Swine Flu epidemic

...this s*** is serious

The strain has just reached Level 5 (out of 6 total levels, meaning that this strain is a worldwide epidemic that can almost reach any part of the world)

If this new strain reaches Level 6, U.S borders will close to anyone who is going in, and going out of the country, i don't know about the other countries but this is REALLY getting serious.

I just want to open this thread as a precaution to anyone who is living in areas where the infection is in or even if its not there, this is just for a good precaution warning.

Stay hygenic guys! and be safe!

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You do not know how many times I washed my hands at school today.

This is SARS and Avian Bird Flu all over again.

2 people in Ohio have got the swine flu & there is a rumor in my school that one of the teachers got it. But it does remind me of Mad Cow disease & Bird Flu

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I agree with piepiepie75.

Some people near me were riding their bikes with protective masks today. I thought it seemed a little paranoid.

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Vegetable Flu is the next one.

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Ahaha.

They just confirmed a case of Swine Flu in my small town.

This is a letter we got at school about this epidemic:

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As you may have heard on the news, public health officials in the US and worldwide are investigating outbreaks of swine influenza (swine flu). Currently, this investigation is very fluid -- available information and guidance are changing by the hour. Until more is known about the extent and severity of this outbreak, we are offering the following information based upon Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommendations.

Since there is not a vaccine yet developed for this new strain of influenza, good health habits are critical in preventing the spread of swine flu, as well as other contagious illnesses.

Call your physician if you have flu-like symptoms. The symptoms of swine flu are the same as for seasonal influenza; fever (greater than 100 degrees Fahrenheit); sore throat; cough; stuffy nose; chills; headaches and body aches; fatigue and sometimes, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

Avoid close contact. Avoid close contact (less than 6 feet away) with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.

Stay home when you are sick. Stay home from work, school, and errands when you are sick. If after consulting your doctor, you think you have swine flu, you should stay home for 7 days for adults and 10 days for children after symptoms have started. This will help prevent others from catching your illness, since swine flu is contagious for at least 7-10 days from when symptoms begin.

Cover your mouth and nose. Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or the inside of your elbow when coughing or sneezing. Discard the tissue in the trash and wash your hands afterward. It may prevent those around you from getting sick.

Clean your hands. Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs. Hands should be rubbed for 20 seconds with soap then rinsed. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are also effective -- use enough gel so that it takes 20-30 seconds of rubbing until the gel is dry on the hands.

Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth. Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.

Practice other good health habits.Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.

For more information about swine flu, please visit the CDC website at www.cdc.gov.
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This is what Phil DeFranco (sxephil) has to say about it:

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That's just awesome. This thing better stay out of OC

The news just has nothing else to talk about. It's not a big deal; it has just about the same effect as the regular flu that comes and goes every year

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I don't think there've been any cases in Winnipeg yet, so I hope I'm fine...

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I saw a kid at school who was forced to go home and had a doctor masks on the other day. I wonder... If it was here, I'd bet I'd get a letter by now.

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PS: The "news" industry is really a subset of the entertainment industry. Their main goal is get lots of attention so that they make money off the ads you see between news shows. You getting any useful information at all is purely by accident.

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According to my dad (who's a big history buff), there was a swine flu epidemic back in 1918 or something and if you got it it was basically a death sentence and you'd be dead within 24 hours...maybe that's why people are freaking out?

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It's not going to kill the entire population, unlike what my girlfriend's friend's mum said. That said, if it means it's socially acceptable to go out in public wearing a mask, that's fair game.

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Perhaps it may ended up like "I Am Legend"....

lol

That was the Influenza Pandemic of 1918...which was just the regular flu.

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It was indeed the same strain of virus (H1N1), but you might want to read a bit more about it yourself. For the lazy, here' s a link to Wikipedia to get you started:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Flu

Highlights: approx 20% of the world's population infeced at one time or another, global mortality rate was approximately 5%ish. That's not exactly "if you got it it was basically a death sentence and you'd be dead within 24 hours." However, it is a particularly nasty strain of flu, and affects healthy adults more than usual (flu usually impacts kids, elderly or already ill people). But you do have to consider that it was at the end of the first World War (=lots of people moving across countries, being underfed on the whole) and also that medicine and medical science 90 years ago was crap.

As an aside, I expect most people here have never had the flu. Here's a clue: if you have the flu, chances are you will be bedridden for the best part of a week (or at the very least feel extremely tired, feverish and aching). You don't feel a *bit* ill and have a slight cough and have to take a day off school/work - that's probably just a cold.

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