Although the stomach or gastric flu — a usually brief illness marked by digestive distress, diarrhea and similar symptoms — and the respiratory flu share part of a name, they aren’t the same illness, and they aren’t caused by the same kind of germ. While their names suggest they are related, they are not. What we [more...]
You may remember that a few years ago there was much attention given to the bird or avian flu — it was seen a potential source of a worldwide pandemic. But now the pandemic threat isn’t a bird flu, but a swine flu. So the question naturally arises: What is the difference between them? The [more...]
The first outbreak of the Spanish Flu was noted in March 1918 in the Fort Riley military base in Kansas, although it’s possible that it had broken out earlier in the Far East, or even the previous year in Tibet or Austria. However, it was August 1918 when a more virulent mutation of this swine flu [more...]
The two drugs which have been stock-piled by governments across the world in preparation for a possible flu pandemic are known by their trade names Relenza and Tamiflu, and it is indeed those which are being recommended for the current swine influenza breakout. The World Health Organisation is reporting that “national and the local authorities [more...]
The transmission of influenza such as swine flu can be greatly reduced by taking certain precautions: Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly. Use soap and warm water, or an alcohol-based sanitizer. Tip: many people don’t wash their thumbs properly! Be fastidious about covering your nose and mouth when you cough and sneeze. If you use a tissue, [more...]
A strong immune system is your best protection against virulent strains of flu and other viruses. When viruses strike a large geographic area and rise to pandemic proportions, vaccines cannot be relied on to protect an entire population. Viruses can also mutate rapidly and become resistant to existing antiviral drugs and vaccines. Keeping your immune system [more...]