swine flu

Just use regular precautions for any flu. Wash your hands. Don't touch your face (especially eyes, nose, mouth.) Don't let anyone cough or sneeze in your face.

i'm glad you mention this speee1dy,

i think that people should take the same precautions that they do during flu season. tens of thousands die in the u.s. due to complications of flu each year, so flu deaths are nothing new - what is being watched about swine flu is the fact that it can now go from human to human instead of from pig to human. i am sure that was bound to happen eventually, as viruses are known to mutate to ensure their own survival.

wash hands, if your immune system is weak stay away from anyone who is ill, if you are sick, stay at home, if your child is sick, keep him or her away from other children, keep your child away from sick children, don't hesitate to get to a doctor - the body's response to the flu could increase fluids in the lungs and lead to pneumonia, for example.

i applaud the cdc and who for their proactive responses... they are doing what they are paid to do, but i feel that some in the media are really being ultra-dramatic. everyone who is sick now has had the virus in the system and it is now manifesting. more will begin to exhibit symptoms because the incubation periods are over... take care, eat well, live well! if sick, get well.

soon we will know more, and with knowledge comes power.

i think having all the athletics on island now is something to think about since so many of them are from infected countries or have at least participated in races in infected countries. I know a few who will be here who have done so.

Carrying a bottle of purell with me from now on.

I am not a germamaniac but have to be careful.

Most are from the continental US, which is, of course, an infected country.

Most are from the continental US, which is, of course, an infected country.

in so many more ways than one..........lol

Most are from the continental US, which is, of course, an infected country.

exactly. let us keep our heads.

I think majority from other countries. If you look at the line up. But of course they travel through the states. Mostly Miami.

Yes we have to be careful but its hard to wash your hands when you are out in the public. example jump up. i am going to take some
purell in my purse. starting to sound like that guy on "monk"

Interestingly enough, because of the swine flu STT is seeing more tourism:

http://www.onepaper.com/stthomasvi/?v=d&i=&s=News:Local&p=1223617938

Also, the article mentions that Alaska has severely increased its per person cruise ship tax - I am sure you can thank Palin for this.

EXACTLY!!! I blame the media for mass hysteria. This strain of flu seems to have infected and killed A LOT FEWER people than the typical strains we see during flu season. The only thing different is it is occuring outside flu season and some of the victims don't fit the profile of those with compromised immune systems.

I see NO reason whatsoever for the mass hysteria and even the CDC is contributing now (multiple press conferences per day in the absence of DATA showing this to be worse than typical flu strains) which is sad. Can anybody show DATA showing this is worse than typical flu strains? If so please share otherwise I say it's all blown out of proportion.

...i applaud the cdc and who for their proactive responses... they are doing what they are paid to do, but i feel that some in the media are really being ultra-dramatic. everyone who is sick now has had the virus in the system and it is now manifesting. more will begin to exhibit symptoms because the incubation periods are over... take care, eat well, live well! if sick, get well.

soon we will know more, and with knowledge comes power.

Exactly what I have been thinking goodtogo. This morning cnn was calling it a pandemic. I have yet to hear any numbers to support that but most tv news seems to be more sensational then substance.

"...This morning cnn was calling it a pandemic. I have yet to hear any numbers to support that..."

To be classified as a pandemic a disease does not require large numbers of infected, just great geographic diversity, as is seen with this flu. That said, I too think too much is being made of H1N1.

I've been undergoing rigorous training to combat the swine flu should it appear down this way:

http://www.swinefighter.com/

~Matt

Pandemic is the number of regions not the number of people infected

they prefer it not be called swine flu any more because of the danger to the pigs. h1n1 is now the preferred name. the picture in the paper showed a cute pig with his snout sticking out of a fence. the poor little fellow.

