The 'man flu' is real, and here's what you need to know about it

Moms, have you ever wondered why whenever you or your husband go down with the flu, your husband tends to suffer from worse symptoms? This phenomenon, called the ‘man flu’, is usually something that’s told as a joke by wives to their husbands.

However, a recent study has discovered that the flu might actually hit men much harder than women.

The ‘man flu’ is actually real

Moms, dads can sometimes get sick too!

The ‘man flu’ phenomenon has been the subject of much debate, and most of the time, the term is used as a joke since whenever women get the flu, their symptoms tend to be less severe compared to those of men.

But a new study has discovered that the ‘man flu’ is, in fact, a real phenomenon, and men really do have it worse when they go down with the flu compared to women.

The study’s author, Kyle Sue, shares, “The evidence in current studies points towards men having weaker immune systems than women, especially when it comes to common viral respiratory infections.”

“Men are more susceptible to them, symptoms are worse, they last longer, and men are more likely to be hospitalized and die from the flu,” Sue adds.

Another study suggested that men might have less of a reaction to the flu vaccine compared to women because higher testosterone levels among men might be suppressing the body’s immune response to the vaccine.

However, Sue adds that further research needs to be conducted in order to conclusively prove that the flu affects men worse compared to women.

Source: webmd.com

READ: Study finds that seasonal flu kills as many as 600,000 people globally