What exactly is freshers’ flu

It is the second week of quarter. You finally understood how to use the washing machine, your roommates are starting to feel like friends, and the whirlwind of Freshers week is behind you.

But just when things settle down, your throat begins to scratch, your nose works and suddenly conferences are less on learning and more to try not to cough stronger than the person next to you.

You have been warned that it would happen, but I did not expect it to strike so quickly.

What’s going on here? Why does everyone seem to get the influenza of the setbacks in the first weeks of the quarter? And why do so many people say it seems worse than the average cold?

“The penalty of costs of the costs is only an assortment of current viruses which come to strike us all at the same time,” explains Dr. Zania Stamataki, associate professor of viral immunology at the University of Birmingham.

It’s not the real flu, and it’s rarely serious. But when thousands of students arrive on the campus, they bring with them a cocktail of respiratory virus.

Add packaged conference theaters, dirty shared kitchens and end of evening celebrations, and the result is a wave of disease that is spreading quickly.

Sheena Cruickshank, immunologist and teacher in biomedical sciences at the University of Manchester, describes him as a “mixture” of infections.

“You bring people around the world, putting them in narrow neighborhoods and exposing them to viruses that they have never met before,” she said.

Respiratory viruses are constantly evolving and even small differences between variants can mean that the body’s immune system does not recognize them, forcing it to start from scratch.

The immune system is the natural defense of the body against infections. It is made up of a network of cells, tissues and organs that work together to detect harmful invaders such as viruses and bacteria, and help the body fight them.

But during freshers’ week, your immune system is under-strengthened and overworked.

Indeed, as Professor Cruickshank explains, “your diet, your activity level, your level of stress and sleep are all factors that affect immune functions.”

Which, according to her, is “not necessarily the first objective” for students in the first weeks of the university.

Among these, stress plays a particularly disruptive role. Pressure to settle, make friends, manage new responsibilities and respond to academic requests can quickly become overwhelming.

This triggers the release of cortisol, a stress hormone that removes immune responses.

“We have all had the moments when you are super stressed, you have a lot of deadlines, you work, work, work, you finish all deadlines – and then you get sick,” said Professor Cruickshank.

Stress can also have an impact on the amount of sleep you get, which also has an impact on the immune system.

But for many students, the pressure to socialize and make friends during the week of the setbacks prevails over the need to rest.

“I didn’t want to miss,” said Imogen Farmer, 19, second -year student at the University of Leeds.

She says she met friends every night during the week of refreshers.

“I definitely suffered after the first week, like sore throat, flowing nose, these typical symptoms, and he persists for a while.”

Imogen says it was worth it because “a large part of student culture, especially during the decline week, revolves around evenings”.

“This is how you meet a lot of people and bind links with friends. So I just said yes to everything.”

But it is not only the lack of sleep that makes life difficult for your immune system.

After Drinking a lot of alcohol – What many students will do to overcome the nerves – your body produces fewer white blood cells, which helps fight infections.

“Many people have a false idea that if you consume alcohol, you sleep better. But you have higher stress and you sleep worse,” said Dr. Stamataki.

Poor food can also weaken the immune system and, for many students, eating healthy is not easy – especially when jumping meals is a regular event.

With as many viruses around, you could be stuck in a conference between two sneezing people, each infected with another. And you would be exposed to both.

Viruses can then be transmitted very easily, without you knowing it (during the incubation period), and before noticing the symptoms.

“Sometimes you think you’re gone. And you didn’t do it,” warns Dr Stamataki.

“So you will feel good. You’re going to play rugby, you will be kissed your friends and you will have a good time, but at the same time, you send.”

She says that the immune response within young people is “quite powerful” but that it is limited by the fact that they have not yet been exposed to many viruses.

Although everything you meet for the first time will make you sick, the next time you meet the same virus, the symptoms will not be as nasty.

You can also get two infections at a time. This can help or hinder your body.

Either you will start to feel really horrible – because your immune system is struggling to cope – or the defenses of your body will start to go overtime to cope with the invaders.

When this happens, the immune system “is already super pumped”, explains Professor Cruickshank, because the body is busy making chemical messengers called cytokines who help kill viruses.

If you are not lucky to get a second infection shortly after getting rid of the first, it is generally because you are already dilapidated. It is at this time that conditions like bronchitis can occur.

“If your symptoms persist for a very long time or if you felt like you are improving and you find yourself sick again, it could be worth getting medical help just to check this,” said Professor Cruickshank.

“If you see stains on the back of your throat, this is definitely a sign that you have streptococcal angina and you may need antibiotics,” she adds.

Viruses like colds and flu do not respond to antibiotics – these drugs are used only to treat certain types of bacterial infection.

Although most viruses are soft, some can be much more dangerous and meningitis is a serious infection to monitor.

This may look a lot like the influenza of the declines, but if it is not treated, it can cause crises, brain damage and sepsis.

A student, from Wolverhampton, had her lower legs amputate and certain parts of her fingers after being struck a week after the start of the university.

Vaccines that help protect against various types of meningitis are given to children, but it is always important to be aware of symptoms, even if you have been.

So what are you looking for?

• high temperature or fever
• be sick
• a headache
• A rash that does not fade when a glass is rolled on it (but a rash will not always develop)
• A stiff neck
• An aversion of lively lights
• drowsiness or non-response
• Convulsions (adjustment)

Meningitis is propagated similarly to a cold – by close contact with a person bearing the infection.

It causes inflammation of the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord, so if you recognize these symptoms, call 999 or go to A&E immediately.

For many students, the pressure to continue, even in the event of a patient, is difficult to ignore.

“You push yourself so much because that’s what you are told,” said Emily Valentine, a 19 -year -old student at the University of Leeds.

“I tend to rest, but I know that many of my friends try to push themselves to go to conferences, especially the first week,” she adds.

A transition to the recording of conferences during the pandemic allowed students to make up for work more easily.

But experts say you should always give yourself time to recover.

“It can take your body for a while to overcome a very large assault on a virus,” said Professor Cruickshank.