Contrary to what most people think, the flu is not such a common virus among adults.
Researchers from Imperial College London (UK) and the US and Chinese Institutes of Health analyzed the blood of 151 volunteers aged 7 to 81. They tested for the presence of antibodies, to reveal if and how often they had been infected with the flu virus.
For this study, scientists worked with the 9 most prevalent strains of influenza circulating around the world between 1968 and 2009.
The results of the study revealed that children were affected by influenza about every two years, but the frequency of this infection then decreased with age. From the age of 30, people seem to be better immunized. The virus would only affect adults once every 5 years.
“For adults, we’ve found that influenza infection is actually less common than some people think,” says Dr Steven Riley of the Imperial College London Medical Research Center and lead author of the study. “Children and adolescents are more affected by the virus, perhaps because they are more often in contact with other people” explains the researcher.
Good reflexes against the flu
Antibiotics are ineffective against viruses. They are therefore of no use in treating colds and influenza.
To protect yourself from influenza viruses, wash your hands regularly, before eating, or after taking public transport. To protect others, it is also advisable to sneeze into a tissue, which you will then throw in the trash. If you are affected by the disease, it is advisable to stay warm in your bed and to hydrate yourself. To lower the fever if it exceeds 38.5 ° C, take 1 to 2 tablets of paracetamol at 500 mg per dose, to be renewed if necessary after 4 hours minimum, without exceeding 3 g per day.
To shorten the symptoms, you can be prescribed an antiviral (Relenza, Tamiflu). To be effective, they must be taken within 48 hours of the onset of symptoms.
Read also:
How to recover well from the flu
Flu: what do we have as misconceptions!
Winter ailments: is it the flu or a bad cold?
