{"id":146339,"date":"2023-12-19T18:30:51","date_gmt":"2023-12-19T18:30:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebritywshow.com\/?p=146339"},"modified":"2023-12-19T18:30:51","modified_gmt":"2023-12-19T18:30:51","slug":"devious-new-covid-variant-is-behind-severe-bouts-of-bug-as-immunity-hits-record-lows-before-christmas-the-sun","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebritywshow.com\/lifestyle\/devious-new-covid-variant-is-behind-severe-bouts-of-bug-as-immunity-hits-record-lows-before-christmas-the-sun\/","title":{"rendered":"'Devious' new Covid variant is behind severe bouts of bug as immunity hits record lows before Christmas | The Sun"},"content":{"rendered":"

THE Christmas Covid\u00a0wave could be one of the nastiest since the jabs were introduced, experts have warned.<\/p>\n

A bout of the newly evolved bug is doing the rounds in the UK amid rapidly falling immunity levels among the population. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Positive cases of the virus are currently surging, with 5,975 people testing positive in England in the week leading to December 9. <\/p>\n

This is an increase of 38 per cent compared to the week before.<\/p>\n

People suffering from the viral infection have warned that it feels "as bad" or "worse" than the bug they caught at the start of the pandemic.<\/p>\n

Scientists have warned waning immunity and the virus evolving are tipping the scales.<\/p>\n

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This is despite increased herd immunity thanks to several Covid waves and national vaccine drives. <\/p>\n

It's important to remember that symptoms of the bug have always varied from person to person. <\/p>\n

Even before the jabs emerged, some lucky people barely got a sniffle or even experienced a single symptom. <\/p>\n

Sufferers have taken to\u00a0social media\u00a0to share how ill the virus has left them this time around.<\/p>\n

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User @RedHeadedStepChild, wrote on X: "I'm on day seven, and I still don't feel back to normal yet; it's scary bad. <\/p>\n

"I only had Covid once before, in 2021, and this [is] just as bad, if not worse."<\/p>\n

@Opals08, another user, added: "This is the third I've had Covid, and it's the worst". <\/p>\n

Ellen Marshall, whose username is @lenmarsh, said: "Third time struck down by Covid and somehow the worst yet?"<\/p>\n

Another X user, @1goodtern, said: "Shattered. It was absolutely horrendous. It is the third time I thought it was supposed to get milder."<\/p>\n

Prof Peter Openshaw, from Imperial College London,\u00a0told The BBC: "I'm also hearing of people having nasty bouts of Covid, who are otherwise young and fit.<\/p>\n

"It's a surprisingly devious virus, sometimes making people quite ill and occasionally leading to having 'long Covid'."<\/p>\n

'IMMUNITY IS FALLING'<\/h2>\n

Talking to The Sun, he adds: "Immunity falls over time, and for many, it's been over a year since they had their last booster jabs."<\/p>\n

Last winter, all over-50s could have one. Now, it is only the over-65s unless you are in an at-risk group.<\/p>\n

The expert says there is a "high chance" you are susceptible if you have not caught Covid in the past year or had a jab. <\/p>\n

The number of Brits getting vaccinated is not the only thing to have changed – the virus is also evolving.<\/p>\n

Vaccines and natural immunity only work when there is a strong match between the antibody and the virus circulating.<\/p>\n

The more a virus changes, the less effective antibodies are at fighting it.<\/p>\n

"The virus circulating now is quite different from the one we saw in 2020," Prof Peter says. <\/p>\n

"The new virus has become so much better at transmitting from person to person, and it's likely only going to get better.<\/p>\n

"It's also much better at evading the immunity we currently have from infection and vaccination."<\/p>\n

EVERYONE IS MIXING <\/h2>\n

How we live during the winter also makes it easier for bugs like Covid to spread. <\/p>\n

"Everyone is getting inside, mixing with others and singing carols, creating conditions which make catching Covid much more likely," Prof Peter explains.<\/p>\n

Alongside Covid, there are a host of other viral infections that could also be making you ill this winter. <\/p>\n

Professor Jonathan Ball of the London School of Tropical Medicine and the University of Nottingham told The Sun: "At this time of year, there's a legion of [bugs] doing the rounds, but rarely do we test for them. <\/p>\n

"So if you are unfortunate enough to get flu or a cold on top of Covid, that may be unpleasant."<\/p>\n

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It is important to stress that Covid is less virulent and dangerous now than in 2020. <\/p>\n

"Infections will be milder now, and the impact is lower if you look at the hospitalisations and death rates," Dr Phil Gould of Coventry University adds. <\/p>\n

Covid symptoms <\/h3>\n

The NHS says symptoms can include: <\/p>\n