Flu

Flu is a common illness, caused by a virus, which causes an infection in your nose, throat and lungs.

How flu is spread

Flu is very infectious and spreads very easily. The germs from coughs and sneezes can live on hands and surfaces for 24 hours and you are most infectious in the first 5 days of the illness

How to reduce the risk of spreading the flu

To help reduce the spread you can:

1. use disposable tissues to trap the germs when you cough and sneeze
2. throw the tissues in a bin as quickly as possible
3. wash your hands with soap and warm water
4. rest and don't visit others

The symptoms of flu

The symptoms can appear very quickly and include the following:

• headache
• Sudden fever (high temperature of  38c or above)
• aching body
• dry, chesty cough
• sore throat
• loss of appetite
• difficulty in sleeping