Why Does the Flu Season Occur in Winter?

Even though it is possible to contract the flu at any time during the year, the virus seems much more prevalent in the winter. However, recent studies may have discovered why the flu occurs in colder weather.

Significance

• The influenza virus has a hard coating that protects it during the winter. This coating forms a protective shield around the virus.

Function

• In the summer, this coating does not remain firm and makes the virus more vulnerable.

Identification

• The coating that surrounds the virus consists of a fatty protein called hemagglutinin, which stiffens in cold weather.

Effects

• Hemagglutinin is a sticky substance that makes washing the virus off your hands more difficult. It also stops soaps from penetrating and killing the virus.

Expert Insight

• Physicians at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development discovered the hemagglutinin shield using magnetic resonance imaging.