The past few days I have been hearing a lot about the swine flu that has been plaguing the United States, Mexico, Canada, and other countries around the world. According to the World Health Organization, as of today, 73 cases of swine flu have been confirmed worldwide.
So what is swine flu? I had no idea so I decided to do some research. Just like it sounds, swine flu is a type of influenza adapted in pigs. The disease affects the respiratory system in animals and is transferred to humans who usually have contact with pigs. After a pig gets a human sick, humans transfer it to other humans by coughing, sneezing, and other obvious ways germs are spread.
How serious is the swine flu? The World Health Organization (The WHO) has called the outbreak a public health emergency of national concern and are advising people not to travel to Mexico or the United States unless it is necessary. This may have something to do with the numerous deaths caused by the swine flu in Mexico and the many confirmed cases in North America.
According to the World Health Organization, a public health emergency is defined as “an occurrence or imminent threat of illness or health conditions caused by bioterrorism, epidemic or pandemic disease, or highly fatal infectious agents or toxins that pose serious risk to a significant number of people.”
The WHO director-general even issued a formal statement in regards to the outbreak. To read it, click here.
Symptoms include the general symptoms of any other flu. Fever, coughing, vomiting, lack of energy, etc. the WHO is concerned because this type of virus seems to be affecting people in the prime of their life, healthy 25-45 year olds. Although the severity is worse in Mexico, there is still cause for concern in the United States.
Doctors urge people to take extreme caution to prevent the disease. Wash your hands frequently, refrain from touching your eyes, nose, or mouth until you have washed your hands, and cough or sneeze into tissues and dispose of them immediately. Be careful out there!
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It is a scary world out there for many reasons and this is just one of them. It is really scary that an animal such as a pig, can transfer such an illness and be so innocent while doing it. I guess that is what we get for eating pigs. Another thing that is scary is that the symptoms are pretty much the same as the normal flu people always get.
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