Sports doctor warns on flu

SPORTS physician and general practitioner Dr Peter Schwartz has warned that people with flu-like illnesses should not exercise for at least 72 hours, and up to 10 days after their temperatures and pulse rates have normalised.

"After that my rule of thumb is, if you feel you are ready to exercise go to the gym or go for a run for 10 minutes.

"If you feel fine after 10 minutes, carry on. If you feel abnormally fatigued, then you must stop. It means you haven't recovered completely. You can overcome flu with rest.

"Athletesshould know that just because you exercise, it doesn't mean you are immune from heart disease.

"Heart disease can also be hereditary, or acquired.

"There is a difference between the common cold and the flu. A cold is what people get 2.1 times a year. It is not a systemic illness. It does not cause fever or muscle ache.

"In comparison flu is a dangerous illness. It affects the whole body."

He said if one had flu, exercise would increase the viral load to the heart. "This can cause an acute inflammation of the heart muscle. The heart will go into an abnormal rhythm and that could be fatal."

Schwartz said high-performance athletes should be cautious as overtraining could impact negatively on the body's immune system and make athletes more susceptible to viruses like flu. – Estelle Ellis