Health issues to be aware of at the moment

A Japan Times article I read this week mentioned that several infectious diseases have spread pretty substantially across the country this summer.

Whooping cough has surged past 64,000 cases compared with just over 4,000 last year (a massive jump!) making hygiene and vaccination especially important for families with children. COVID 19 is also rebounding, driven by the subvariant known as Nimbus, which typically causes throat pain but isn't thought to be more severe than other variants.

Another concern is SFTS, a tick borne illness that has spread further north than before (even reaching Hokkaido), with a high fatality rate in older patients. 

It's a good reminder to keep up with hand washing and masking when needed, test for COVID if symptoms appear, and take precautions outdoors against ticks. I wrote a blog a few months back about tick safety and prevention for anyone who might be interested: https://www.city-cost.com/blogs/genkidesu/z3dnO-living

Japan Times source: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/21/japan/science-health/infectious-diseases/