Types Of Flu

A flu is an infection of the respiratory system due to a virus attack. Different types of viruses cause different types of flu, but general speaking symptoms of all types of flu include headaches and fevers, throat soreness and muscle pains.

The easiest way for a virus to enter your body is through cavities that are not covered by skin; that is your nose, your mouth, and your eyes. What is ironic is that most of the times you infect yourself with the virus by touching your face with dirty hands that are filled with germs and bacteria. That is why washing your hands regularly is very crucial, if you want to avoid the various types of flu lurking out there.

There are basically three types of flu viruses: type A, type B, and type C. While the type C virus presents mild flu symptoms, the epidemics that make your life a living hell every year are caused by the first two types of flu viruses, the result being one out of five people coughing and blowing their nose, looking to transfer the virus (even unintentionally) to the next unlucky victim.

Now, let’s take a closer look at the three types of flu viruses separately. Type A flu is different from the other two types of flu in that it can be transmitted from humans to animals, and vice versa. One would expect that it would be easy to prevent large epidemics of type A flu with regular flu vaccination, but the truth is that this type of flu virus is very resistant due to the fact that it is constantly changing (as do the other types also). Every once in a while strains of the virus undergo certain mutations, making it essentially a new kind of virus. Therefore, although you might have had a flu three months ago and your body has successfully created the proper antibodies to fight it off, the virus shows up again reborn and mutated from its ashes (and your body is as susceptible to the virus as it was before the previous flu). Avoiding close contact with those already infected and wiping all surfaces clean (at least the ones that you touch, if that is possible), will give the best fighting chance against the flu. As for the other two types of flu viruses, type B and type C, they can only be transmitted from one human to another (and not to or from animals). Type B flu is a bit less severe than type A in most cases, although it might also prove to be very dangerous given that certain conditions are met (in terms of the virus itself and the person infected). It causes all the symptoms that are typical of a flu, but never causes pandemics. As for type C flu, this is definitely the least aggressive of all three types of flu viruses. Symptoms are so mild that some in some cases you might not even realize that you are infected with type C flu. Again, type C flu virus cannot cause epidemics.