Today we are more at a greater risk from various mutations of the influenza virus than we have been for a long time. First we had great concerns over bird flu, but recently swine flu has become a major concern. Swine flu is of more problem than bird flu was. It was a worry that bird flu could mutate into a form that would become infectious in humans, apart from a few cases, this has not materialized so far.
Swine flu is of more concern, swine flu is able to spread from human to human which makes it an extremely serious health problem. Swine flu or influenza A (H1N1) is a flu virus which infects pigs. Swine flu outbreaks in pigs doesn’t normally infect humans although it can occur sometimes.
Swine flu is a unknown type of virus and is therefore extremely dangerous to humans. No one has had contact with this type previously, which means no one has developed any immunity to this virus. With no inbuilt immunity a disease can be life threatening, as our body is unable to fight the virus. Everyone is vulnerable, including healthy adults as well as the young and elderly citizens.
Swine flu can easily result in a pandemic influenza situation. A pandemic flu situation occurs when an influenza viral strain develops that is different from previous flu strains that few, if any, people have any sort of immunity to. This allows the influenza virus to spread widely and rapidly throughout the population.
Pandemic flu differs from seasonal flu as explained below. ordinary flu occurs yearly during the winter, with about 10 to 15 percent of the population are affected and the majority of people will recover in one to two weeks without medical treatment. Ordinary flu is generally only of risk to the elderly and those with diseases that make them more vulnerable to serious complications from an infection.
Pandemic influenza affects more people, up to half of the population can be affected, pandemic influenza is far more serious, all ages will be affected.
The symptoms of swine flu are very similar to the symptoms of ordinary influenza. These include a sudden onset of a fever, a cough or a shortness of breath. Symptoms that may also be present include headache, sore throats, aching muscles, sneezing, chills, a runny nose, appetite loss and tiredness.
Precautions that can be taken. Anyone with flu or cold symptoms should take some simple precautions. The flu virus spreads between humans by the tiny droplets from the nose and mouth when someone sneezes or coughs. This is the way viruses like swine flu are spread from person to person. Using your hands to cover your face when you sneeze or cough is not enough. The virus remain on your hands, then everything you touch afterwards becomes contaminated with germs. Anyone touching the same surface as you will pick up the virus and then risks becoming infected. Always use a handkerchief or tissue. A disposable tissue is far better, the tissue should be disposed as soon as possible, try to always use a fresh tissue when you cough or sneeze again.
A vaccination for swine flu is not yet available. The vaccination against seasonal flu is ineffective against swine flu. By the time a vaccination is discovered, it will take many months to make, and by that time the virus could have changed again making the new vaccination possibly ineffective.
The best precaution you can take against swine flu is Tamiflu. Tamiflu isn’t guaranteed to prevent flu, but after someone has been exposed to another individual who has the swine flu virus, it can help to stop the flu virus making you ill. If Tamiflu is administered in the first 48 hours of getting the swine flu virus, Tamiflu may help to stop the virus spreading throughout the body, alleviating the signs and symptoms and the risk associated with the swine flu virus. Governments are stockpiling Tamiflu, but these supplies will be used to treat important workers and individuals before the general population.
You can however buy Tamiflu online, so if the situation occurs you are able to offer as much protection as possible to yourself and family. It can’t be emphasized enough, Tamiflu needs to be administered as soon as possible for it to be effective, any delays in treatment will diminish how effective Tamiflu is.
Remember that swine flu is a global problem. Should an outbreak become global it is a possibility that the supplies of Tamiflu may be diminished and may possibly not meet a huge global demand. Until such time that a vaccine is found and produced in the quantities needed, Tamiflu is the only really effective treatment for the swine flu virus, it would therefore be prudent to buy Tamiflu beforehand if you feel you or your loved ones could be at risk.
Disclaimer: This posting is based on information freely available in {the popular#the} press and medical journals related to swine flu. Nothing herein is intended to be or should be taken to be medical advice. For medical advice you are advised to consult your own doctor.