If you've got a New Scientist magazine subscription, you can read how adults hit by flu before, are more at risk from future pandemics.
According to a study by Fernando Polack of Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, US, which was carried out on 75 adults with swine flu, in the most severe cases, the adults had more antibodies that bound to the virus but failed to kill it.
"A tangle of virus and antibodies in their lungs activated an immune system component called complement, which failed to clear the mess and instead attacked lung tissue," reports New Scientist magazine
Mr Polack said past bouts of flu make adults' antibodies particularly weak, meaning it binds to the new virus in a way which makes the symptoms worse.
It is feared this could potentially result in problems with a universal flu vaccine, as "it might elicit antibodies that do not bind strongly enough to every flu virus to kill it", reports New Scientist magazine.
Swine flu is making a comeback in the UK, with 31 outbreaks occurring since October, and ten people dying from the illness.
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Posted by Rebecca Kehoe
