Not a single case of flu detected in England

article not a ticket ?

Another thing they’ve apparently seen far less of this winter - according to a doctor who dh heard on R4, is bronchiolitis, which mainly affects the under 2s. They usually see so much of it in winter - my little Gds had it 3 times, very serious the first time when he was only 3 months - sedated, tube fed and on oxygen.
That’s a virus, too, so presumably the reduction in cases is down to distancing and so much less mixing.

Sadly, I think half the population will eventually go back to normal behaviour (not washing hands or covering mouth when they cough etc.) The other half (that's us!) will continue to take precautions and try to keep themselves safe from all viruses. I may continue with mask wearing in shops or on public transport in winter for instance. And I will certainly be washing my hands as soon as I enter the house, as I always have done.

Sooziewoozie,
19th century PH developments such as the health of towns movement ( clean water, sewage etc) did more to save lives than any medical advances.

agreed. but i think you mean sewerage...

MiniMoon

Well, that's interesting, and quite encouraging too. If social distancing, mask wearing and hand sanitisation are what it takes to subdue flu, then I'm all for it.
I wonder if the uptake of the flu vaccine will continue at the same rate in years to come. I certainly hope so.

I agree MiniMoon. Just think what we could save the NHS if we carried on wearing masks, etc. I think you would still need the vaccine to back it up just as we will probably need an annual Covid vaccine.

Herbie9

Reading several different newspapers, I've seen articles that have reported that covid-19 statistics make the death numbers compiled seem greater than they are? Its been noted that one can be admitted into hospital with underlying health problems and unfortunately die but Covid 19 is recorded on the death certificate with sometimes the other health problems recorded as secondary cause of death! Flu deaths - makes one think!

It just makes me think about what we have been told. Covid is far nastier than any flu.

I have a chest condition and each year, from October to March, become quite ill with several chest infections (necessitating steroids, several courses of antibiotics etc. etc.).

This, mask-wearing winter, nothing!

I have been shielding which is obviously part of the equation as I have not been near many people however I have had hospital and GP surgery visits but still have not picked up any bugs.

It would be wonderful for people like me if mask-wearing becomes (as in Japan) the norm if one has any type of respiratory infection.

Just think, few miserable colds and no 'flu!

If you are interested in helping the fight against 'flu, do look at the following link and consider joining:

www.flusurvey.net

It is run by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in conjunction with Public Health England.

Each week the 'FluSurvey people send me an email and I just click on their link to enter how I am feeling. This helps with research and records the prevalence of 'flu around the country/different age groups etc., and only takes a couple of seconds.

It is a good feeling to know that I am helping the 'flu fight!

If you would like to help, please join!

Suziewoozie: your post of 15.26 was interesting. I had no idea that there was a swabbing programme in the UK.

I just wonder if you are familiar with the 'flusurvey' programme as above? This compiles statistics regarding prevalence by area, age etc. It may be of particular interest to you.

Whilst I love my granddaughters, since being unable to see them because of the need to shield (wife on immunotherapy) neither of us has had a single cold! It's an ill wind...