Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

[PRICEPLUS]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

There has been some talk about Probenacid used with Taniflu and Relenza. Hard to know if that will amke any difference.

[AntiCost]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

This is all media hype.. don't get involved; if you've done research on the bird flu you'll know that it really only affects people who have direct contact with livestock. I can't stand how the media over-exagerates everything to put the general public in a panic.

I doubt most of us are raising chickens around our home.

That's how powerful media is; sometimes you need to take it a little less seriously..

[pyotr]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

The reason the avian flu is a big concern is because of the nature of the influenza viruses. The flu kills because you cannot rely on previous immunizations (vaccines) given every year as the infuenza virus is the classic chameleon which is studied intensively for its ability to rapidly/instantly adapt to formed antibodies against it by raising new epitopes and antigenic variations. It is for this ability to change itself that we worry about an antigenic drift from an ability to latch onto pig or bird (avian) respiratory linings, to an ability to latch onto human respiratory linings. It is precisely because of this that drugs like Tamiflu and Relenza will be useless in the near-term and long-run. It may save the life of a couple of people, but in the intermediate term, even those people whose life it saved will again be under attack by a variant/newly evolved epitopic form of the virus.

Short answer: Don't worry about stockpiling drugs - they will be useless to you. The drug companies might make a few bucks in a run on them so only they would benefit.

For people who want a more detailed explanation about the influenza virus physiology and the whole antigenic drift idea check out this link. http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ult...Influenza.html

[pyotr]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

I should add this also:
Common things to do to avoid the flu are avoid crowds, avoid sniffling/sneezing/coughing people especially. STAY WARM - the influenza viruses can be killed with heat (don't try to knock back your body's fever response too much - try to let it go as long as it's staying between 100 and 103 for a couple days. Don't keep your house too cold if you can help it, and wear multiple layers and stay warm when outdoors. Wash your hands for 15 seconds using rapid/high friction hand washing techniques with good plain soap (micelle formations, mechanical debridement) after each contact with public surfaces (public door knobs, phones, keyboards, money etc.). If the dreaded pandemic does come (and it will eventually), consider getting yourself fitted for the N95 respirators when you travel outdoors.

Ultimately the thing that will save you will be your own immune system - there are certain people who will be naturally "immune" to the pandemic virus and it is these people mostly who will survive without a scratch. This is pure genetic lottery and there's nothing you can do about it and no way to find out if you are one of the genetic lottery winners until you are actually exposed.

[gakline]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

It has crossed my mind that, if there were an outbreak, I would indefinitely work from home. Being stuck on the commuter train with people hacking up bird flu phlegm is not very appealing to me.

I wonder if we'll start seeing face masks like they had in Asia during the SARS outbreak. I wasn't taking this seriously before, but now I'm starting to wonder.

Heck, just riding Metra in winter is horrible. I don't know about you, but I swear every sick and sniffling person is intent on going to work and sitting right behind me. Atleast that's what it feels like.

[sweeps]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

Heck, just riding Metra in winter is horrible. I don't know about you, but I swear every sick and sniffling person is intent on going to work and sitting right behind me. Atleast that's what it feels like.

Yup, twice this winter someone sat next to me when they should've been in the hospital, not heading to work. In both cases, I got up and stood in the vestibule for the rest of the ride.

[baselle]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

I learned a bit about flu self-care, the un-tamiflu kind. Turns out that in 1918 pandemic, if you didn't die from respiratory arrest in a day or two, your big risk of dying came from dehydration.

A simple hydration recipe is: 1 qt (or liter) of clean water, 8 tsp sugar, 1 tsp salt, stir to dissolve. Drink, or feed to sick person. Don't overdo the salt - it should be no saltier than tears. If sick person can get down some orange juice or a bit of banana, the potassium in those will improve the sick person's chances.

The hospitalized sick and dying people are being reported. I wonder how many people there are that feel crappy, but stay home and later shake it off? Finding those means that the mortality rate wouldn't be 50%, but a lot lower.

Found a useful site, Flu Wiki: http://www.fluwikie.com/index.php?n=Main.HomePage

[sweeps]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

Update: Many Health Care Workers Won't Show Up in Flu Pandemic

[eisor]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

Baselle: It's always a good idea to have a few days worth of supplies.

One thing my family is big on is an emergency supply. Enough food, water, propane, etc. to sustain our family for at least a week. Just think about it, in Liousiana and Mississippi they were stranded for days. If you have a supply of food and water (wouldn't have neccessarily worked for New Orleans) you wouldn't be in as desperate need as others.

It's just a good idea.

[mverch]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

I'm ending all my real friendships and just having internet friendships.

I'm also keeping my husband and daughter locked up.

*laughing*

- Melisa

[sweeps]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

I'm ending all my real friendships and just having internet friendships.

LOL. Let's just hope your computer doesn't come down with a virus too.

[JBinKC]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

No I haven't bought my N100 surgical masks and suits you wear for asbestos removal quite yet but I am well aware of the potential problem if it were to mutate and become airborne and the high probability of being quarantineed for an extended period of time.

[debtfreeme]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

I don't believe this when I read items like this. A survey of 308 people in a nation with, what, 5 million health care workers?

I am very familiar with pandemic planning and emergency preparedness (life and jobs) and this is ridiculous. Then the state person in me looks at it and says, how were the questions worded? Were there comments about the health care workers family being taken care of and having the prophylaxis along with the health care worker? Or was it just asked: what would be your response in a pandemic situation? Thing like this just kill me.

A little planning goes a long way. Have food and water for at least 3 days for each family member. Have canned (either from store or your own items) or frozen food that you can make meals from if your family was to get sick or to be able to prevent having to shop outside unless absolutely necessary. Plan for a large emergency and then you can plan for the smaller ones, like loosing your job. When I quit the job I hated in the fall of 04, I was able to live pretty much off my emergency stores until I found a job, the exception being fresh bread and milk each week. It lasted over a month that I had no money, nor was I willing to charge anything.

[veronak]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

You know the bird flu has not even crossed my mind I think I am waiting also. There are so many things on my plate right now like hurricane season and believe me one needs to be prepared last year 7 days no power year before 11

[SuzeOFan]

Re: Anyone beating the crowd, and preparing for bird flu?

Here's an interesting article about the Bird Flu and how to deal with it:

Bird Flu at Home: How to Prepare for the Possible Pandemic

http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_story/0,3566,192342,00.html