Daily commute to blame for spreading flu germs
COMMUTERS with longer train journeys in the capital are more likely to catch flu, a new study suggests.
Researchers found that the socalled “commuter cold” really does exist, and have called for strategies to tackle the spread of infection.
A team from the University of Bristol compared route information on London’s Oyster cards with Public Health England data on flulike illnesses.
They found that travellers who had longer Tube journeys through busier terminals had higher rates of airborne infections, reported journal Environmental Health.
Dr Lara Gosce, from Bristol’s Department of Civil Engineeering, said: “Higher rates [of influenza-like cases] can be observed in boroughs served by a small number of underground lines.
“Passengers starting their journey in these boroughs usually have to change lines once or more in crowded junctions such as King’s Cross in order to reach their final destination.
“On the other hand, lower influenzalike rates are found in boroughs where either the population does not use public transport as the main form of transport to commute to work; or boroughs served by more underground lines, which guarantee faster The flu vaccine cannot give you flu
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trips with less stops and contacts with fewer people.”
She said that infection rates in Islington, where residents often change lines at King’s Cross St Pancras, were nearly three times higher than in commuters from Kensington, who mostly take direct trains.
Dr Gosce said she hoped that the findings would be noted by the Government.
She said: “Policy makers, in particular, should address the role potentially played by public transport and crowded events and avoid encouraging the attendance of such environments during epidemics.”
The news comes as it was warned doctors were too quick to prescribe antibiotics for winter illnesses which often turned out to be flu, which is a virus unaffected by the medicines.
A study found that prescribing rates can jump 50 per cent in winter compared to summer, sparking fears the bacteria-busting medicine will be compromised by overuse.
Medical authorities are trying to reduce the more than 30 million antibiotic prescriptions given every year because of the dangers from bugs developing resistance to even the strongest antibiotic.
But fresh analysis of NHS figures, by data research experts Exasol, has revealed that antibiotic prescribing surged by 46 per cent in the big freeze of January this year, while the milder winter of 2015 recorded just a 29 per cent rise.
“Resistant infections are on the rise and if antibiotics stop working then modern medicine will be severely compromised and we will go back to an era when a simple scratch or cut could kill,” said Professor Colin Garner, chief executive of Antibiotic Research UK.
“The danger is real and a harsh winter could have a big impact on efforts to reduce the use of antibiotics
“Our generation needs to be cognisant that we have enjoyed their benefits over the last 40 years or more but there is a danger that all of that will be lost and our children and grandchildren will suffer. Everyone needs to play a part.”