BBC doctor urges anyone staying in hotels at Easter to leave bowls of water around (Image: Getty)
With spring in full swing and the Easter bank holiday on the horizon, many Brits will be embarking on getaways. For those planning a hotel stay, BBC Morning Live‘s resident doctor, Dr Punam Krisham, has offered advice she urges people to take to minimise the risk of falling ill, as she predicts there will likely be a “spike after the Easter holidays“.
Explaining why infections often surge “every time the seasons change”, Dr Punam attributes this largely to fluctuations in temperature and air pressure, which cause “viruses and bacteria spread a lot quicker”. The NHS GP also noted that, naturally, people are “mingling more” and “young children and people are travelling”, reports the Mirror.
Dr Punam informed viewers: “We’ve got Easter holidays, we fully expect a bit of a spike after the Easter holidays. And, there is this thing called a stacking effect.
“So what will happen is, because there are so many viral things circulating, people feel that if they have just recovered from one infection, their immune system takes a bit of a lag time. So as it’s recovering, because it’s still a bit down and you’re still a bit run down from it, you might end up catching another infection.”
Elaborating on how travelling and staying in hotel rooms could influence this, Dr Punam explained it is all related to air conditioning, given the rising temperatures. She initially emphasised that she doesn’t want anyone “worrying about air-con”
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However, she added: “It is important that we mention that if air conditioning systems aren’t well maintained, they can actually end up circulating viruses and bacteria in the room that you’re in, so it is important to make sure that they’re regularly serviced”.
She went on: “The other thing that air conditioning does is it dries out the air. But it doesn’t just dry out the air, it also dries your nose and your throat”. She says this can make your body less able to protect itself against infections.
Dr Punam said there’s likely to be a “spike” in illnesses after the Easter holidays (Image: BBC)
Signs of excessively dry sinuses can include a dry, scratchy throat, particularly in the morning, and a stuffy or blocked nose. It can also trigger dry, irritated skin and eyes, a persistent cough and headaches or dizziness.
According to Healthline, dry sinuses occur when the mucus membranes lack moisture, often due to dry air or inadequate water intake. When this occurs, it becomes easier for viruses, bacteria, and allergens to penetrate because the dry nasal lining can’t effectively trap or eliminate them, compromising the body’s first line of defence.
Leaving bowls of water around can help put moisture back into the air (Image: Getty)
Outlining the measures people can take to combat this, Dr Punam said: “Simple things that you can do – because it does dry out everything – is stay hydrated. If you are somewhere where there’s air-con on all the time, like if you’re on a flight, stay hydrated and drink plenty of fluids.”
She also stated: “Humidifiers are fantastic just to add moisture back into the air. If you don’t have a humidifier, just use bowls of water. A few bowls of water around the room also help to add moisture.
“Humidifiers are helpful and some hotels do have that, but I think just as long as air conditioning is serviced, they are okay, I don’t want everyone thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, and I’m going to get another virus or bacteria because of this’.”
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
