Flu symptoms and treatment

Find out about the symptoms of flu, when to get medical help and how to treat flu.

What are the symptoms of flu?

Flu symptoms include:

  • a sudden high temperature (38 degrees Celsius or above)
  • an aching body
  • feeling tired or exhausted
  • a dry cough
  • a sore throat
  • a headache
  • finding it hard to sleep
  • loss of appetite
  • diarrhoea or tummy pain
  • feeling sick or being sick.  

Speak to your GP, nurse or pharmacist if you or your child have flu symptoms.

What are the differences between a common cold and flu? 

Flu is not just a bad cold. It can be a very serious illness.

Flu Common cold
Comes on quickly, within a few hours Comes on gradually
Can affect more than just your nose and throat Mainly affects your nose and throat
Makes you feel exhausted and too unwell to do everyday activities Makes you feel unwell, but you should still be able to do everyday activities

Flu and asthma

Flu is a common asthma trigger. If flu is a trigger for you, you might get symptoms like:

  • shortness of breath
  • coughing
  • wheezing
  • a tight chest.

See a GP or contact 111 if:

  • your asthma symptoms suddenly get worse
  • you feel short of breath
  • you get chest pain
  • your reliever medicine is not helping.

Flu and lung conditions

In a recent survey, 3 in 4 people told us that flu made their lung condition symptoms worse.

Flu can increase your risk of having a chest infection and can trigger a flare-up of your lung condition. This is sometimes called an exacerbation.

If you or your child have flu and a lung condition, ask for an urgent GP appointment or contact 111.

Treatments for flu

There's no specific treatment for flu. But there are things you can do to help flu symptoms yourself at home:

Do

Saline nasal spray

Saline nasal sprays can prevent flu symptoms from getting worse and help you recover more quickly. The spray is given through your nose.

Use saline nasal spray when you first notice flu-like symptoms. You can use it as often as you need it.

You can buy saline nasal sprays without a prescription at your local pharmacy.

Watch our short video to learn how to use a nasal spray.

Antivirals

Antivirals can help you recover from flu symptoms more quickly. Your GP may prescribe antivirals if you're more likely to get very sick from the flu. 

If your child is taking antivirals, their healthcare professional may recommend delaying their nasal flu vaccine by 48 hours. This is because antivirals can make nasal spray vaccines less effective.

Antibiotics

Antibiotics cannot treat flu. This is because flu is a viral infection. Antibiotics only work against bacterial infections.

Taking antibiotics will not help your symptoms or speed up your flu recovery.

Flu treatments and asthma

Some medicines that treat flu symptoms can trigger asthma symptoms, such as ibuprofen and aspirin. These are anti-inflammatory painkillers.

If you have asthma, speak to your GP, nurse or pharmacist before taking any anti-inflammatory painkillers. They can suggest different medicines like paracetamol.

When to get medical help

It's important to get the right support for flu. If you have a lung condition, you're more likely to become seriously ill and you may need to go to hospital.

We know from calls to our helpline that it can be hard to get a GP appointment. Here's some advice to help you get in touch with your GP.

You can also get advice and help to manage your symptoms from your local pharmacist.

Call 999 or go to A&E if you or your child:

  • get sudden chest pain
  • feel short of breath or find it hard to breathe
  • cough up blood.
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