(Newser)
– It may be difficult to understand, but the pandemic also seems to be on the rise: the flu is virtually non-existent this year. Popular Science offers a remarkable statistic: in 2019, the U.S. recorded 65,000 cases from late September to late December. In 2020, that figure dropped to 1,000. It seems that all the precautions people take to avoid COVID (masks, social distancing, avoidance of indoor social activities, etc.) are also working to keep the flu at bay. In addition, flu vaccines have increased. Researchers are also studying the theory that there is some kind of complex interaction between COVID and influenza. As in the case, the virus behind COVID could increase people’s immunity levels against the flu, according to the Wall Street Journal. However, more research is needed to understand this possibility.
“This is an extremely baffling phenomenon,” says pediatrician Norio Sugaya, who is on the World Health Organization’s flu committee. “We are in a historic and incredible situation.” Not just in the United States: the number of flu is similar worldwide. The trend began in Australia and the rest of the southern hemisphere, where flu cases usually peak between June and August. Smithsonian. The big question is what happens when COVID disappears. How Science he explains, one fear is that the flu will be strong again next season because few people have it this year. But this could be mitigated if people adapt COVID safety protocols more permanently or perhaps focus more on the idea of receiving flu vaccines. The flu usually kills hundreds of thousands of people each year worldwide and “we have to wonder if we will continue to allow it in the future,” explains virologist Tetsuya Mizutani. magazine. (Read more stories about the flu.)