The 1918 influenza epidemic resulted in at least 40 million deaths worldwide, primarily due to a dangerous buildup of fluids in the lungs, leading to suffocation. Unlike typical flu outbreaks, this pandemic disproportionately affected young adults, especially men aged 25 to 34, with one in every hundred succumbing to the disease. Notably, the pandemic's deadliest period occurred in October and November of 1918.

This striking mortality pattern serves as a grim reminder of the pandemic's lethal impact, paralleling the devastation caused by the preceding war. As detailed in Niall Ferguson's "The War of the World," the Spanish flu's toll on the population marked a significant historical intersection where health crises and global conflict collided, highlighting the vulnerability of society in times of upheaval.