Understatement of the century, but being crammed into peak hour public transport is not fun.
You know what’s even less fun? Being crammed into peak hour public transport during cold and flu season with a bunch of sneezing commuters.
And we’re sorry to break the bad news but it’s about to get a whole lot worse.…
Turns out there is no escape from the sneezes and sniffles creeping into your bubble of personal space, making your skin crawl and your eyes water.
The bacteria from a sneeze can linger in the air for up to 45 minutes and if that’s not enough to send chills down your spine, the bacteria from a sneeze can also travel a distance of up to four meters.
This new, mentally scaring information is brought to you by research from Queensland University of Technology and the University of Queensland.
The team, led by Professor Lidia Morawska, director of the International Laboratory for Air Quality and Health at QUT, investigated how those nasty, bacteria-carrying droplets ejected by sneezes or coughs can travel such enormous distance and remain infectious.
Delightful.
Previous research in this area has been conducted in laboratories using bio-aerosols, or airborne droplets, which are different from our real life, natural respiratory droplets.
With this in mind, the research team led a lab to real life investigation – getting real people to sneeze on each other and tracking the effects.
What a job! Let’s hope those getting sneezed on were compensated with something other than Lemsip.
As well as confirmation that your sneeze has some serious hang time, the research revealed that different types of bacteria have different life spans and those who already have respiratory infections are more susceptible to picking up infections.
“As soon as cough droplets hit the air they rapidly dry out, cool and become light enough to stay airborne. They also partly degrade through contact with oxygen in the air, with larger droplets taking much longer to evaporate,” Professor Morawska explained of the varied results.
So what’s the takeaway from all this?
Mum was right when she told you to cover your mouth after you sneeze.
Oh, and it’s also reason 364 that you need to book yourself a flu shot.
Here’s everything you need to know before booking a flu shot.
What’s in the flu shot?
The flu vaccines available in Australia are all made from highly purified egg-grown influenza viruses, which are then killed and broken up into tiny pieces.
Small amounts of preservative and stabiliser may be used, depending on the individual manufacturers production process.
When the vaccine is injected, the body is fooled into believing it has been invaded by the virus, and produces an immune response. This kind of inactivated vaccine cannot cause influenza in the recipient.
DISCLAIMER: This is in no way gives you any flu symptoms, people. Like, NONE.
What does the flu shot protect me from?
The influenza vaccine prevents influenza infection but not other viruses like colds and gastroenteritis
Influenza is a highly contagious disease that kills more Australians per year than road accidents. It is estimated that 1500-3500 die from influenza or influenza-related complications each year
The flu vaccine can protect you against complications from existing underlying medical conditions that are brought about by contracting the flu
Current research suggests that the flu shot seems almost halve the risk of heart attacks in middle-aged people
Vaccination may also make your illness milder if you do get sick with the flu. No vaccine is 100% effective but it is still the single best prevention we have
Getting vaccinated yourself also protects people around you, including those who are more vulnerable to serious flu illness, like babies and young children, older people, and people with certain chronic health conditions
To learn more about the flu shot and if you need one, click here
