Wondering if you need to keep your child home from school? Or whether you should call in sick for work? The last thing you want to do is spread the flu around.
But the time period when the flu is contagious seems a little unclear. Is it contagious as long as there are flu symptoms? Does it linger before or after symptoms appear?
The answer may surprise you. And maybe mother didn’t always know best.
Influenza
The flu, or influenza, is caused by several different viral strains. This contagious respiratory disease can infect the throat, nose, and sometimes lungs. Unlike cold symptoms, those of the flu come on more suddenly.
Can the flu be treated? Until recently, the answer was “no.” Just like the common cold, the flu is caused by a virus. And, at least until now, viruses are not curable.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends four FDA-approved antiviral drugs to treat the flu. These medications may help shorten the length of time that you are sick. And they may also help shorten the time period when you’re contagious to others.
Children and people at risk of flu complications can benefit the most from these antiviral drugs.
Contagion Period
Having the flu can leave you feeling low. So it seems like a no-brainer that you’d be contagious during this time. But did you know you could also spread the virus before you show symptoms?
In fact, you’re contagious a day before you start showing symptoms. So you may spread the virus before you know you have it. (Mother Nature is sneaky sometimes.)
The contagious period lasts for a week. Technically, for five to seven days after you start feeling sick you are contagious, but you are more contagious in the first 3-4 days after the flu symptoms appear.
Children may be contagious for longer. It is recommended you wait until the symptoms fade until you can safely send them back to school.
Incubation Period
When you first get the flu virus, you aren’t sick immediately. The virus needs time to invade your body, and your body, in response, brings on the conditions we call symptoms. For most people, that may mean 2 days after exposure. But this period can range from 1 – 4 days afterward.
Yes, you can spread the flu without ever knowing you have it.
Spreading the Flu
Now that you know when you can spread the flu, it may also be good to know how it spreads. In this case, your mother was right when she said to cover when you cough or sneeze. The flu is primarily spread through droplets in the air.
How do flu droplets get into the air? Talking, coughing, and sneezing when you have the flu can release the virus into the air. And it can spread up to 6 feet away to others around you.
Once those droplets land, some flu strains can live on surfaces for up to 24 hours, too. That includes doorknobs, countertops, and phones.
How do germs get transferred to surfaces? When you’re sick you may rub your eyes, or touch your mouth or nose. And then you touch surfaces without washing your hands. This is typically how germ transference happens.
So even if you want to be a “trooper” and go into work to finish a project, you may infect the entire office despite any precautions you take.
Flu Symptoms
Sometimes it’s difficult to tell whether you have a cold, the flu, or seasonal allergies. Both the cold and flu are contagious. But allergies are not.
If you think you may have the flu, watch for these symptoms:
- Body aches
- Cough
- Fever
- Chills
- Headaches
- Fatigue
- Vomiting and diarrhea
However, if you have a cold, you may only experience respiratory issues like sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, and sneezing. Colds also come on gradually, so if your symptoms occur suddenly you may have the flu. Colds, meanwhile, are not often associated with elevated temperatures that accompany the flu.
Allergies are different altogether. Common allergy symptoms may include swollen sinuses, runny or stuffy nose, and itchy eyes. But you won’t have body aches or a fever.
When It’s Time to Stay Home
Flu symptoms can make you feel miserable. Don’t load up on over-the-counter medications that mask the symptoms and go to work during this time. Those medications aren’t a cure for the flu, and you’re still contagious.
Instead, stay home and take care of yourself. Get plenty of rest and make sure to stay hydrated. Wait it out. If your doctor has you on antiviral medications to treat the flu, you are probably still contagious.
If you start to feel better, you should still stay home for a little while longer before returning to work. The CDC recommends that you stay home up to 24 hours after the symptoms go away. Especially if it’s your child that’s sick.
Final Thought
To be kind to friends, family, coworkers and even unwitting strangers, washing your hands often when you have the flu. Avoid touching your eyes, mouth, and nose, and disinfect surfaces that may be infected with the flu. Also, try to avoid close contact with anyone. Remember that germs can spread in the air up to 6 feet. away.
Try to limit contact with other people. You’re most contagious at the height of your symptoms in the first 3-4 days. But you are contagious throughout your illness.
Even when you start to feel better, stay home for at least 24 hours afterward. And make sure your fever is gone during that 24-hour period to avoid spreading it to others.
References:
https://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/how-long-flu-contagious
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/disease/spread.htm
https://www.healthline.com/health/cold-flu/contagious#when-to-stay-home
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/school/guidance.htm
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/keyfacts.htm
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