Many residents believe the dry weather this winter has caused the large number of flu cases in the capital city. However experts have said there is no direct relation between dry weather and the prevalence of flu.

From Dec 27 to Jan 2, the city's hospitals reported 17,025 cases of suspected flu, Beijing Daily reported on Jan 10.

Wang Quanyi, a researcher at the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said that at least 2,800 people went to see doctors due to flu symptoms every day this winter, the Beijing News reported.

Officials with Beijing health bureau suggested the types of flu viruses afflicting people this year are not only traditional ones, such as H3N2, but also H1N1.

Many people blamed the spread of flu on the extended spell of dry weather, during which Beijing has not seen any significant precipitation for 82 days, since Oct 25. This is the longest dry period since February 2009, when the city suffered a rainless period of more than 100 days.

"This winter, the warm air was remarkably weaker than the cold air, which led to the absence of rain, snow and sleet," said Zhang Mingying, a senior engineer with Beijing meteorological bureau.

As they waited for Beijing's first snowfall this winter, many residents connected the dry weather with the many cases of flu in the city.

"Most of my colleagues, including me, caught a cold recently," said Li Chenguang, a staff member at China Telecom Co Ltd Beijing branch.

"We thought our colds might be related to the dry weather. After all, it has been a long time since Beijing has had no snowfalls," he added.

Most Chinese believe that the freezing temperatures that accompany snowfalls will kill viruses in the soil and air.

However, medical experts said that the dry weather had nothing to do with the spread of flu.

Feng Zijian, director of the emergency response department of the Chinese Center for Disease Prevention and Control, said that normally there were many cases of flu in winter.

"Lower immunity caused by many people's habit of staying indoors and not getting enough exercise makes people more susceptible to flu," Feng said.

So far, there was no solid evidence that the absence of precipitation leads to an outbreak of flu, he added.

(China Daily January 15 2011)