Swine flu is surging as people pick it up from pigs at state and county fairs.

Cases of a new flu variety so far this year have soared from 16 last week to 165 now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday.

The new flu, called H3N2v, isn't any more dangerous than regular flu, but children are most vulnerable. They are 90% of those infected so far, almost all of them by being up close and personal with sick pigs at fairs.

The new flu is not a food-borne illness. You cannot get it from eating pork, only from being around sick pigs, says Joseph Bresee of the CDC's influenza division.

There have been no deaths and only five hospitalizations since the new variety first appeared in 2011.

In the past week, there have been 120 cases in Indiana, 30 in Ohio and one each in Hawaii and Illinois, Bresee says.

The latest flu is clinically identical to the regular seasonal flu, with fever, cough, sore throat and body aches.

Everyone who got sick was exposed to pigs, either on a farm, visiting a swine barn or attending a state or county fair area where pigs were being shown, Bresee says.

He says the rise in cases is because August is prime state and county fair season.

The seasonal flu vaccine does not offer protection from the new variety, so the CDC suggests people take precautions if they will be exposed to swine:

• Wash hands frequently with soap and water before and after exposure to animals.

• Never eat or drink in an animal area.

• Don't' take food into animal areas.

• People in high-risk groups — the very young, the very old and those with underlying diseases — should consider not entering animal areas.

• Avoid close contact with pigs that appear ill.

Fair operators and state agriculture officers are being aggressive about screening pigs and excluding sick pigs from fairs, Bresee says.