by Colin Lovett, PICurrent Managing Producer
Commuters in Mexico City take precautions against the Swine Flu by wearing masks - Courtesy of Eneas
By now, most have seen, heard or read the breathless stories about a Swine Flu outbreak in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed 40 cases in the US already.
There are several reasons why many health professionals are very concerned:
- The virus is easily spread from human to human
- The virus is mutating quickly, making it unpredictable. This could be the reason why is has killed dozens in Mexico but only caused minor sickness in the US so far.
- Those who have died or gotten very sick are largely young and healthy. A typical flu virus usually hits the elderly and sick hardest.
The Swine flu is a version of the influenza virus that we see every year. This strain (called A/H1N1) started in pigs and mutated to infect humans.
The typical signs of sickness are:
- High fever
- Severe body aches
- Headache
- Extreme tiredness
- Sore throat
- Cough
- Runny or stuffy nose
- Vomiting and/or diarrhea (more common in children than in adults)
However, having some or all of these symptoms does not always mean you have the flu. You should check with your doctor if you feel sick. If you do get this flu, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says an anti-viral medication works to combat the illness and is being stockpiled around the country. If you do get sick, the CDC recommends you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.
But the best way to stay healthy is to avoid this virus altogether. Here are some steps you can take:
- Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
- Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hands cleaners are also effective.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.
- Influenza is thought to spread mainly person-to-person through coughing or sneezing of infected people.
In this video, Dr. Joe Bresee with the CDC Influenza Division describes swine flu.
Our sister site, The Beehive, has a great Swine Flu resource page to check out.
Here is a list of other alternative remedies you may want to have on hand for the swine flu:
Zinc Lozenges
Echinacea
Goldenseal
Oil of Oregano (a dose of two drops tastes nasty, but it will kill most any virus.)
Oscillococcinum
Gelsemium
Bryonia
Rhus Tox
More tips on being prepared for the swine flu at http://tinyurl.com/cfqeog
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Oscillococcinum was discovered by Joseph Roy, who, when looking with a microscope at samples of victims of the Spanish Flu, saw oscillating bacteria, and using homeopathy’s “like treats like” law, decided that a homeopathic preparation of oscillating bacteria could be used to treat the flu. He found that duck liver contained the same oscillating bacteria, so used to for preparing the homeopathic remedy.
However:
1) He *also* found the same bacteria in cancer patients, in syphilitic ulcers, in the tubercles of tuberculosis patients in the pus of gonorrhea sufferers, people who had eczema, rheumatism, mumps, chickenpox and measles. These different diseases are *not* all caused by the same thing (most of them not caused by bacteria at all), so it’s bizarre that he found the same bacteria in all these different samples.
2) Swine flu is caused by a virus (as is mumps, chicken pox and measles), so there’s no reason why “treating like with like” would work on a virus when the remedy was prepared from a bacteria.
See http://www.homeowatch.org/history/oscillo.html for more details.
Interesting stuff. Did you hear that there’s a new strain which is resistant to the anti-flu drugs? Tamiflu etc? Found a really good website for tracking it’s progress, seems to be updated every hour or so… http://www.swinefludeaths.co.uk.
hi,
i have the seasonal flu but i want to know if im in danger of the swine flu how will i know if i have the swine flu???
how can we eradicate this swine flu??is there is any vaccination for swine flu…..
[...] swine flu (H1N1) is still finding its way into homes, the classroom, offices, and anywhere else that people might be [...]
my daughter is 8 years old and she is having severe feveris vomiting and also the throat pain
body ache also. we are at present in comores island which is a very small island of africa ando no qualified docters are availabel
pls tell me what to do.
regards
mr alibay
Alibay,
Visit the link below for flu info and symptoms, CDC recommendations on treatment and signs to watch for that suggest immediate care:
http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/guidance_homecare.htm#b
check out this info on flu
http://www.fluportal.org
bl
Thank you for all the comments and great links! We truly appreciate your contributions and helping us direct folks to the information they want and need.
Stay well out there!!