Swine Flu And Bird Flu, What Precautions You Can Take And Which Treatments Are Available
We are today (more and more|more} at risk from the various strains of the flu virus. First we had alarms over bird flu, and more recently swine flu has become a latest worry. Swine flu is more serious than bird flu ever was. It was feared that bird flu could mutate into a form that could infect humans, apart from a handful of cases, this has not materialized. Swine flu is a bigger concern, the swine flu virus is able to pass from human to human making swine flu a very serious threat.
Swine flu (influenza A (H1N1) is a respiratory disease that infects pigs, it is caused by a flu virus. Swine flu outbreaks in pigs is not uncommon but is rarely fatal. Swine flu has not normally infected humans, but it can happen occasionally.
Swine flu is extremely dangerous because it is a new strain of the flu virus. The problem is no one has been exposed to this particular type of flu before, and therefore no one has developed any immunity to this flu strain. It is our inbuilt immunity that prevents diseases from becoming life threatening, with no inbuilt immunity to the swine flu virus we are at the mercy of the virus. Absolutely everyone is vulnerable, this includes healthy adults as well as children and the elderly.
The real concern is what will happen when winter arrives. It is then when the swine flu virus may spread quickly causing a flu pandemic with possibly over half of the population being affected.
The symptoms of swine flu are very similar to the symptoms of ordinary flu. These can include a sudden,sudden onset of a fever, cough, shortness of breath. Other symptoms can include headache, a sore throat, aching muscles, chills, sneezing, runny nose, loss of appetite and tiredness.
Precautions to take First, anyone with cold or flu symptoms should to take a few easy, but most important precautions. The virus is spread between humans by the small droplets from the nose and mouth when someone coughs or sneezes. This is how viruses such as swine flu are passed from person to person. Holding your face with your hands when you cough or sneeze isn’t enough. The virus simply sit on your hands, then everything you touch afterwards becomes contaminated. Anyone touching anything you touched will pick up the virus and will then risk becoming infected. Always use a handkerchief or tissue. A tissue is far better, this should then be disposed of safely as soon as possible, try to use a fresh tissue if you sneeze or cough again.
At the moment there are no vaccinations that prevent anyone catching swine flu. Swine flu is a new strain of virus and isn’t the same as ordinary flu. The vaccination against the usual seasonal flu is not effective against swine flu. Even when the type of flu causing swine flu is identified, it will take several months to produce. By this time, it may well have mutated into a different strain.
Currently the only effective precaution against swine flu is Tamiflu. Tamiflu is not guaranteed to prevent flu, but when someone has been exposed to another person who has the flu virus, it can help to stop the virus making a person ill. If Tamiflu is taken within 2 days of contracting the flu virus, it can help stop the virus spreading throughout the body, thereby reducing the symptoms and associated risk. Governments worldwide are stockpiling Tamiflu, but the supplies will first be used to treat important workers and individuals before treating the general population.
You can buy Tamiflu online, if the situation occurs you can treat yourself and your family. Although it cannot be emphasized strongly enough, Tamiflu has to be taken as soon as possible if it is to be effective, any delays in treatment will greatly reduce the effectiveness of Tamiflu. If you think you may be at a greater risk due to your situation, such as For example living in a city with a large population or working in a busy office, then it may be prudent to buy Tamiflu before the flu season starts. If you happen live in the country and don’t have a close contact with many people then of course you will be at a lower risk.
Also, remember that swine flu is a global problem. If a pandemic outbreak becomes global it is possible that supplies of Tamiflu may not be great enough to meet a large worldwide demand.
Until a vaccine is found and manufactured in the large quantities required, Tamiflu is the most effective treatment for the swine flu virus.
Disclaimer: This posting is based on information freely available in the popular press and medical articles related to swine flu. Nothing herein is intended to be or should be construed to be medical advice. For medical advice you should consult with your physician.
This entry was posted on Saturday, November 28th, 2009 at 4:55 am and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.