PEOPLE at risk of flu such as the elderly and pregnant women are being urged to get free vaccines from Wiltshire doctors after a worryingly low take-up.

Wiltshire Council is warning that deaths from the flu are more common than people may think, and high risk factors such as respiratory illnesses or pregnancy could make people up to 11 times more likely to die from the flu.

The council is working with NHS England to promote the free flu jabs to those people in 'at risk' groups. It says so far this winter, fewer than half of pregnant women have had the jab, and nearly a third of people aged 65 or more are yet to get their free vaccine.

A spokesman said: “For most healthy people, flu is an unpleasant illness with recovery taking up to a week.

“However, for older people, the very young, pregnant women and those with a health condition – particularly chronic respiratory conditions such as asthma, diabetes or heart disease or those with a weakened immune system – are at particular risk from the more serious effects of flu.”

Hundreds of thousands of people see their GP and tens of thousands are hospitalised because of flu each winter.

Last year 904 people were admitted to intensive care or high dependency units with laboratory confirmed flu and, of them 11 per cent (98 people) died.

This does not account for the many deaths where flu is not recognised or reported – estimates of the annual number of deaths attributable to flu average around 8,000 per year.

People with flu are about 11 times more likely to die if they have an underlying health condition, says the council.

Despite this, just over half of people aged six months to 65 with an underlying condition took up the offer of the free flu vaccine during 2013 to 2014.

Pregnant women are encouraged not to put off the free flu vaccination.

Pregnancy naturally weakens the body’s immune system and as a result, increases the risk of a mother and unborn baby becoming seriously ill from flu.

Since 2013, two- and three-year-olds have been eligible for flu vaccination and this year it is also being offered to four-year-olds.

But nearly half of mums are not aware of this, with uptake only around 40 per cent.