Chronic bronchitis is where you have long term symptoms of bronchitis, and is defined as a daily productive cough that lasts for three months of the year, for at least two years in a row. Bronchitis is an infection or inflammation of the bronchi, which are the largest airways of the lungs. These airways have a protective mechanism built into them where they produce mucus, which traps anything that is not welcome in the airways and could be harmful to the lungs. It can then be coughed up and removed from the body. When someone has bronchitis, something has irritated the airways, causing increased production of mucus. This leads to the body trying to get rid of the mucus, and causes a productive cough. It may start as an on-and-off acute bronchitis and lead to chronic bronchitis.

Conjunctivitis, commonly called pink eye, is an inflammation of the conjunctiva—the clear tissue covering the eye's white part and the eyelids' inside. This condition can be caused by several factors, including bacterial infections and allergic reactions, leading to different types of conjunctivitis. Understanding the differences between bacterial and allergic conjunctivitis is crucial for individuals in the UK, where pollen levels can be high, and bacteria can spread quickly in close-contact environments like schools and workplaces. This knowledge helps ensure proper treatment, reduces the risk of spreading infections, and allows for more effective management of symptoms.

When COVID-19 first emerged, infections followed a consistent pattern with three main symptoms: a continuous dry cough, fever and a loss in sense of taste or smell. The infection has now morphed into different symptoms, as new variants of the virus have emerged, and as most people are fully vaccinated.

As autumn settles in and temperatures begin to drop, you should start thinking seriously about flu season. While the flu typically reaches its peak between December and February in the Northern Hemisphere, the timing can shift based on weather patterns and your geographic location. Climate factors such as humidity levels and temperature fluctuations influence when and how severely the flu virus circulates in your community. This variability makes early preparation even more crucial for protecting yourself and your loved ones. Most people dread the flu, and for good reasons. You probably picture the classic scene: someone lying in bed, feeling miserable, with a thermometer hanging from their mouth, surrounded by crumpled tissues and an array of medications. The reality of influenza extends far beyond this stereotypical image – it can knock you out of commission for a week or more, force you to miss important work deadlines, family gatherings, or special events, and in severe cases, lead to serious complications requiring hospitalisation. However, you don't have to resign yourself to this fate. Medical experts have identified proven strategies that can help you prevent the flu entirely or significantly reduce its impact if you do contract it. Understanding the Flu Before diving into prevention strategies, you should understand precisely what you're up against. Influenza is a respiratory illness caused by flu viruses that infect your nose, throat, and sometimes your lungs. The virus can cause mild to severe illness, and in some cases, it can lead to death. You might experience symptoms such as fever, cough, body aches, headache, runny or stuffy nose, sore throat, and fatigue. Some people, particularly children, may also experience vomiting and diarrhoea. You should know that flu viruses are constantly changing, which is why you can get the flu more than once and why scientists must update vaccines annually. Two main types of flu viruses cause seasonal epidemics: influenza A and influenza B. Influenza A viruses are further classified by two proteins on their surface: hemagglutinin (H) and neuraminidase (N). You've probably heard of strains like H1N1 or H3N2 – these designations refer to different combinations of these surface proteins. The flu spreads primarily through respiratory droplets that travel through the air when infected people cough, sneeze, or talk. You can also catch the flu by touching a surface or object contaminated with flu viruses and then touching your mouth, nose, or eyes. People can infect others beginning one day before symptoms develop and up to five to seven days after becoming sick. This means you could be spreading the virus before you even realise you're ill, making prevention strategies even more critical.

Flu is the common name for illness caused by the influenza virus. It brings on headache, muscle ache, sore throat, runny nose and cough. It's much worse than the common cold, often requiring a few days in bed, struggling with fever, poor appetite, and feeling very tired and drained. It comes in the winter, it's highly contagious and most people have experienced it at one time or another. If you're healthy, you have a miserable 2 to 7 days, then get better and back to normal life. The risk comes to those who are elderly or have ongoing medical conditions. It can also hit those with suppressed immune systems hard, either from conditions or medication. It causes inflammation in the lungs and airways, leading to breathing problems, pneumonia and even death. Antibiotics won't help as they don't work on viruses, only bacteria. Your immune system will fight it off, and you may need intravenous fluids and oxygen if you are admitted to hospital.

