Dr Sarah Jarvis
My Weekly’s favourite GP from TV and radio writes for you
Maybe you’ve never had flu, even when everyone you knew was going down with it. Maybe you’ve had flu and can’t see what all the fuss was about. So when do you need to worry about flu and what can you do about it? How many times have you gone to see your doctor with a cold, a tummy bug, a sore throat, only to be told “it’s a virus”? The average adult gets about 4 colds a year (children get far more) and you may think flu is just another virus. You’d be wrong.
The influenza virus has been around for centuries. So have thousands of other viruses, but most of them don’t cause serious complications. Some do, and we immunise children against these. But influenza is different for many reasons. Firstly, there are hundreds of different strains of influenza, and being immune to one doesn’t protect you against getting another. What’s more, every year the most common types of influenza virus during peak winter season change, as the virus evolves. Every year, scientists at the World Health Organisation use a scientific version of a crystal ball to predict the types of influenza virus that are going to cause infection in the next season. The annual flu vaccine is based on three (or for the children’s vaccine, four) of these types. It takes several months for laboratories around the world to gear up and produce the millions of injections offered, based on these strains. Sometimes the scientists get it wrong, and a strain of virus they didn’t predict gets through, so the
THERE ARE LOTS OF ALTERNATIVE REMEDIES WHICH CLAIM TO CUT YOUR RISK OF GETTING FLU – BUT NONE OF THEM HAVE BEEN PROVEN TO WORK VERY WELL
vaccine’s less effective. But on the whole, they do a good job.
We get a good indication of what strain of virus is going to strike in the UK, and how many people will be infected, from what goes on in Australia, which has its winter in our spring. 2017 has been a particularly bad year in Australia, with at least 2.5 times more cases than usual. Over 80% of deaths were due to a single strain – H3N2. Fortunately, this strain is part of this year’s flu vaccine, so it’s highly likely the vaccine will protect you – and more reason than ever to have it.
If you have a cold, you may feel miserable and sniffly but you can usually struggle through. Influenza is very different. You’ll usually feel absolutely exhausted, have a very high temperature and ache all over, with a wracking cough and headache. Regular exercise and a healthy diet can cut your risk.
Most people get over flu within a couple of weeks with no ill-effects with rest, fluids and paracetamol. But if your immune system is weakened, you’re more likely to get life-threatening complications like pneumonia. Even if you’ve never had flu, your risk increases with age as your immune system winds down.
You’ll be offered the flu vaccine free on the NHS if you’re over 65; live in a residential care home; or have long term medical conditions like diabetes, asthma or COPD, heart, kidney or liver problems; nervous system conditions like Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis or motor neurone disease; or any condition or treatment that weakens your immune system. Carers can cut the risk of passing the infection on to someone vulnerable with a free vaccine. If you’re pregnant, you’re at much higher risk of complications that could harm you or your baby, so you’ll be offered the vaccine free too. Next week: Probiotics and Prebiotics