Flu (Influenza)

There are only 3 flu viruses, but each one is very variable, and comes in many different strains, and new varieties can appear and spread quite quickly. The important flu viruses can change each year, so this winter’s flu can be different to last years.

Flu is not so common as colds, and in one year your average chances of catching it are between 1 in 25 and 1 in 7. It tends to occur in outbreaks, and it is watched very carefully to try to predict an epidemic.

Treating flu is important. In a healthy adult a bout of flu is unpleasant, and inconvenient, and you may feel absolutely rotten, but it is nothing to worry about. Look after yourself, take the right medicines, and you will be over it soon enough.

Flu symptoms tend to be much worse than a cold and hit us quickly, and tend to be much more severe than a cold. A high temperature is usually the worst symptom, with sweating, aching and weak muscles, and a headache. Also the usual cold symptoms of the nose, throat and cough. If you have flu you will probably not be well enough to get up out of bed.

If all goes well flu will last from 7 to 10 days. The first 3 to 4 days being the worst, with a high temperature. This can leave you exhausted, and it is most important to rest until you are completely recovered, and then take it easy for a while, because if you try to do too much too early you will recover more slowly. A dry, persistent, hacking cough if often one of the last symptoms to go, and is annoying but not serious. Treat it and be patient.

Knowing when to see your doctor is important, as flu can cause complications. As we get older we get more flu and it becomes more serious as we have less resistance to fight back. It takes so much out of you that other infections can come in while you are so weak. This can be serious, and you should always check with your doctor if you seem to have more than a simple bout of flu, or have any other medical conditions that put you at extra risk.

Flu kills between 10,000 and 13,000 people in an average year in the UK, and causes many more people to become so ill that they have to be treated in hospital.

Flu vaccines are recommended for some people who may be at a special risk of developing complication if they get flu. Are you one of them?