What's up with the Swine Flu? It seems every time I turn around there is something out there that is really, really bad and it is going to kill me.
Eight students from NY have swine flu. From CNNHealth.com:
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed cases of swine flu in eight students at a New York preparatory school, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Sunday.
The students have had only mild symptoms and none have been hospitalized, he said. Some of the students have already recovered.
More than 100 students were absent from school due to flu-like symptoms last week. New York health officials tested samples for eight students Saturday and determined the students were probably suffering from swine flu, and the CDC confirmed the diagnosis on Sunday, Bloomberg said. (more.. )
What are the facts about Swine flu? Get your answers here.
Swine flu has been declared a public health emergency. Watch the video:
From a disease a day (scary sounding web site but packed with some good information), tips on prevention:
The bottom line – How do I avoid it?
There is no vaccine at the moment that can protect you from the swine flu. There are steps you can take to lower your chance of getting it or of passing it to others -
1. Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
2. Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.
3. Try to avoid close contact with sick people.
4. If you get sick with influenza, CDC recommends that you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way.
Thanks for the heads up from Roy who pointed out this video from the CDC on Swine Flu:
Robert - This is from the article Margaret suggested (which is very informative) - Influenza is caused by a virus, a microorganism that is mostly dead and partially alive. The virus' genetic code, held inside a protein sheath, consists of several helices of RNA. The virus injects its RNA into a healthy cell, which causes the cell to stop its usual work and make more copies of the virus. RNA genes mutate easily; for this reason, each new flu season brings a slightly different form of the disease into the population. Most year-to-year mutations bring little change to the virus, but for some still unknown reason, influenza seems to undergo a significant genetic change every ten years or so. This major mutation results in a radically new strain of flu, one that races through a population because few people are immune to it. The dangerous influenza epidemics of 1938, 1947, 1957 (60,000 dead in the U.S.) and 1968 (the dreaded Hong Kong flu) fit this pattern. It was believed that swine flu, a particularly deadly form of the virus, had a 60-year mutation cycle that brought on worldwide pandemics, killing millions of people. Both the 10- and 60-year cycles were due to converge in the mid 1970s; Lewis' death in 1976 was thought to be the first instance of a new, incredibly lethal type of flu. ---------- Basically, we have no antibodies to the Swine Flu. this is why there is so much consider. Thanks for your question.
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