General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsMedical and Scientific DUers: Why does the influenza virus have a "season"?
What is it about a virus that makes it more active during some times of the year than others?
Is it weather dependent?
People are assuming that the COVID-19 virus will have a season that comes to an end soon... is there any reason to think this is true?
BusyBeingBest
(8,059 posts)in winter, and that viruses can be sensitive to heat. But neither of those explanations ever seemed plausible to me.
bearsfootball516
(6,377 posts)Because people are cooped up in their homes and have very little fresh air, which basically causes homes to become breeding grounds for germs.
at140
(6,110 posts)and that means breathing stagnant air.
Laffy Kat
(16,386 posts)LisaL
(44,974 posts)krispos42
(49,445 posts)Humidity makes water cling to the flu virus, so it's heavier and falls out of the air sooner.
dhol82
(9,353 posts)When its cold we cluster together. When its warm we separate.
It also gives a virus a several month window to mutate.
5X
(3,972 posts)milestogo
(16,829 posts)the weather is warm and people are seldom cooped up inside. Some of these are mosquito borne, but not all.
Igel
(35,337 posts)I've had colds and seen the flu in summer. It's a question of frequency.
For flu, there are two competing views. The first is that temperature and humidity work to help degrade the virus; the second is that dry, cold temperatures help prep the mucosal lining for easier infection. The second is more aesthetically pleasing, but I the last I heard opinion was it was the former, virus degradation.
It would be interesting when there's enough data to see if temperature does play a role with COVID-19, whether seasonally or by geography. There *are* cases in warmer climates, but it may be that in the end there are far fewer than you'd otherwise expect. Stay tuned for research next year.
Not that colds always follow the same pattern. And there's a claim that's mostly behind a firewall that COVID-19 is transmitted most efficiently at "8.72 degrees C" (I find the number of significant figures there amusing, given that everybody who's contracted the virus is transmitted is subject to a temperature range throughout the day, whether indoors, outdoors, or alternating).
Quixote1818
(28,959 posts)from people staying out of the sun.
djg21
(1,803 posts)lapfog_1
(29,219 posts)there are a number of reasons:
1. Some viruses are susceptible to warmer weather meaning they don't live as well on surfaces which are warm to hot.
2. Most if not all viruses are susceptible to increase UV radiation... longer hours of sunlight, reduced viral activity.
3. Colder weather impacts are own natural immunity (we have none for Covid-19).
4. Warmer weather means people are outdoors more, more sunlight, more vitamin C, less contact with strangers in enclosed spaces.
It is that very last point, people not interacting with others as much, that might be the largest component of "flu season" but most likely it is the combination of factors.
Yet to be determined if Covid-19 will reduce due to warmer weather, so far the results from warm weather locations like Indonesia are not promising. MERS, another corona virus, was not a season sensitive virus.
Quixote1818
(28,959 posts)milestogo
(16,829 posts)jberryhill
(62,444 posts)Heated air is dry and reduces the effectiveness of your mucous membranes at providing a barrier. People are cooped up. The virii do better in cold dry air....
Heres a summary:
https://www.popsci.com/cold-flu-season-sick-winter/
Keep an eye on how Australia, Chile, Argentina, and South Africa are doing.
Now, there is a lot of movement between Australia and relatively nearby Asian countries, and there are cases in Australia. The thing to watch is if there is a significant spread in places like Adelaide, Melbourne, etc.
Spider Jerusalem
(21,786 posts)assuming it has a "season" is wishful thinking.
Wounded Bear
(58,693 posts)NickB79
(19,257 posts)And it's a related coronavirus to COVID.