A Canadian doctor has declared that "man flu" may really exist.
In a review of existing scientific research, Dr Kyle Sue, clinical assistant professor in family medicine from the Memorial University of Newfoundland, suggested that men are not simply "wimps" about colds but may have evolved slightly weaker immune systems.
In the wry article, Dr Sue writes: "Since about half of the world’s population is male, deeming male viral respiratory symptoms as 'exaggerated' without rigorous scientific evidence could have important implications for men, including insufficient provision of care."
He looked at evidence that men may really suffer worse symptoms, including studies suggesting testosterone dampens the immune response of mice to the influenza virus while the female sex hormone oestradiol had been shown to boost them.
Dr Sue also cited research showing men in the US suffered higher rates of hospitalisation and death from seasonal flu, and that women respond better to the flu vaccine.
"Men may not be exaggerating symptoms but have weaker immune responses to viral respiratory viruses, leading to greater morbidity and mortality than seen in women," he writes.
The scientist offered some possible evolutionary reasons for the phenomenon of "man flu".
One theory, which Sue said warranted further research, is that women more often choose men with high testosterone levels and correspondingly low immune systems as sexual partners, giving rise to generations of sniffle-prone offspring.
"In other words, can the blame for man flu be shifted to the people who select these men as sexual partners rather than the men themselves?" he writes.
Other experts, however, poured water on the conclusions.
According to the Times, Helen Stokes-Lampard, chairwoman of the Royal College of GPs, said: "The vast majority of robust scientific evidence suggests that there is no such thing as 'man flu'."
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