How Bad Will Flu Be This Winter?

As autumn rolls on and winter approaches, there is widespread concern on some quarters about the prospect of high levels of pressure being placed on the NHS by a combination of flu and Covid cases. The press have even coined a name for this dual threat – ‘Twindemic’.

Fortunately, October’s rise in Covid cases topped out at a much lower rate than the last peak in July, which suggests pressure may be low heading towards Christmas. However, that does not mean another of the new variants floating around might not cause a new surge at some point this winter.

In the meantime, the NHS has been urging those eligible to get their Covid booster jabs and the flu jab. Whatever happens with Covid, the severity of the winter flu wave will be crucial in establishing the potential health danger faced.

Because flu is more seasonal and can now spread freely with the lifting of Covid travel restrictions, the Australian flu season may be a clue. The last winter was a tough one down under, not least as their closed borders had kept out flu as much as Covid, halting transmissions but also leaving immune systems more vulnerable when new infections arose.

Now may certainly be a good time to get some cold and flu sachets in to treat flu cases, especially for those too young to get the jab. Even if the flu spreading from the southern hemisphere to the northern as the seasons swap round is not exceptionally severe, it will be worse than over the last couple of years due to the lack of masks or social distancing.

It remains to be seen just how things will turn out. In normal times the winter flu can vary greatly in severity, with some years producing far more dangerous strains than others. But whatever the severity, getting flu is no fun and it’s important to have plenty of medication on hand to ease the unpleasant symptoms if you catch it.