Queen Elizabeth II sparked concern among fans and public after she pulled out from her Women's Institute engagement in Sandringham at the last minute due to a cold. Despite the simplicity of the monarch's illness, a medical expert warned that her condition could lead to "something more serious."
A member of Her Majesty's security team announced that she couldn't make it at the event because she was not "feeling up to" attending the yearly meeting. Although the monarch is undoubtedly being taken care of by the best specialists, a medical expert believed her condition is something that shouldn't be just shrugged off as it could pave the way to more severe conditions due to her age.
"When your body is young, fit and healthy, it's often no problem to fight off a light cold," pharmacist Shamir Patel, Chemist 4 U founder, told Express. "But in an elderly person, it poses a higher risk."
A common cold can stay much longer in a person and can lead to something more serious. Hence, it is of great importance that an elderly with a cold should be adequately treated. The illness should be treated as soon as possible to minimize the chance of having any complications, like pneumonia, which is one of the top ten leading causes of death among the elderly.
The common cold can also pose a threat to other conditions to become worse, like asthma, heart disease, and COPD. People with this condition are also more likely to become dehydrated, especially if they have an active lifestyle.
Hence, Patel believed Queen Elizabeth's decision to not attend her engagement was the right thing to do as having a lot of rest was one of the best treatments for the cold. Her Royal Highness is known for attending the Women's Institute quiet regularly to have tea, cake, and listen to the speech of the attendees.
It is an engagement that she does every year at West Newton village hall in Norfolk. She has been doing this since 1943 after she took the role of the Queen Mother as the president of the organization.
BBC newsreader Huw Edwards delivered his speech as he said that it was both "daunting and exciting" to get an invite to talk at the event. Before it was announced that Queen Elizabeth couldn't make it, he revealed that he was no stranger to public speaking, but Women's Institute was quite an exceptional event. So, he made himself brave and carefully thought of the things he wanted to say.
