Thread by @DearPandemic

1/ A: Celebrate the mild #flu season & take what we have learned this year to inform future behavior. Harmful germs are not going away. 🦠 Illness from bacteria & viruses that make us sick do not “strengthen” the #immune system & contribute to significant complications & death.

2/ The lack of infectious illnesses will not #weaken your #immunesystem. Public health measures to combat #COVID19 including social distancing, masks, & extra hand washing greatly reduced the incidence of some bad microbes that cause common infectious illnesses such as the flu.

3/ More than 15,000 US deaths attributed to the #flu were averted this year. Other common viruses, like rhinoviruses, did not decrease as consistently. #Bacteria & #viruses that cause illness will continue to exist. go.nature.com/2OxkiUv

4/ Practices such as staying home when you are sick, wearing masks in crowded spaces 😷, & routinely washing your hands 👏remain beneficial in the prevention of common illnesses & may have increased uptake following a year with #COVID.

5/ One year of #isolation will not ruin your #microbiome, but likely resulted in some large scale shifts as a society. Each person has a distinct microbiome, the collection of #microbes present on & in your body (bacteria, bacteriophage, fungi, protozoa, and viruses).

6/ #COVID affected several factors that help to build a healthy microbiome such as diverse interactions with people & places while also increasing factors known to contribute to microbiota loss such as isolation & extreme hygiene. bit.ly/30pMiMI

7/ Future research is likely to focus on the short- & long-term changes to the human #microbiome as a result of #Covid_19, specifically in very young children building their microbiome & those with chronic conditions most at risk for COVID-19 complications.

8/ You can preserve your #immunesystem for whatever pathogen comes next. Your immune system thrives on exposure to non-threatening stimuli (like dirt), #sleep, #nutrition, & #relaxation.

9/ Consider increasing your time in nature, improving the consistency & quality of your sleep, eating a more balanced diet, & making time for things that restore & maintain your mental & physical health such as exercise.