time in the fall and generally peaks after 6 to 8 weeks. The peak has now been achieved and we do not expect the cumulative number of cases (1,571 as of December 22) to increase a great deal more from now on."