Today, we present to you some interesting facts about the flu. The flu is a contagious respiratory disease caused by influenza A or B viruses, which attack the body by spreading through the upper or lower respiratory tract. While fever is one of the most common symptoms, people can also experience chills, body aches, runny nose, coughing spells, and extreme fatigue.
When you catch the virus, your body builds a defense system by producing antibodies against it. This means that you generally do not get infected with the same virus again. Unfortunately, flu viruses change every year, so having the flu once does not protect you from it forever.
Interesting Facts About the Flu
- Flu Vaccination: The flu shot does not always protect you completely, but it helps boost your immunity. Recent studies by the CDC show that flu vaccination reduces the risk of flu illness by 40% to 60%. It is the best way to avoid getting the flu. However, if you do catch the flu, the illness will be much less severe.
- Medications: Medicines can help if you have the flu. While they won’t eliminate the symptoms entirely, they can shorten the overall duration and severity of the illness. The best time for treatment is within 72 hours of symptom onset. Antiviral treatment after 72 hours may not be effective.
- Seriousness of the Flu: The flu is a serious virus. Since 2010, it has caused between 140,000 to 710,000 hospitalizations annually. Even more alarming is that the flu can be fatal for some people. Annually, the virus kills between 12,000 and 49,000 people. Last flu season, 172 children died from the flu, the highest number of flu deaths recorded in a single season. Of these children, 80% were not vaccinated. The best protection against this virus is getting vaccinated every season.
- Symptoms: Flu symptoms appear about 2 days after a person is infected with the virus. The main symptoms include headache, sore throat, sudden high fever, chills, muscle aches, nasal congestion, dry cough, extreme fatigue or weakness, and loss of appetite. Fever and aches usually subside after a few days. However, a sore throat, cough, nasal congestion, and fatigue can last for a week or more.
- Contagion: You can spread the flu before you even know you are sick. A person can catch the flu and not show symptoms for several days. Any contact can spread the flu. If you sneeze near someone without covering your mouth or even wipe your nose and then shake hands with someone, the other person can catch the flu. Washing hands, using hand sanitizer, and maintaining personal distance are recommended to protect yourself and others from the flu.
- Flu Vaccine: The flu shot will not give you the flu. Flu vaccines administered via a needle into the muscle are either an inactivated virus that is no longer infectious or a single gene from the virus to provoke an immune response. As a result of the flu shot, you may develop flu-like symptoms, but you cannot catch the flu from the vaccine.