Swine Flu & You – The Good, The Bad & The Ugly
If you’re like me, you’ve looked a lot of places trying to find answers to the swine flu epidemic that’s making its way around the world. When I couldn’t find the unbiased answers I was seeking, I employed my journalistic investigative skills and sought out my own credible sources. In the process, I uncovered some hopeful news, some surprising facts and some disturbing predictions that are elaborated in an e-report I’ve written, “Swine Flu and You: A True Report.”
Here’s some of the good, the bad and the ugly of what I discovered.
The Good
Experts who have performed a Lessons Learned briefing on the H1N1 outbreak in Mexico are telling us:
• Mexican government erred on the side of caution by closing schools and museums and banning public gathering; this cost the country billions of dollars, according to economists. Medical experts, however, believe that “it was the right thing to do.”
• What worked? “Public awareness, rapid diagnosis, treatment and quarantine; and a near-compulsive outbreak of hand-washing.”
• The best thing Mexico did was to immediately tell its own citizens when the new virus was detected.
Now U.S. research is predicting that the H1N1 influenza is unlikely to mix with seasonal flu and mutate into a new and more dangerous virus, as some scientists and health official have previously feared. There are even actions a person can take now to reduce his or her risk of contracting swine flu aside from cough etiquette and hand washing.
The Bad
Swine flu is extremely contagious and can be deadly for children and younger adults. H1N1 germs can live for hours, even a few days, on surfaces. A person can have swine flu several days before the symptoms appear. That makes it harder to protect yourself from carriers.
The Ugly
The H1N1 virus attacks the lungs, which results in pneumonia and other respiratory complications that may require use of hospital ventilators. This could result in a ventilator crisis where medical staff will be forced to make tough calls on who gets put on a ventilator and who doesn’t. Hospitals possess only limited numbers of ventilators. Medical officials worry that they’ll be forced to take younger people off ventilators, who have have less chances of survival, to put on older adults, who have greater odds of recovering from the virus.
What can you do? Take time to familiarize yourself with the H1N1 virus so you can be vigilant in your fight against it. There are many actions you can take to reduce your risks and remain flu-free during the fall and winter. That’s the best news of all.
source: ezinearticles.com
