Stay Safe From The H1N1 Mexican Swine Flu

The news reports started flooding in from Mexico just a few days ago.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) stated that due to the swine influenza outbreak in Mexico and the Southwestern United States (with a death toll as of midday April 27 of 150 people) it was considering raising global pandemic warning level to 4 out of 6, the highest being a full-blown international epidemic on the scale of the 1918 Spanish Flu which killed as many as 100 million people.

The President of Mexico has just declared a state of emergency which allows the Federal government to place widespread quarantines and cancel public events.

Surprisingly, (and frighteningly) the type of virus which is causing the Mexican swine influenza is identical in nomenclature to the one that caused the massive killer Spanish Flu: H1N1. It seems that this old virus has recently recombined with various strains of human and avian, as well as swine influenza, to create a version that could readily spread from person to person like wildfire across the planet, reaching the level of a global pandemic that might kill millions within months or less.

First of all, let's address some basic questions:

What is H1N1?

H1N1 is an infection of the respiratory system caused by an influenza virus known as type A and of subtype H1N1, This virus sparks influenza outbreaks in swine on a fairly regular basis. H1N1's current incarnation can also be transmitted from swine to humans, and from humans to other humans.

Can humans get H1N1?

Yes, but up until now it has not been too common as it is usually restricted to people who are in contact with swine, though there have been some fairly rare medically documented cases where the transmission was human-to-human in a similar manner to more conventional forms of influenza, through sneezing, coughing and other personal contact. Consuming pork products does not transmit H1N1.

How is H1N1 diagnosed and treated?

Diagnosis requires a specimen from the respiratory system of the patient taken during the first four days of infection, and is then analyzed in a medical laboratory.

When was the last H1N1 outbreak?

The last major H1N1 outbreak took place at an army barracks in Fort Dix, NJ, in 1976. There have been no large scale outbreaks of H1N1 recorded since. However, H1N1 is the virus responsible for the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic which killed approximately 100 million people.

The ticking time bomb which is the global pandemic medical professionals have feared for so long may finally have been activated. Soon it may wreak unprecedented death and suffering on the entire Earth.

It may devastate cities, bring the greatest countries in the world to their knees and become the single largest pandemic in centuries. Some of the numbers being tossed around have included up to four times the number of dead as the 1918 pandemic. It could decimate an entire generation.

That's what H1N1 did the last time it was set loose to ravage the world. In 1918.

It could reach pandemic status next week, next month or next year. It could start any minute.

A single minute. It’s a TV advertisement. It’s a third of a pop song. It’s the time to make toast. It’s not a very long time.

However, many things can happen in a minute. Many hopes can fade in a minute. Many people can die in a minute. The clock starts. . .

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SWINE FLU VS. AVIAN FLU

SWINE FLU VS AVIAN FLU

I could remember years back when I first heard the name avian influenza (flu), it was all over the news and so many measures were put in place to check its spread or to totally eradicate it from the areas where it has been identified. I could see people wearing face masks to avoid being infected with the virus which could cause possible death. How much success was attained and how much jobs were lost there by cutting the incomes of the ordinary man.

Fear was in the air, poultries were checked and sometimes destroyed, importation and exportation were restricted at the time being and many stopped eating birds and bird products. In Africa for example, the government of many countries had to destroy about ninety percent (90%) of their poultry farms for fear of the flu, thereby increasing the number of unemployment in the country.

Flu, flu everywhere just like the avian influenza, the swine flu also is another threat to man since it kills when it infects the human body but what I do not know is if the same measures that were taken to stop the spread of avian flu will be taken too to stop its spread. I am concern because pork is my favorite and I do not think that killing all the pigs in farms infected with the virus will do any good to a pork lover like me.

My question now is Swine vs. avian flu which of this is more likely to be a threat to me. I will answer this question by first taking a close look at both of them so I do not give my fish to the cat to look after instead of the mouse, oh no not again no one of them.

SWINE INFLUENZA (SWINE FLU) like they said is a disease in pigs that takes care of the respiratory system in order words it is a respiratory disease. It is caused by type A influenza. Swine flu viruses like I am made to understand causes high level of illness and possible death and there can be an outbreak too when it attacks. The types of influenza type A virus Subtypes found in pigs are H1NI, H1N2,H3N2 and H3N1. Signs of swine flu in pigs can include sudden onset of fever, depression, coughing (barking), discharge from the nose or eyes, sneezing, breathing difficulties, eye redness or inflammation, and going off feed. In people the symptoms of swine influenza are expected to be similar to the symptoms of regular human seasonal influenza and include fever, lethargy, lack of appetite and coughing. Others with swine flu also have reported runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

AVIAN INFLUENZA VIRUS is influenza A virus that infects birds along with its subtypes, although there is a substantial genetic difference between its subtypes but that does not mean that they are less active. The influenza A subtypes are H5, H7 AND H9, and each of this avian influenza Viruses can be partnered with any one of nine neuraminidase surface proteins; thus, there are potentially nine different forms of each subtype (e.g., H5N1, H5N2, H5N3, H5N9). This really too much for the birds to bear and imagine what life will be if we have three subtypes of HIV virus and nine forms of each of these subtypes…. I think I will run away but anyway running away does not solve the problem.

o.k. let me talk about how it is been spread-this avian influenza viruses circulate among birds and certain birds, particularly water birds, act as hosts for these viruses by carrying the virus in their intestines and shedding it. The Infected birds shed these viruses in their saliva, nasal secretions, and feces. Susceptible birds can become infected with avian influenza virus when they come in contact with contaminated nasal, respiratory, or fecal material from infected birds. Fecal-to-oral transmission is the most common mode of spread between birds.

sometimes, the wild birds that are host to the virus do not get sick, but they can spread influenza to other birds, this is similar to a HIV infected patient whom can be said to be healthy for years without the symptoms all over him. Infection with certain avian influenza A viruses (for example, some H5 and H7 strains) can cause widespread disease and death among some species of domesticated birds.

Whoa none of the above contestant seems to be better than the other, therefore I leave the decisions to you to make and as for me I rather look after my well spiced fish than seek the help of the cat or mouse to look after. Why suffer so much from animal diseases when we still have human diseases to battle with. It amazes me to hear that countries like Mexico and the United States can be troubled this much by swine flu and even the world health organization( WHO) is yet to understand what this is all about not to talk of providing remedy to the situation.

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