Reports of a so-called “super flu” circulating in Pakistan have prompted predictable alarm, but the expert consensus is notably measured. Health professionals emphasise that while influenza cases are on the rise, there is no evidence of a novel or unusually dangerous strain that warrants panic. What is being observed is a seasonal surge, exacerbated by weather fluctuations, low immunity, and lax adherence to basic preventive measures.

That distinction matters. Public health crises are rarely aggravated by pathogens alone; they are often worsened by panic, misinformation, and the unhelpful tendency to catastrophise before facts are established. Sensationalism,........

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