If you find that you have come down with the flu, swine flu or otherwise, there are a few things you can do to keep yourself somewhat comfortable. At least as comfortable as you can be while having the flu.
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Preventing the spread of germs is something we all know how to do. We learn it early on in school and practice it throughout our lives. Even so, in an outbreak such as the current swine flu outbreak, it can’t hurt to be somewhat more vigilant in trying to prevent the spread of the germs that cause 2009 H1N1 better known as swine flu. We have included a list of simple thing you can do to help prevent the spread of germs, starting today.
Washing your hands regularly is a great swine flu preventative measure. We know that, our kids know that, but it isn’t always easy to get them to follow through with it. Simply by washing our hands regularly, we can help prevent the spread of swine flu and many other germs and diseases. So, how do you get your kids to wash their hands regularly without whining about it? Here are some tips that might help:
The number of confirmed swine flu cases seemed to double overnight. The number of confirmed cases is now at 658, up from 367 a day ago. The World Health Organization said Saturday that although it is still preparing for a pandemic, the rise of confirmed cases of swine flu to 658 was largely because of confirmation of suspected cases in Mexico.
“I would still propose that a pandemic is imminent because we’re seeing the disease spread to other countries. We have not seen yet that sustained transmission outside one WHO region,” said Dr. Michael J Ryan, the WHO’s director of its global alert and response team. “At this point we expect that phase 6 will be reached; we have to hope that it is not reached,” he said. Dr. Ryan also went on to say that “Pandemics are serious,” and further noted that the phases of a pandemic describe “the geographic spread of the disease, not its severity.” See Phases of a Pandemic for more information about the 6 phases involve din a pandemic.
According to the World Health Organization the number of confirmed swine flu cases across the globe kept rising Friday. Despite the rising number of confirmed cases there are some signs of hope in the battle against the worldwide outbreak. On Friday, the World Health Organization said that the number of confirmed cases worldwide was at 367. The total cases includes 141 confirmed cases in the United States and 156 in Mexico. So far, thirteen countries have confirmed cases.
Researchers worked to develop a vaccine for swine flu, which is also known as 2009 H1N1. According to Michael Shaw, lab team leader for the H1N1 response at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the CDC hopes to have a vaccine to manufacturers within a month. “We’re doing the best we can as fast as we can,” he said. Even with the vaccine getting to manufacturers within a month, it would take four to six months from the time the appropriate strain is identified before the first doses become available, said Dr. Marie-Paule Kieny, WHO director of the Initiative for Vaccine Research. “Of course we would like to have a vaccine tomorrow. We would have wanted to have it yesterday,” she said. “It’s a long journey.” She said there is “no doubt” that a vaccine can be made “in a relatively short period of time.”
