Swine Flu (in Off-topic)

Ok, so avian flu, H5N1, was the scare that topped most in recent WHO/CDC news, but I never got a campus wide email saying a group of students contracted that form of flu.

H1N1 rolls around (and to me is more concerning because disease transmission from pigs to humans is more likely than any other animal species) and I get a campus wide email saying how a group of students here have contracted Influenza type A which is caused by H1N1....

So now the question is, is this something to be concerned about? I haven't been keeping up on this and was just curious what you all have heard or felt about it?

Just wash your hands a bit more.

Don't forget to wash your pigs, too. :)

I am a big proponent of the washing of the hands :)

I remember when swine flu was first a big deal.... in May or something...

I've hardly spared it a thought in the past months though.

ya I remember that too.. and it kind of went away, but I'm hearing more about it here and there, something about Florida possibly having some big breakout... dunno.

Just wash your hands more regularly and don't touch your mouth/nose with your hands. Other than that, it is pretty much like seasonal flu. Those who have died have generally done so because of other complications they had - something that can happen with "normal" flu.

Most of the deaths accompanied with H1N1 (and most other flu strains) come from elderly people and young children because their immune systems are compromised by age. A healthy, prime-of-life person has little to fear from most flu-strains with a little precaution.

My university had a case of H1N1 reported from a new student who came to register for classes. At the time I was leading some of those registration groups and was in contact with the student off and on. We didn't find out about the case until after the day, but no one who'd been with the student contracted anything.

All-in-all, I wouldn't worry about it

I personally don't really see what the big deal about it is.

There are worse things that you can get. After a quick glance at the symptoms, nothing really strikes me as dangerous so long as you know how to see a doctor and drink water.

I just don't get it. Maybe it's because I don't get out all that much, and as long as school's out there's very little chance of me contracting any illnesses. :)

It's like the regular flu if you catch it anyway. If you're healthy, one week is all it takes and you beat it. As was said, proper hygiene is important but I wouldn't fret.

unless you are pregnant, a new news article stated that it is hitting pregnant harder than nons.

I read that as "hitting pregnant harder that nuns." I had a mental image of nuns gut-punching pregnant girls.

wow Demi....

that is messed up, get help

+2 Demigod

"I had a mental image of nuns gut-punching pregnant girls."

would that be nuns with bad habits? ha! ; )

all these flu types are only hazardous for people with low resistance and an ill state of health. Swine fly and h1n1 are all just flues. Nothing else. You don't need special precautions or even wash your hands a bit more. If you're healthy you won't even notice you have it.


It has been over exaggerated just a tad and is only lethal for those in ill health