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With the onset of September, many people begin to sniffle, cough, and generally feel worse. And all because in autumn the incidence of colds, flu and a number of other diseases increases sharply, along with which queues in hospitals are growing rapidly. It turns out that along with the autumn blues, people have to fight various diseases – a beautiful, but difficult time of the year for people has begun. High incidence in autumn is not a new phenomenon, it happened hundreds and even thousands of years ago. During all this time, the best minds of mankind managed to identify the most important reasons for the autumn increase in the incidence. As part of this article, we suggest taking a look at them – this can help protect yourself from health problems.
Pathogens live longer in autumn
Colds, flu and other autumn diseases do not come from nowhere. They occur after pathogenic bacteria and viruses enter the body. In summer, when the weather is hot and dry, these types of pathogens are less likely to spread—they often break down very quickly. But in cold and damp autumn weather, they feel great and actively spread between people.
In autumn, pathogens survive longer in the air
An example is influenza viruses, which belong to the orthomyxovirus family . It is believed that in the air they are able to survive up to 4 hours, and dried aerosol drops can remain on the surface of objects and dust from 2 to 5 weeks. In autumn, when strong and cold winds blow outside, pathogens spread rapidly, which is why the incidence increases. The same can be said about the causative agents of the common cold, rhinoviruses and so on.
Influenza A virus H1N1
In autumn, people are more likely to contact
If on summer days people try to spend more time outdoors, in autumn the opposite is true – everyone tends to hide from the cold indoors. In closed spaces, the air quickly fills with pathogens, making it easy to catch colds and flu. Usually, infection occurs in the “respiratory zone”, when people are 90-100 centimeters apart. If someone is a carrier of the virus and has not yet developed symptoms, others will definitely talk to him. As a result, viruses easily jump from one person to another.
People are more likely to contract diseases indoors
People dress worse in autumn
A particularly sharp jump in incidence in autumn occurs in the first weeks of September. This is due to the fact that people do not have time to get used to the regular cold and dampness, which is why they dress inappropriately for the weather. Even one walk in light clothes in the rain can cause a person to be unable to get out of bed for a week. Some people start dressing warmly only after such an unpleasant experience.
In the early days of autumn, people dress inappropriately for the weather.
In autumn, people do not have enough vitamins
In summer, most people eat a lot of fresh food, walk more, enjoy the sun, and generally feel great. Of course, someone may object that for several years now we have been suffering from unbearable heat, but, nevertheless, everyone is fine on cool evenings. In autumn, everything changes dramatically: people eat junk food more often, travel by transport, do not see sunlight and often just want to lie under a warm blanket – especially during a period when the heating has not yet been turned on at home .
In autumn, people change their lifestyle dramatically.
Due to drastic changes in lifestyle, there is a lack of vitamins and minerals in the human body. In addition, the body weakens due to bad mood and mild depression – it becomes more difficult to resist bacteria and viruses. As a result, there is an increase in the incidence rate.
How not to get sick in the fall?
Based on the factors listed above, you can make a list of recommendations for protecting against diseases in the fall:
- Wear masks if possible and wash your hands regularly to help prevent pathogens from entering the body.
- try to lessen contact with people who have signs of a cold;
- dress according to the weather – if it’s cold outside and it’s raining, you need to dress warmly and don’t forget your umbrella, and if it’s “Indian summer” outside, you can dress lighter so as not to sweat;
- Eat healthy, exercise, and get out in the sun more often – these are commonplace tips, but many people do not follow them. The sun rarely peeks out in autumn, so it is important not to miss such moments;
- get vaccinated – they help protect against influenza and coronavirus, although not 100%, but there is an effect.
