We have at-home COVID tests, so why don’t we have at-home flu tests? It is common for us to self-test while at home for COVID-19, and many of these tests are not only negative but may also not tell us why we are ill. While the flu has not been an issue for most of us during the pandemic partially due to masking but also due to travel restrictions to and from China, people have been getting different strains of the flu as we breathe each other’s air. Breathing the air in an airplane, train, restaurant or other public place is normal. Animals have adapted over thousands of years to do this which is why natural immunity is essential for survival. Covid has normalized home testing for the virus. Why hasn’t testing for the flu as convenient, requiring a doctor’s visit to be tested? According to the latest research, home testing for the flu is just as accurate as testing in a doctor’s office, without exposing others. Is home testing for the flu in the future? Check out this article that discusses the latest research on at-home Flu testing. At-Home Flu Tests Are Surprisingly Accurate—So Why Don’t We Have One Yet? New research shows rapid flu tests conducted at home are just as accurate as those performed in clinical settings. By Julia Ries Published on March 23, 2022 At-home tests for influenza are just as accurate as those used in doctors’ offices, new research finds. Experts believe that the distribution of such tests—particularly following home testing done during the COVID-19 pandemic—could not only lead to earlier diagnoses, but potentially reduce infections on a national or global scale. The news comes as part of the Seattle Flu Study and was recently published in JMIR Public Health and Surveillance. Researchers ultimately determined that both the sensitivity and specificity of rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) performed at home were on par with RDTs done in a clinical setting. Though public health experts had long suspected that at-home tests may not be as accurate as those performed or tested by health care professionals, the new study shows that most people are quite good at testing themselves—and that the tests used are reliable. Read more