CHINESE health officials said seasonal conditions could make respiratory issues more severe as winter approaches.

Mi Feng, spokesperson with the National Health Commission, told a press conference Monday that monitoring and early warning should be strengthened to keep a close eye on the prevalence of diseases such as mycoplasma pneumoniae, COVID-19, flu, dengue and norovirus infections.

Wang Dayan, head of the Chinese National Influenza Center under the National Institute for Viral Disease Control and Prevention, said monitoring data showed that both China’s southern and northern regions have seen growing flu activities, noting that H3N2 is currently the dominant flu strain.

Wang stressed that vaccination is the most effective and economical way to prevent infectious diseases. She also called on public members to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Zhong Nanshan, a prominent respiratory illness expert, said last week that modeling shows that small spikes of COVID-19 infections will likely appear this month through January.

Zhong suggested the public, especially vulnerable groups, obtain updated vaccines as soon as possible.(SD-Xinhua)