Bird Flu - Swine Flu
Reduce Your Chance Of Catching It

Bird Flu / Swine Flu
I Googled on how to avoid catching bird flu or swine flu. Nothing snappy came up. After rooting around I found some interesting info which is summarised here. I'm not an expert so treat what you read here accordingly.

Swine Flu - What Is It?
The swine flu virus is a flu virus carried by pigs. It appears to have mutated or combined with other flu viruses into a virus that can be transmitted from human to human. How lethal the H1N1 Mexican swine flu virus is to humans is currently an open question. A worldwide pandemic sounds scary, but if all you get is a mild touch of flu there'd be no need to panic.

Bird Flu - What Is It?
Bird Flu is a virus that affects birds. The H5N1 variant of the virus is pretty lethal to birds.

Bird Flu - Can People Catch It?
People can catch it if they are in contact with infected birds or their droppings. The current bird flu virus does not seem to transfer easily, if at all, from person to person, though a few cases of people catching it from other people are suspected. Over 50% of the people known to have caught bird flu have died.

Bird Flu - Why Are We Worried?
If someone somewhere gets infected by both the bird flu virus and the human flu virus at the same time it's possible a hybrid virus could result which has the deadliness of the bird virus and the ability of the human virus to spread from person to person. Or the bird flu virus could simply mutate and become infectious between humans.

Bird Flu - Are We All Going To Die?
In the worst case a very contagious and very deadly virus could kill millions of people and could spread around the world very quickly indeed. But any human version of bird flu might not be particularly deadly or easy to catch. The truth is nobody knows. If you roll 2 dice you might get a double six, you might not.

Bird Flu / Swine Flu - What Can You Do To Avoid Getting It?
If a deadly and contagious virus does emerge there are some things you can do to make it less likely you'll catch it:

• Avoid crowds the more people you come close to the bigger your risk of catching something. Being crammed into a commuter train probably isn't a good idea.
• Wear a face mask but viruses can get around or through some face masks and masks can become less effective when damp.
• Turn away from sneezes if someone sneezes turn away and shut your eyes: virus in sneeze mist can enter via your eyes.
• Don't shake hands viruses love to spread that way, from hand to hand.
• Don't touch your face the virus can linger on your hands: touch your eyes, nose or mouth and you could get infected.
• Wear goggles goggles can stop the virus getting in via the moisture around your eyes: goggles stop cough and sneeze droplets and they stop you inadvertently rubbing your eyes.
• Wash your hands regularly particularly after shaking hands. Keep your fingernails clean, viruses love to lurk there. Carry hand-wipes alcohol wipes when out and about, have a pack of antiseptic wipes on your desk.
• Cleanliness is next to Godliness the virus can survive for hours on door handles and other surfaces so keep everything clean.
• Wear gloves gloves may help but get the virus on your gloves and then pick your nose and you're back to square one.
• Stay fit and well if you're unwell your resistance is lowered - usual stuff: eat fruit and vegetables, don't smoke, drink only in moderation. Moderate exercise helps but apparently too-strenuous exercise can make you more susceptible to viruses.
• Avoid osculation - that's kissing could sticking your tongue into someone else's mouth give you the virus? Sounds risky...
• Vaccination? there is currently no vaccine against the human version of the bird flu virus. GlaxoSmithKline are developing an H5N1 vaccine capable of being manufactured quickly in large quantities. However, protection against any future mutation of the current H5N1 virus cannot be guaranteed.
• Flu jab? if you have ordinary flu you're weakened and more vulnerable to other infections, so a normal flu jab might help but would not itself give protection against avian flu.
• Antibiotics? antibiotics only kill bacteria they don't kill viruses.
• Anti viral drugs Tamiflu or Relenza would probably give some protection but nobody knows for sure.
• Become a hermit lock yourself in a room, don't go anywhere other people have been, sterilise everything passed into your cell before you touch it.
• Become an airconditioned hermit as above but with an air purifier and positive pressure so air leaks out of your room but none leaks in. You can probably buy plastic tents plus all the kit. Sounds crazy, but in an end-of-the-world scenario...
• Can you guarantee you won't get it? No way. You have to be lucky 100% of the time, the virus only needs to get lucky once to get you.
• If I get it will I die? Nobody knows. Until "it" - a human to human infectious H5N1 virus - exists the experts can only guess how deadly it might be and who'd be most likely to die from it.

Swine Flu /Bird Flu - How Can You Avoid Giving It To Others?
If you get the virus, you'll be infectious for several days before you have any symptoms. To make it less likely you'll give it to anyone else:

• Don't go to your GP or A&E as you'll give to people there. Ring your GP or NHS Direct if you think you've got it.
• Don't touch your face the virus from your eyes or nose or mouth will get onto your hands.
• Wash your hands regularly in case the virus is on your hands.
• Sneeze or cough into a tissue the tissue traps the bugs: then dispose of the tissue and wash your hands. Don't use a handkerchief - a festering reservoir of infection.
• Use antiviral tissues Kleenex's antiviral tissues are reckoned to kill 99.9% of viruses within 15 minutes.
• Wear a face mask if you think you may have the virus keep it to yourself. Otherwise, sneeze or cough and you fill the air and cover neaby surfaces with virus for others to inhale, get on their hands or in their eyes.
• Stay at home if you think you might have it be unsociable not antisocial.
• Keep everything clean kitchen surfaces, keyboards, taps, lavatory flush handles...

Best Way To Catch Flu
Find someone who has flu, invite them to sneeze into their hands, shake hands warmly with them, then rub your eyes, pick your nose and lick your fingers.

Bird Flu - Why Is The Avian Flu Virus So Deadly?

How does the avian flu virus kill you? Very unpleasantly. Though actually the bird flu virus doesn't kill you - your own immune system kills you. With normal flu, the virus gets into your lungs and your immune system generates killer cells which knock out the virus and you get better.

Avian flu viruses are different. First they get deeper into the lungs. Then they trigger your immune system into overdrive, so much so that the killer cells attack your own health lung tissue. The lung tissue becomes inflamed, tiny blood vessels get damaged and start to leak, your lungs fill with fluid and you drown in your own blood. I don't know about you, but this scares the **** out of me.

Paradoxically, if your immune system isn't up to much, e.g. because you're old, it can't generate so many killer cells and you stand a better chance of survival. If you're 25 - at your immune system's peak - the news ain't good. That's why bird flu pandemics kill fit young adults. Normal flu kills those with weak immune systems - the very young and the old.

But remember: a bird flu virus that can pass easily from human to human doesn't exist. Yet. As far as we know.

Useful Bird Flu Sites:
Fascinating insight into the science of viruses
New Scientist loads of good stuff

Bird Flu Jokes
First man: It's not just chickens, all sorts of things can get bird flu, but apparently small cocks are most likely to get it.
Second man: Oh shit.

Swine Flu Jokes
What's the best cure for pig flu?
Oinkment.

DISCLAIMER: The information on this page has been gleaned from several sources. We cannot be sure of its correctness, completeness or effectiveness. Before acting on anything herein seek expert advice.

Bird Flu Avian Flu Avoiding Catching It