A record two million people in the UK are estimated to suffer a long covid, according to the National Statistics Office (ONS).
Figures show that around 3.1% of the UK population suffer from symptoms that persist for more than four weeks after taking Covid-19, according to new ONS estimates. Some 376,000 people who first took Covid-19 around the start of the pandemic have reported symptoms that have lasted for at least two years.
And 826,000 people have been experiencing symptoms for at least a year. About 1.4 million have had persistent symptoms for at least three months after their initial infection.
READ MORE:Update your travel to Greece as you change another covid rule
The NHS says common symptoms of long covid include fatigue, shortness of breath, chest pain or tightness, and memory problems (brain fog). Other signs of long covid include insomnia, heart palpitations, dizziness, needles, joint pain, depression and anxiety, and tinnitus and earache.
People with long covid have also reported nausea and stomach problems, as well as original covid symptoms such as high temperature, cough, headache, sore throat, changes in smell or taste. Rash can also be a sign of long covid.
You should contact your GP if you are concerned about symptoms that lasted four weeks or more after taking Covid-19 or if you think you may have had Covid-19.
The ONS said long-term covid rates were higher among women, those aged 35 to 69, people living in more disadvantaged areas, those working in social care, teaching and education. or health care and people with other health conditions or disabilities.
The figures are based on the self-reported long covid of a representative sample of people in private households for the four weeks to 1 May 2022. Estimates of long covid in the UK have risen sharply in recent months, from 1.3 million at the beginning of the year to 1.5 million at the end of January and 1.8 million at the beginning of April.
The increase is likely to reflect the impact of the Omicron variant of the virus, which recorded record levels of infection nationwide in the spring. Experts have called for more to be done to educate the public about the risks of long covid.
While experts advise that the best protection against coronavirus is to get vaccinated, people are warned that vaccines will not necessarily protect them from long covid.
Professor Amitava Banerjee of the University College London Institute of Health Informatics told the PA News Agency: “We know that the only way to prevent this is to prevent it from becoming infected. all our eggs in the vaccination basket, and the latest tests, including the ONS, show that although vaccinated people are much less likely to have covid for a long time than those who are not vaccinated, they can still be vaccinated. infect and may still have long covid.
“So this idea that there’s nothing to worry about with high levels of covid in the population, I think, is wrong. I think we should do more to educate people … as we said from the beginning, there is a risk of hospitalization or, in the worst case, death of vulnerable people, which is why you should get vaccinated.
“But we should still say today in June 2022 that getting the covid infection is something that is best avoided because there is a risk.”
Receive newsletters with the latest news, sports and news from Liverpool ECHO by registering here
The 37-year-old mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer when doctors detected symptoms while giving birth.
A woman warned that “shameless tactics” in ATMs in supermarkets are illegal
Drivers warned of the side mirror scam