HEALTH

Parents are being urged to get young children vaccinated against winter flu.

For the first time, pupils from Year Four down can get a free flu nasal spray in school, instead of an injection.

It means an extra 170,000 children can be protected.

Prof Paul Cosford, director for health protection at Public Health England, said: “Flu can be much more dangerous for children than many parents realise – and they tend to spread it around the family.”

Flu and its complications cause on average 8,000 deaths a year in England. Around 6,000 of those are people with heart and lung disease.

Veggie diets are becoming increasingly popular because of concerns about eating too much red meat.

Now the farming industry is hitting back with a campaign showing how zinc in pork, beef and lamb is needed to maintain men’s sex drive.

The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) says: “Zinc contributes to the maintenance of testosterone levels. Low levels results in a lower sex drive. A loss of appetite, reduced sense of smell and taste, and mental lethargy are all tell-tale signs of a zinc deficiency.”

One in five people are suffering from chronic stress, says the Labour Force Survey, a household study of the UK’s employment circumstances.

Despite it being a common condition, there is still a stigma attached to it.

For instance, more than 80% of people surveyed by Canada Life Group would not take time off work for stressrelated illnesses.

The Stress Management Society says: “When we are experiencing extreme stress, our ability to communicate diminishes massively.

“We experience confusion, brain fog and ‘rabbit in the headlight’ syndrome.”

Visit stress.org.uk for a free guide to dealing with stressful situations in the workplace.

MARTIN BAGOT is the Mirror’s Health Correspondent