Yahoo News 
What is the deadly 'Brexit virus' and how can you avoid catching it?
Brexit may not have happened officially just yet, but thousands of people in the UK have already been struck down by what’s being called the ‘Brexit virus’.
A new strain of hepatitis E (HEV) which has been linked to pig farms in continental Europe has invaded Britain, health officials say.
Dubbed the ‘Brexit virus’ because of its origin in farms in France, the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark, the liver virus causes flu-like symptoms in most sufferers but is potentially deadly.
Figures published by Public Health England reveal that the virus infects more than 60,000 people in Britain each year.
MORE: EU nations set tough negotiating mandate for Brexit talks
MORE: ‘No free lunch for UK’ after Brexit negotiations conclude
Last year, it led to serious illnesses in 1,244 sufferers, almost four times as many as the 368 in 2010.
The virus can be contracted from bacon, sausages, pork pies and salami imported from Europe, health experts say.
Transplant patients and pregnant women are most at risk of infection, which mutated to infect livestock used for sausages.
In a paper, Public Health England said: ‘The number of HEV cases tripled from 2010 to 2015… with a trend towards more severe and prolonged illness.’
It is predicted that about 10 per cent of pork imported from Europe could be infected by the virus, which can be caught by eating undercooked meat.
If contracted, the virus attacks the liver and nerves, and can cause serious illness in those with weakened immune systems.
Meat lovers have been warned to cook their sausages for longer than usual to kill off the virus.
Dr Harry Dalton, a gastroenterologist at Exeter University, told the Times: ‘I call it the Brexit virus.
‘It attacks the liver and nerves, with a peak in May. It is particularly dangerous for people with suppressed immune systems such as those who have had organ transplants and possibly cancer.
‘The virus seems to come from Europe.’
He warned against eating ‘pink’ pork and said transplant patients and pregnant women should avoid pork completely.
Sausages should be cooked for at least 20 minutes, as the virus is heat resistant.
Roy Van Den Heuvel, a 61-year-old from Falmouth, Cornwall, and a victim of the virus, told the Times how he ended up in intensive care and was left paralysed in his shoulders and diaphragm after eating salami.
‘It started out like flu, but my arms and shoulders became so painful I had to go to hospital,’ he said.
‘They put me straight in intensive care. The virus had attacked the nerves in my armpits and diaphragm. I couldn’t breathe properly.’
RELATED VIDEO:
