Coronavirus has now reached the U.K., and the number of confirmed cases is now increasing, resulting in a pandemic scare. However, in an unearthed report about Prince Philip in 2016, the Duke of Edinburgh revealed that he had not contracted flu for about 40 years. Is it possible to get immune from this disease?
Queen Elizabeth's husband managed to be in good health for most of his years, thanks to his strict exercise regime when he was young. He also used to follow a low-carbohydrate Atkins diet for most of his life and gave up smoking when he married the Queen in 1947.
According to Express, with his good health and shape, Prince Philip reportedly told medical professionals in 2016 that he managed to avoid seasonal flu for decades. The Daily Express royal correspondent Richard Palmer revealed that it was not cleared if the former British army member had the annual flu jab recommended for people over 65 years old.
However, he asked Dr. Yi Pu Lin, an expert on viral infections, if it was possible to develop immunity or resistance to flu. The doctor explained that he might have lacked symptoms, but he actually had it.
At the time, Prince Philip was 95 years old. He might previously have the infection but had developed an immunity. Even with the coming of the new viruses, the resistance could still be stimulated. So, he might have just lacked symptoms.
Lin added that Prince Philip could have had a "sub-clinical infection," where a person has a strong immune system that could fight off the disease without feeling unwell. "You don't get symptoms, but actually you've had a virus, and your body's fought with it and overcome it, so you don't have problems and you don't know you've had flu," she added.
As of now, The Telegraph noted that the U.K. has 36 new coronavirus cases, resulting in a total of 87 confirmed numbers of people with the infection. The majority number of these cases - 80 - is in England. Other cases are three in Northern Ireland, three in Scotland, and one in Wales.
With the increasing number of people with the disease, Chief Medical Officer, Professor Chris Whitty, said the epidemic is now likely to happen in the U.K. With that, there would be "profound changes" to the way the National Health Service (NHS) would be run to deal with the coronavirus outbreak.