With the rise of COVID-19, we’ve had to grapple with a whole new scientific vocabulary. Herd immunity (or community immunity) is often mentioned, but what does it really mean? We’ll explain that in relation to the COVID-19 vaccine and other vaccines. Herd immunity means enough of a population is immune to a specific infectious disease (a pathogen such as a virus or bacteria) that it stops the spread. If the virus fails to spread from person to person, fewer people will get unwell and die. And the pathogen will fall to very low levels. Immunity can come from catching the disease and building antibodies: these have a memory that means the next time you meet the pathogen, your immune system recognises it and rapidly kicks into action to defeat it, and you avoid serious illness or death. This is known as natural immunity. The vaccine also gives immunity. In a similar way, it teaches your immune system to recognise the pathogen and build memory cells, so it’s primed to fight off any future invasions. This is desirable if the disease carries a high risk of serious illness or death, such as COVID-19. But natural immunity is preferred for something like the common cold, as it’s not a serious disease, so they haven’t developed a vaccine.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a very common ailment, and every sufferer has their own particular set of symptoms and triggers. As it commonly starts in your 20s and 30s, it will be most people’s first experience of dealing with a long-term condition. Physical symptoms – abdominal pain, bloating or altered bowel habit – can dominate consultations with your doctor, and, indeed, can impose on daily life. But sometimes the mental health side of IBS can get sidelined, when attention to your psychological needs can actually improve symptoms. Recognising that there is a huge mental health burden is the first step, and taking measures to protect yourself is the next. Here we dig into these in more detail, to keep yourself as well as you can.

Quinsy describes a pocket of infection just next to one of your two tonsils at the back of your throat. Also called a peritonsillar abscess, it’s caused by bacteria and occurs as a rare complication of tonsillitis. It is mainly seen in young people from teenagers up to mid twenty's. It can be serious and requires hospitalisation to treat. Symptoms to look out for are a sudden worsening sore throat that can be one-sided, which may cause difficulty swallowing or opening your mouth. This can lead to drooling, bad breath, pain in the ear on the side of the quinsy, and you may speak at a very low volume or with minimum movement of the mouth. A high fever usually accompanies this and it is likely you’ll feel unwell.

As we learn to live alongside COVID-19, it can be hard to tease apart the threat it poses to us, and this can depend on many factors – age, sex, ethnicity, health condition. Will it feel like a simple cold or will I end up in hospital? Add the fact that you’re pregnant into the equation, and confusion reigns. In the simplest terms, the risk to pregnant women is low. However, when compared to people of your age and gender, the risk if raised and this is for both becoming unwell enough to need hospital treatment, and of needing intensive care support. This risk is much reduced if you are in good health, and significantly reduced if you are fully vaccinated. The doctors here at Healthwords follow guidance from the NHS and the UK government, in advising you that getting fully vaccinated in pregnancy offers the best protection for you and your baby. Real-world data suggests that pregnant women who are unvaccinated are significantly more likely to end up seriously unwell or needing hospital care than those who are vaccinated. Your baby may also risk being born prematurely if you contract COVID-19.

A sore throat is hard to ignore, as it affects us when we speak, eat and drink – even simply swallowing can bring on pain. Sore throats are common, and most improve with time and without any intervention. It can be hard to know when to sit it out and when there's reason to worry. First stop, you can assess your own throat, and it’s good to get to know it when you’re well. If you look in the mirror and open wide, perhaps with the help of a torch, you’ll see a high double arch at the back with a little boxing bag in the middle – this is the uvula, flanked on either side by the soft immune tissue of the tonsils. The black hole in the middle reaches the pharynx, the back of the nose and throat and extends down to the larynx (voice box) then onwards to both the airways and lungs, and to the oesophagus (food pipe) and stomach. The back of the throat should be a uniform light to medium pink colour. If it’s red, or with bloody spots, white or yellow spots, this is abnormal. If one or both tonsils look enlarged and red, with the hole in the middle looking squished or smaller, it’s likely you’re fighting off an infection as part of your immune response. This is called tonsillitis. You can’t see further than your tonsils – the pharynx, larynx and vocal cords are unseen in the very back of the throat, and only visible via a special camera on a wire, called an endoscope.

Threadworms are very common in children, but rare in adults. They are a parasite that passes from faeces to hands to mouth and is incredibly contagious. This infection causes intense itching around the bottom and sometimes the vagina, especially at night – the need to scratch may even disturb your child’s sleep. You might notice tiny white worms around your child’s anus when they are active at night, laying eggs, or mixed in their poo.

Group A streptococcus (or group A strep) is a type of bacterium (germ) that commonly lives on our skin or in our nose and throat. Many of us carry this bacteria but never become ill. Strep A infections vary in severity from very mild - such as throat infections - to severe such as pneumonia, but fortunately most can be treated with antibiotics. How do I catch Strep A? Many people carry group A Strep without realising it - it causes no problems and they remain well and don’t develop any illness. It can be passed from person to person by close contact with someone who has Strep A such as by kissing or from skin to skin contact. Strep A can also sometimes be spread through food if someone infected with group A strep prepares or serves food which is then shared. Who’s most at risk from Strep A? Although most people exposed to Strep A have either no symptoms or mild ones, you’re more likely to be at risk from it if you: have close contact with someone with Strep A are older than 65 are diabetic have heart disease or cancer have recently had chickenpox have HIV have a weakened immune system or take long-term steroids