Man Flu Or COVID?

My Son Daniel came to dinner Christmas Day. Three days later he rang me from his home and said, “The next day I started to feel ill, with the flu,” I said to Daniel, “Have some real lemons and honey in warm water,” Paul, his Dad said, “Have half an Aspirin a day.” Then three days later Paul wondered how he was doing, so I texted him to ask, “How are you feeling today?” This was his actual reply by text, “I feel better now, thank you, the same day I phoned you, on the night I thought I was going to die, I was really bad, but just got a cough now and getting rid of the phlegm from my nose and chest, I’ll be alright soon.” I replied, “OK, the real lemons and honey it’s best to use the runny honey.” Daniel replied, “Runny honey is what I have got, to be fair, it didn’t help me at all, lol, it tasted nice but it was useless.” I said, “OK,” He went on, “I was coughing up phlegm, it was getting stuck in my throat then I was gagging and being sick.”

I sent the text from Daniel to his sister Meghan and she said to me in a text, “Isn’t that what some Men say who have Man Flu?” I replied, “Yes, with exactly the same symptoms, a Woman would go to work, come home and cook for herself or her family. It did make me smile.

Meghan said, “Is that an actual thing, Manflu?” I said, “Absolutely, it’s been proven, to be real, for years Men were made fun off, but now It has been proven they were right all along, the key word is, “I thought I was going to die!” Now Daniel is a very tough and strong lad, he loves the gym and he always goes to the gym every Christmas Day, I mean, who does that? So, for him to be SO ill to have this near-death experience of flu, where he thought his time was up, I really felt for him.

I’d also sent the same text to Paul of how Daniel felt, as I wasn’t at home, and later while I still was away at work, I had rung Paul and we talked about it, Paul said, “I wonder if Daniel has COVID-19?” I said to Paul, “I hadn’t thought of that, but now you have mentioned it, I also think he has it.” I asked Paul, “Will you ring Daniel and ask him if he thinks he might have it?” Paul said, “Yes, I’ll ask him.” Then in the next breath, Paul said, “Is it OK if I ask Daniel to dinner?” I said, “Absolutely not, whatever it is, I don’t want to catch it.”

That night, Paul asked Daniel, “Do you think you have COVID-19?” Daniel replied, “No I don’t.” Paul said, “If you still feel unwell before you go back to work next week, let your work know, you have symptoms of the virus, and then you can have extra time off with 80% of your wages, to give you time to recover.” Daniel said to Paul, “I’m not having any time off, I’m going to work.”

Later on, when Paul told me of their conversation I said, to Paul, “If he was dying, he would have had no choice but to have time off, but he is obviously on the mend, for he’d also informed me Darius and Claudia hadn’t caught the flu, they were both fine.”

Now that the gyms are closed again, Daniel told Paul last night when they spoke, “I miss the gym, it makes me depressed when I can’t go.”

Links to the headlines

Could evolution make men more prone to coughs and colds?

BBC News, 24 March 2010

Man flu is no myth as scientists prove men suffer more from disease

The Daily Telegraph, 24 March 2010

Why man flu isn't his fault (it's because he's so macho)

Daily Mail, 24 March 2010

Man flu real says experts

Daily Mirror, 24 March 2010

‘Man flu’ may be all a matter of evolution, Cambridge scientists say

The Times, 24 March 2010

Links to the science

Restif O and Amos W.

The evolution of sex-specific immune defences

Proceedings of the Royal Society, Biological Sciences2010; Published online before print, March 24 2010

Man flu: real or myth?

Thursday 25 March 2010

Man flu is real, reported the Daily Mirror . Many newspapers reported the news that scientists have found men suffer from flu more because they “invest in their spirit of adventure at the expense of their immune system” (The Daily Telegraph).