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Swine Flu?? (pg. 13)
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| StereoPrincess |
| quote: | Originally posted by Kellyboop
I don't understand why people STILL think taking antibiotics when you have a flu or cold will cure it. The mass consumption of antibiotics is the reason we have strains like this.
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lol. no. you are contradicting yourself. you can figure out why. |
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| DigiNut |
Yeah the thing about antibiotics was weird... they don't kill viruses because viruses aren't technically alive, but they can't make them more resistant either.
I think she might have been using the term "antibiotics" to refer to anti-infection medicines in general - it's colloquial but common. And if I'm not mistaken, the same principles apply: people who run to get Tamiflu every time they have flu-like symptoms and stop their dosage as soon as they feel marginally better are likely to create more resistant strains. |
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| Spam |
| If you actually listened to the scientists and health experts the media was interviewing, from as far as 2 weeks ago they were consistent with the message that this virus was not appearing to be as deadly has they originally thought. |
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| StereoPrincess |
| quote: | Originally posted by DigiNut
I think she might have been using the term "antibiotics" to refer to anti-infection medicines in general - it's colloquial but common. And if I'm not mistaken, the same principles apply: people who run to get Tamiflu every time they have flu-like symptoms and stop their dosage as soon as they feel marginally better are likely to create more resistant strains. |
p.s. you're a nerd.
no, i do not think that people use antibiotics interchangeably with antivirals, do they? that seems weird but i don't talk to many people that don't know the difference.
i personally think that purel and the such are the biggest scam and in fact could cause more harm then good. not only does it allow crazy bacteria to develop (as mentioned above) but also they dry out people's hands and cause small cuts and open skin wounds and therefore allow bacteria AND viruses to enter the body when if they skin was intact would just sit there and be washed off with soap. |
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| rabbitjoker |
| I've been wearing a mask on the subway. |
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| rabbitjoker |
| quote: | Originally posted by Kellyboop
Considering just categorized the swine flu as a "mild strain" I won't be too worried about it until it mutates again. |
* see spring vs. fall 1918. |
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| *~LiSa-LoO~* |
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| iant56 |
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| *~LiSa-LoO~* |
| quote: | Originally posted by iant56
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lol I bet you're still laughing from this afternoon |
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| Orko |
Comparing the early 20th century flu pandemic to now is a bit short sighted. For the comparison to hold true, that would mean that we have not made any significant progress in general hygiene, medical practices, or communication.
| quote: | Originally posted by MarkT
I'm so relieved that the armchair virologists of TA undertook such a vigorous scientific approach in their dismissal of swine flu as a serious threat.
I feel so much safer knowing that you guys are looking after us.
:rolleyes: |
You are acting as if we should not even have the right to form our own opinions with the information provided to us. Just sit back and let the authorities handle it, as if.
If we were basing federal response guidelines, and scientific research methodologies on the limited info we read, then you would have a legitimate beef. But, we are merely debating the effectiveness of a new flu on a music forum. You have to take time, effort, and setting into account when judging the merits of an argument. |
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| Orko |
Here is a little FAQ sheet I found on National Geographic. It seems to confirm the information I have gotten from the medical professionals that I have spoken to.
Q: How safe is eating pork?
A: As safe as it ever was.
Handling and consuming animal products, such as pork, can transmit some viruses. But that's not how the H1N1 swine flu virus is spreading, said Christine Layton, a public health policy analyst with the North Carolina-based nonprofit research institute RTI International.
Swine flu is a respiratory virus, spread from person to person. In other words: A sneezing chef is a threat, not the spare ribs he's basting.
In fact, if the swine flu virus were primarily being transmitted from pigs to people, public health officials probably wouldn't be so concerned. That kind of transmission tends to limit a virus's human spread to farmers and meat workers—people who are likely to come into contact with animals' bodily fluids.
Q. Can those face masks really protect me from swine flu?
A. Yes and no.
The blue surgical masks you've seen being passed out to Mexican pedestrians are better than nothing but probably only marginally useful, said Andrew Pekosz, associate professor of microbiology and immunology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, Maryland.
While such masks block the relatively large, virus-carrying droplets sneezed out by infected people, the viruses themselves are much smaller and could easily pass through. Specialty masks, designated N-95 or N-99, are better filters but still not perfect.
For better protection, Pekosz recommends combining a mask with regular hand washing and keeping 3 to 4 feet (90 to 120 centimeters) away from other people.
Q. Is this just another media health scare? How worried should we be?
A. The truth lies somewhere in between panic and eye-rolling.
Making the jump from animal-to-person to person-to-person transmission is a rare skill for a flu virus to "learn." This ability makes H1N1 swine flu potentially dangerous—and makes the concern about it a bit different from the worries over bird flu, which has yet to make such a transition.
Human-to-human transmission is a big part of why public health officials are pouring resources into swine flu and why they want you to be aware that the virus is out there.
That said, experts like Johns Hopkins's Pekosz and RTI's Layton say there's currently no reason to lock yourself up in the house.
For one thing, the cases outside Mexico have been no more serious than your average flu bug. Right now, nobody is sure why that is. And while the severity of the symptoms could increase, Pekosz said there's not really an immediate, serious threat to individuals within the United States.
"However," he said, "it certainly merits the public paying attention, and it warrants the public health efforts that have been going on in terms of monitoring and research."
Q. How does a pig-bird-human mash-up swine flu virus happen, anyway?
A. Blame the pigs, and the virus.
Flu viruses are "very messy reproducers," RTI's Layton said.
All eight flu genes replicate independently. If a cell is infected with three different flu viruses, reproduction can mean a reshuffling of genetic material from multiple parents, thrown together randomly into the "baby" flu virus.
Most of the time, those cut-and-paste viruses don't work out very well, Johns Hopkins's Pekosz said. But every so often, this natural reassortment will come up with a new flu virus that has some kind of advantage over its competitors.
H1N1 swine flu is one of those, but we've certainly seen others in the past 30 years, he said. Pigs are part of the problem because they can become infected with flu viruses from birds and humans. As such, swine seem to provide a particularly good environment for this genetic square dance to take place.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/...-flu-facts.html |
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| MarkT |
| quote: | Originally posted by Orko
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You are acting as if we should not even have the right to form our own opinions with the information provided to us. Just sit back and let the authorities handle it, as if.
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no, I'm simply pointing out that even the heads of various health orgs like the WHO, CDC and several virologists have said that it's far too early to dismiss swine flu as serious, that serious reports will still come in, etc.
but some here are acting like it's a 'hoax' or something...and that makes them look naive and a bit too full of themselves.
there's a difference between an opinion based upon an educated guess or some legitimate knowledge...then there's forming an opionion based upon near-complete ignorance. |
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