Influenza

How many times have you been stuck home with the flu not being able to do anything? Do you ever wonder what that flu really is? Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is a sickness that can come from a sneeze, spit or a cough. It lasts for about five days. There are three different kinds of the flu; Type A, B, and C.

According to KidsHealth, some of the symptoms of the flu include:
  • Fever 
  • Chills 
  • Headache
  • Muscle aches
  • Dizziness
  • Loss of appetite
  • Tiredness
  • Cough
  • Sore throat
  • Runny nose
  • Nausea/Vomiting
  • Weakness
  • Ear pain
  • Sometimes diarrhea
A way to prevent the flu is to wash your hands or get the flu shot or mist. But even the flu vaccine has flaws. According to Flu.gov, the symptoms of the flu shot include:
  • Soreness
  • Redness and swelling 
  • Fainting
  • Headaches
  • Fever
  • Nausea    
Some facts that people should know about the flu: 
  • 200,000 people are hospitalized each year from the flu.
  • Every year, 5%-20% of the population in the United States gets the flu.
  • According to NCBI.gov, the flu has been around for about 700 years.


It is also very important to know the differences between the cold and the flu. A few ways to tell the difference are stated below. According to Health.NY.gov the flu tends to start very suddenly, while colds tend to develop gradually. The flu is worse than the common cold, and symptoms such as fever, body aches, extreme tiredness and dry cough are more common and intense. People with colds are more likely to have a runny or stuffy nose. Colds generally do not result in serious health problems, such as pneumonia, bacterial infections, or hospitalizations. There are more than 100 kinds of different kinds of viruses that cause colds, but there are only 3 that cause the flu. Type A and B viruses are responsible for the large flu epidemics. Type C flu virus is more stable and usually causes more mild respiratory symptoms. While the flu vaccine can help protect you from type A and B flu viruses, there is no flu shot for type C virus. There isn't really a way to treat the flu once you have it. All you can do is rest and drink a lot of fluids.


Studies of the flu virus have revealed complicated mechanisms by which the virus interacts with its host cell. It stops the cell from making proteins which hurts the cell badly along with the fact that the virus takes over the cell and starts to make its own proteins called RNA’s.  After the influenza virus is in the cell it takes it over and acts like the nucleus of the cell giving it orders.