What you need to know about swine flu
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- April
- 27
What is swine flu? Swine Influenza (swine flu) is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza viruses that causes regular outbreaks in pigs. People do not normally get swine flu, but human infections can and do happen. Swine flu viruses have been reported to spread from person-to-person, but in the past, this transmission was limited and not sustained beyond three people.
What are the signs and symptoms of swine flu in people? The symptoms of swine flu in people are similar to the symptoms of regular human flu and include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Some people have reported diarrhea and vomiting associated with swine flu. In the past, severe illness (pneumonia and respiratory failure) and deaths have been reported with swine flu infection in people. Like seasonal flu, swine flu may cause a worsening of underlying chronic medical conditions.
How does swine flu spread? Spread of this swine influenza A (H1N1) virus is thought to be happening in the same way that seasonal flu spreads. Flu viruses are spread mainly from person to person through coughing or sneezing of people with influenza. Sometimes people may become infected by touching something with flu viruses on it and then touching their mouth or nose.
How can someone with the flu infect someone else?
Infected people may be able to infect others beginning 1 day before symptoms develop and up to 7 or more days after becoming sick. That means that you may be able to pass on the flu to someone else before you know you are sick, as well as while you are sick.
What should I do to keep from getting the flu?
First and most important: wash your hands. Try to stay in good general health. Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food. Try not touch surfaces that may be contaminated with the flu virus. Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
Are there medicines to treat swine flu?
Yes. CDC recommends the use of oseltamivir or zanamivir for the treatment and/or prevention of infection with these swine influenza viruses. Antiviral drugs are prescription medicines (pills, liquid or an inhaler) that fight against the flu by keeping flu viruses from reproducing in your body. If you get sick, antiviral drugs can make your illness milder and make you feel better faster. They may also prevent serious flu complications. For treatment, antiviral drugs work best if started soon after getting sick (within 2 days of symptoms).
How long can an infected person spread swine flu to others?
People with swine influenza virus infection should be considered potentially contagious as long as they are symptomatic and possible for up to 7 days following illness onset. Children, especially younger children, might potentially be contagious for longer periods.
What surfaces are most likely to be sources of contamination?
Germs can be spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth. Droplets from a cough or sneeze of an infected person move through the air. Germs can be spread when a person touches respiratory droplets from another person on a surface like a desk and then touches their own eyes, mouth or nose before washing their hands.
How long can viruses live outside the body?
We know that some viruses and bacteria can live 2 hours or longer on surfaces like cafeteria tables, doorknobs, and desks. Frequent handwashing will help you reduce the chance of getting contamination from these common surfaces.
What can I do to protect myself from getting sick?
There is no vaccine available right now to protect against swine flu. There are everyday actions that can help prevent the spread of germs that cause respiratory illnesses like influenza. Take these everyday steps to protect your health:
• 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 hand cleaners are also effective.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way.
• Try to avoid close contact with sick people.
• 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.
What is the best way to keep from spreading the virus through coughing or sneezing?
If you are sick, limit your contact with other people as much as possible. Do not go to work or school if ill. Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick. Put your used tissue in the waste basket. Cover your cough or sneeze if you do not have a tissue. Then, clean your hands, and do so every time you cough or sneeze.
What is the best way to keep from spreading the virus through coughing or sneezing?
If you are sick, limit your contact with other people as much as possible. Do not go to work or school if ill. Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick. Put your used tissue in the waste basket. Cover your cough or sneeze if you do not have a tissue. Then, clean your hands, and do so every time you cough or sneeze.
What is the best technique for washing my hands to avoid getting the flu?
Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs. Wash with soap and water. or clean with alcohol-based hand cleaner. we recommend that when you wash your hands—with soap and warm water—that you wash for 15 to 20 seconds. When soap and water are not available, alcohol-based disposable hand wipes or gel sanitizers may be used. You can find them in most supermarkets and drugstores. If using gel, rub your hands until the gel is dry. The gel doesn’t need water to work; the alcohol in it kills the germs on your hands.
