Wash Your Hands!

The message from health professionals has been clear from the start of the outbreak: wash your hands.

Everyone from celebrities to politicians has had a go at demonstrating correct technique — including singing “Happy Birthday” twice through to make sure you scrub long enough, and hand sanitizer has flown off the shelves.

All that extra hygiene appears to be paying off, at least in some countries, including Japan, where the number of flu cases appears to be sharply down.

Japan recorded 7.21 million cases by early March — usually around the peak of the flu season that runs until May.

That was far below figures for previous years, including the 21.04 million infections seen during the 2017/18 season.

“We estimate that one of the reasons behind it is that people are now much more aware about the need to wash hands… given the spread of the new coronavirus,” Japanese health ministry official Daisha Inoue told AFP.