Flu and Cold Season Underway at BHS

On By Branford Buzz
By Rebecca Criscuolo Like many schools across the nation, the common cold and flu has hit Branford High School students hard this season. Absenteeism has doubled according to the school’s attendance officer, who says a lot of kids started being absent right after Labor Day. “About sixty students per day are absent,” said Cheryl Alling, the school’s attendance officer. About thirty students are normally absent.The school nurse has also noticed many kids leaving early with colds. “More kids than usual at the start of this school year,” said school nurse Sharon Porello. “This always happens but has happened more this year.” About ten to fifteen students have left early each day since Labor Day, she said, not all regarding the flu or common cold. There was a flu clinic on Oct. 22 after school that offered flu shots to students and members of the community. Many students have been affected by the cold, some worse than others, and continue to be affected today. To keep healthy and avoid spreading the bug, the school nurse has supplied a few tips:
  1. Don’t sneeze or cough onto anyone;
  2. Remember to sneeze or cough into your own arm;
  3. Always wash hands after using the bathroom;
  4. Take vitamin D regularly, which is the most important vitamin for the immune system.
The common cold symptoms are due mainly to the body’s response to an infection. When a nasal cell is infected by a cold virus, the body responds by activating parts of the immune system and some nervous system reflexes. People with the common cold are contagious for two to three days. There are over one billion people in The United states that are affected by the common cold each year.