Man flu is actually real, says This Morning nutritionist - science behind it explained

For decades, women have laughed off the idea of man flu.

"It's just a cold, you'll get over it," they tell us. We blokes are belittled for feeling under the weather, even if the flu or a virus knocks us for six.

But now, a top nutritionist has shown us men the sympathy that we deserve.

Jenna Hope is a nutritionist, and one you would have seen on This Morning. Speaking to The Times, she confessed that man flu is real - because a woman's immune system is typically stronger.

"It pains me to say this, but man flu is real. Men really do suffer much more than women when they’re ill," she said. "When we look at the evidence we find that the female immune system is actually stronger than the male immune system.

"We also know that testosterone plays a role in the suppression of the immune system. So not only do men have more of the hormone that suppresses immunity, they have less of the ones that support it.

"The same virus will hit a man harder because his immune system just won’t be able to handle it the way a female one will. If you’re talking about a winter cold or flu, for example, his headache will be worse, he’ll feel more run-down and his runny nose will be more severe."