Are the islands somewhat of a safe zone per say this winter,because of h1n1's projected worsening after the mainlands summer is over?

i think that with air travel (people confined to closed spaces like airports and planes) and cruise ships, we are no safer than anyplace else.

the flu is helped by people being very close to each other and breathing in or allowing in the virus by being coughed or sneezed on, or shaking hands and putting those same hands into contact with a mucous membrane as in the mouth, nose or eyes.

u r right GoodToGo, 10s of thousands die of the flu every year, but this strain is happening at an odd time of year - proof that it's not necessarily cold weather, but people being trapped inside with each other during the winter months that results in the proliferation of colds and flu.

so, do what you'd regularly do during cold and flu season. and stay home if you are ill. of course, during the incubation period you don't know you are ill, and so the occasional infected person will be traveling. which is the reason to exercise the simple precautions.

I see NO reason whatsoever for the mass hysteria and even the CDC is contributing now (multiple press conferences per day in the absence of DATA showing this to be worse than typical flu strains) which is sad. Can anybody show DATA showing this is worse than typical flu strains? If so please share otherwise I say it's all blown out of proportion.

the difference between the cdc and the media is that the cdc is paid to monitor and issue reports - it is the media that chooses to highlight each release. the cdc is constantly issuing reports but they cannot get them onto the tv, radio or into newspapers.

so, i hope the cdc keeps doing its job making info available as they discover even the smallest of facts - and that the media will recognize that if nothing essentially has changed, there is really no need to act like there is new info just to tease the audience into staying through the station break.

makes me wonder if we were being intentionally distracted from something else that the public was hot about, like the release of the torture reports... but that's just me.

For those who might be interested, there's an excellent article about how the flu virus transmits in cold dry climates vs. warm tropical climates on Jeff Master's blog on wunderground: http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/show.html (it's the May 4 article: "Influenza and the weather")

Basically the scientific evidence is showing that flu infections increase under cold or dry conditions, but the spread of the virus is diminished in higher humidities.

We just have dengue to worry about right? they can have the H1N1 bug (hate calling it swine flu) all those poor pigs killed for no reason.

People in some countries are so ignorant and think they are getting this from kissing pigs. What will happen if we ever have a dog flu or cat flu????

Bet Michael Jackson doesnt have to worry. he is already covered. hehe

maybe they are trying to divert our attention from this.

H.R. 1388 was passed yesterday, behind our backs. You may want to read about it. It wasn't mentioned on the news... just went by on the ticker tape at the bottom of the CNN screen.

Obama funds $20M in tax payer dollars to immigrate Hamas Refugees to the USA. This is the news that didn't make the headlines...

By executive order, President Barack Obama has ordered the expenditure of $20.3 million in "migration assistance" to the Palestinian refugees and "conflict victims" in Gaza.

The "presidential determination", which allows hundreds of thousands of Palestinians with ties to Hamas to resettle in the United States, was signed on January 27 and appeared in the Federal Register on February 4.

Few on Capitol Hill, or in the media, took note that the order provides a free ticket replete with housing and food allowances to individuals who have displayed their overwhelming support to the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in the parliamentary election of January 2006.

It's amazing what the media decides to ignore. I really miss the days of REPORTERS (who would actually report the news) not Journalists (who love to tell us what to worry about and what to think).

H.R. 1388 is The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act.

OpenCongress Summary:
The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act (formally the Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education (GIVE) Act) authorizes a dramatic funding increase for AmeriCorps and other volunteer programs, and the creation of new programs for seniors and veterans. It establishes a goal of expanding from 75,000 government-supported volunteers to 250,000, and would increase education funding and establish a summer volunteer program for students, paying $500 (which would be applied to college costs) to high-school and middle-school student who participate.

President Barack Obama signed the legislation on April 21, 2009. While it authorizes $5.7 billion over six years, Congress must still approve the funding as part of the budget.

http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h1388/show

Also:

http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/palestinians.asp

I would like to add my $0.02 to this:

25 people have died from the swine flu in Mexico. One person (a child on vacation from Mexico) has died in the USA. This brings the total to 26. Typical flu season sees (as per the CDC) 36,000 deaths from the flu in the USofA.

I am NOT worried about the swine flu in the least.