What is Swine Flu?
Swine flu is a highly contagious acute respiratory disease that afflicts pigs. It is caused by one of many swine influenza A viruses. The virus is spread from pig to pig by breathing it in, and from direct and indirect contact. Outbreaks in pigs occur year round, with an increased incidence in the fall and winter in the temperate zones. Many countries routinely vaccinate swine populations against swine flu.
Risk To People
People usually get swine flue from infected pigs, however, some human cases lack any evidence of contact with pigs or environments where pigs have been located. This means that human-to-human transmission must have occurred in some of the reported cases of swine flu. It is believed that these cases of transmission between humans was limited to close contacts with closed groups of people. Swine flu has not been shown to be transmissible to people by eating properly handled and prepared pig meat or other products derived from pigs. The swine flu virus is killed by cooking temperatures above 160 degrees (F).
It is very likely that most people because they do not have regular contact with pigs, do not have any immunity to swine influenza viruses that can prevent them from getting it. If the Swine flu virus establishes efficient means of human-to-human transmission, it can cause a pandemic. A pandemic is an epidemic of some infectious disease that spreads through populations across a large region as in across continents, or even worldwide. The impact of a pandemic caused by such a virus is difficult to predict. It all depends on the virulence of the virus strain, the existing immunity of the human population, cross protection by antibodies acquired from seasonal flu infection and other factors. In the past, human infection with swine flu was generally mild but is known to have caused severe illness such as pneumonia. For the recent outbreaks in the U.S. none of the confirmed cases have had the severe form of the disease and the patients recovered from illness without requiring medical care. In Mexico, some patients have had the severe from of the disease and have died as a result.
To protect yourself from swine flu follow this advice from the WHO:
Avoid close contact with people who appear unwell and who have symptoms of fever and cough
Wash your hands frequently with soap and water
Practice good health habits including getting adequate sleep, eating nourishing foods, and keeping physically active
Swine Flu In America
Pharmacies in New York reported runs on Tamiflu, an antiflu drug. This is a reaction that public health officials badly want to avoid because the drug could eventually be needed for the truly ill. Manufacturers of the drug said they were increasing production and expressed anxiety that shortages could develop if governments placed huge orders. The number of confirmed cases of the virus in the U.S. increased to 45, with 28 of them being from one New York City school. None of the American cases have been serious enough to cause death yet.
Outside The U.S.
Spain and Scotland became the first places outside North America to confirm cases of swine flu. Suspected cases have appeared in Brazil, Australia, Israel and New Zealand, but confirmation is slow because most nations’ laboratories lack the test kit the C.D.C. is developing for the new virus. The U.S. State Department issued a "travel alert" today urging people to avoid all "non-essential" travel to Mexico over the next three months to minimize the risk of spreading the disease.
About The Author:
This article was written by Mark
Soveign who writes for
Wertheim Communications LLC as well as for Mooker.Com