What should I do if I get sick?
If you live in areas where swine influenza cases have been identified and become ill with influenza-like symptoms, including fever, body aches, runny nose, sore throat, nausea, or vomiting or diarrhea, you may want to contact their health care provider, particularly if you are worried about your symptoms. Your health care provider will determine whether influenza testing or treatment is needed.
If you are sick, you should stay home and avoid contact with other people as much as possible to keep from spreading your illness to others.
If you become ill and experience any of the following warning signs, seek emergency medical care.
In children emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:
Fast breathing or trouble breathing
Bluish skin color
Not drinking enough fluids
Not waking up or not interacting
Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held
Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough
Fever with a rash
In adults, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:
Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
Sudden dizziness
Confusion
Severe or persistent vomiting
Can I get swine influenza from eating or preparing pork?
No. Swine influenza viruses are not spread by food. You cannot get swine influenza from eating pork or pork products. Eating properly handled and cooked pork products is safe.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
This entry was posted
on Monday, April 27th, 2009 at 10:48 am by Candice Ferrette. 
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OBAMA ADIMINSTRATION TESTED, GETS AN “F”
After the election, some members of the chattering class warned that the new Obama Administration would be tested.
That test has arrived in the form of a deadly and highly suspicious swine-flu pandemic, and the Administration’s grade is a well-earned “F”!
First, Mr. Obama’s cabinet appointments—
and his lack of them—have compounded the Administration’s slow response and put Americans at grave risk. Over at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) we have a director who is committed to open borders and is opposed to enforcement of Federal immigration laws. At the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Centers for Disease Control, the two Federal agencies tasked with protecting public health in America, we have no confirmed secretaries in charge.Anyone who has ever spent time inside official Washington knows that acting department heads are bench warmers who do not make important policy decisions.
While Team Obama desperately wants to appear they’re in control and that everything is fine, they refuse to implement common sense measures to protect American lives.
This past Sunday we witnessed a rare White House briefing. It was long on public relations, and short on specifics. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano actually apologized for declaring a “public health emergency”. As she tried to sooth her audience, Ms. Napolitano explained that the term public health emergency “sounds more severe than it really is”. Napolitano’s best PR line was “I wish we could call it a declaration of emergency preparedness.”
In a more candid moment, Napolitano offered this vague warning, “We’re preparing in an environment where we really don’t know ultimately what the size or seriousness of this outbreak is going to be.”
Richard Besser, acting head of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), reported what was already available on the Internet about states impacted, but Mr. Besser also warned that we can expect “more severe” cases. Translation: We should expect American fatalities, possibly lots of them.
During the “everything is under control” briefing, the most outlandish statement was made by the White House homeland-security adviser. John Brennan stated flatly there is “no evidence whatsoever” of bioterrorism. First, it is far too early to determine the source of this outbreak with any certainty. How could the Obama Administration rule out terrorism when there has not been a formal investigation even announced yet?
Mr. Brennan’s sweeping statement also ignores published data, including the findings of American scientists. Dr. Mohammed Madiid from the University of Texas led a team that researched the threat of an influenza terror weapon. In a report published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine in July of 2003, Dr. Maiid warned that influenza could be weaponized for terrorist purposes within two years because of advances in the sequencing of the genome for the Spanish flu.
As the Obama Administration talks, other nations are acting.
Many countries including those of the European Union have already warned their citizens not to travel to Mexico or the U.S.A.
Japan, Thailand and Indonesia quickly deployed thermal scanners to help identify infected airline passengers as they arrive. Hong Kong and Taiwan have joined China and Russia and have announced plans to quarantine visitors with flu symptoms. Britain is screening every single arriving passenger from Mexico.
British virologists, keenly aware of mortality data from the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918, warn that this new virus could cause over 100 million deaths worldwide. It is time that we stop talking and start acting.
Ed Kowalski
9/11 Families For A Secure America