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With Bradley Krajkowski

A Positive Medical Statistic in Aging

Bradley Krajkowski ’15

Staff Writer

A recent British study finds that the average adult over 30 gets the flu only about twice every decade. Contrary to popular belief, the influenza in adults is much less common states medical doctor Steven Riley. Dr. Riley’s study team analyzed blood samples in southern China from many different volunteers. With the blood samples, the team measured their levels of antibodies against nine different flu strains that hit southern China from 1968 to 2009. The results of the blood testing study showed that on average children are susceptible to getting the flu every other year. Moreover, the study showed that as humans age the flu becomes less and less frequent. Therefore, the study team concluded adults over 30 get the flu only about twice every 10 years.

One hypothesis to this decline in contracting the flu is that children and teenagers usually interact with more people and more often. Although statistics prove this case, there is still much debate in the medical field as to how often people get the flu versus to illnesses with flu-like symptoms according to medical doctor Adam Kucharski. In addition, with people having similar symptoms to the flu when it is another condition, they also can think they have a simple cold when it really is the mild flu, as proven in blood tests. Dr. Riley’s team including Dr. Kucharski also created a model to show how human’s immune system changes when encountering different strains of the flu. As expected by many who have studied the immune system, flu strains introduced earlier in life cause a stronger immune response when encountered again later in life.

This model proved information known, however, has much more to offer to better understand how human’s immunity affects flu virus evolution. In all, statistically if you are over the age of 30 you will on average only get the influenza twice every decade. To many other health issues that come about with age, this does not seem like it would be of one to worry about, and may change a mind or two on living as a youngster forever.