Beware: seasonal flu is raging

A visitor looks down over Seoul from N Tower’s observatory deck in Mount Namsan, Seoul, Wednesday. / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

By Park Si-soo

Spring has come and with it seasonal flu. Hospitals see a sharp increase in the number of coughing and sneezing patients at this time of year.

Experts say the hike is typical and can be blamed on the big morning-evening temperature gap. They warned this year could see more patients than previous years due to raging ultrafine dust that often contains flu-causing viruses.

Insurance data also proves spring is a “season of flu.”

Nearly 8.7 million people caught flu between March and May 2016, the second-most flu-prone period of the year, followed by December-February with 9.63 million, according to the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS).

“During a season with a big morning-evening temperature gap, our immune system gets weakened, leaving people vulnerable to flu and other diseases,” a NHIS official said.