According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), this season’s influenza outbreak, which is dominated by the new H1N1 virus popularly known as the “swine flu”, is on the decline as of the second week of December, 2009. However, this does not mean that the danger is passed or that we should cease paying attention to the disease.
Some of the reasons for concern are as follows:
The CDC states that more than 99% of the reported influenza cases are of the 2009 influenza A (H1N1) type virus. This is a new strain that children are particularly susceptible to.
The proportion of deaths attributed to pneumonia and influenza, according the the CDC, we above the “epidemic” threshold for the eleventh consecutive week. So while the decline in the disease’s spread is good news, the fact is that its presence is still widespread.
The holiday travel season brings with it a greater chance for exposure to the virus as travelers and visitors from different geographic locations mingle both while traveling as strangers and when getting together as family and friends.
There are several reliable sources to get the latest information on the flu epidemic and advice, protecting your family from it, and treatment if affected. These include the CDC official web information pages which includes international reports on outbreaks. The US Department of Health also has a website which features the latest video briefings from the Secretary of Health as well as detailed prevention and care information specifically for individuals and families.
The general medical consensus is that vaccination is the best way of preventing the disease, and it is especially recommended for children and adolescents (6 months – 18 years old). Older persons do not appear to be as much at risk as children during this particular flu epidemic. It is thought that people born before 1960 have acquired natural immunities to this virus based on past exposure to similar strains. The CDC does recommend that elderly persons take normal precautions, including prescription antiviral medications if advised by their physician.
The term “swine flu” came about because several strains of current flu virus were originally circulated among pigs. While pig disease does not normally affect humans, sporadic infections have been passed along over the years via exposure on farms, meat processing facilities, and even state fairs. The H1N1 virus falls into this category, and is the currently the most prevalent around the world. The fact that it was limited to animal circulation in the past make it new or “novel” in terms of the human immune system, especially to younger people who have not even been exposed to similar strains and built up any immunity.
This is why health authorities around the world have worked to raise the level of urgency and awareness about H1N1. This type of susceptibility bears many similarities to the catastrophic flu pandemic of 1918, whose victims were primarily young and healthy adults.
A number of promptly offered commercial products exist that can award you the upper hand to help keep the germ away. One instance is a brand new swine flu prevention kit from the Clorox Corporation which provides a collection of sterilizer products revealed to be efficient at killing the majority germs. In one suitable package, you get nine products that help hinder the range of germs and viruses, as well as the 2009 H1N1, inside and covering your house. They’re all available together (with step-by-step instructions) for the first time from the experts at Clorox. Since we know protecting your household is your original precedence, get your kit ordered today at Fight Flu Virus.
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