Derry has one of the highest increases in online flu searches

New research shows that Derry has one of the highest increases in Google searches for flu symptoms, remedies, advice and preventatives since September.

The research, conducted by Vegetology has shown that Derry has the fifth highest increase in the searches, with a 41.1% increase between October and November. Terms analysed covered general advice like ‘how to get rid of flu’, ‘how long does flu last’ and ‘freshers’ flu symptoms’, and solutions like ‘book flu jab’ and ‘flu remedies’.

The research looked at university cities in the UK and found that Oxford increased their demand for flu-related advice and services by an average of two-fifths (46%) each October compared to the month before. This is the biggest rise in searches of any university city, with the most significant increase occurring in 2021 when demand jumped by almost two-thirds (63%) once flu season hit. This surge in interest is also more than a third higher (35%) than the national average rise.

Demand is expected to be even higher this year, given the recent focus on identifying and combatting meningitis in universities - with the latest figures from the UK Health Security Agency showing that 1 in 8 new students are unprotected against the flu-like infection.