Is it possible to catch stomach flu from a newspaper column?

Question

On Saturday morning I was lazing around reading the papers with my girlfriend. In the Guardian is a column by Jon Ronson which I normally quite enjoy. My girlfriend had the magazine it was in and mentioned this weeks column was definitely worth reading. Half an hour later she said she was feeling ill but we decided she had a hangover. An hour later I read Jon Ronson and found it was about he and his son both had an attack of stomach flu at the same time. Another half an hour later I felt queasy. An hour later we were both really ill and vomiting up our breakfast. Now I know it sounds far fetched, but there are things we don't know about science.

Answer 1

It's either just a coincidence or you have a psychosomatic illness. You thought about being sick, and now you are. Or, somebody sneezed all over your paper and you picked up the germs while reading.

Answer 2

I know there are people who do the "sympathy hurl" when someone else vomits. So, if you got it in your mind that you were going to be sick like the column was about, you were just having a sympathy hurl.

If you really have a virus/bacterial infection, then you got that from germs and only germs. The newspaper did NOT make you sick.

Answer 3

You're probably just feeling anxious. Take it easy and think about something else. Basically, if you have it, you feel sick, weak, tired, feverish and achey. Well done for being so kind to your little sister! I couldn't have done that!

Answer 4

most likely the flu is just going around in your area. Those things are called coincidences.

Answer 5

No, but once you have the bug, the newspaper could come in handy.

Answer 6

i suppose it is possible like,anything is. and it could all be a coinceidence but i doubt it.