Vigorous Exercise and the Flu

Jennifer racing the Soctiabank Waterfront Half Marathon in Oct 2013 - in 1 hour 36 minutes!

From IDEA - The Health and Fitness Association, by Ryan Halvorson: Want to cut your risk of catching the flu? Preliminary findings from the U.K. Flusurvey suggest that vigorous exercise can help. The survey, an online study run by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, has gathered data from more than 4,800 participants. The organization found that individuals who exercised vigorously for at least 2.5 hours per week reduced their risk of developing flu-like illness by 10%. There was no association between moderate exercise and diminished risk.

“We’re really interested in the preliminary findings around fitness activity and flu-like illness, as exercise is something that everyone can do to reduce your chance of having flu,” says Alma Adler, PhD, research fellow at the school, in a press release. “We need to treat this result cautiously, as these are preliminary findings; however, they are consistent with findings for other conditions and really show the health benefits of exercise. Although many people have dodged the flu bullet this winter, flu can occur at any time, so taking advantage of the better weather is a great opportunity to get out and get fit to ward off flu this spring.”