Studies of the flu or influenza have long shown that the virus is transmitted more easily in dry air , but new research published today in PNAS indicates that the key is absolute humidity (which measures the amount of water present in the air, regardless of temperature) and not relative humidity.
"The correlation we've found is surprisingly strong. When absolute humidity is low, flu virus survival is long and transmission rates go up," explains Jeffrey Shaman, an atmospheric scientist at Oregon State University specializing in the relationships between climate and disease transmission.
The discovery "is very important so that the scientific community and the medical community can develop better prediction models of the flu," predicts the researcher, who suggests that increasing humidity in critical areas such as emergency rooms could reduce the expansion of the flu. flu during an epidemic .
According to Shaman, to the public the discovery offers "a more elegant explanation of why we see these seasonal increases" in the flu. It also reveals that it can be worth adding moisture to the air we breathe. Although without exceeding us, as too much humidity can lead to other problems, such as mold.
