tagged w/ Flu
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Time...
How Flu Spreads on a Plane
By Bryan Walsh Thursday, June 16, 2011
Brian Stablyk / Photographer's Choice / Getty Images
As if the generally horrific experience of flying wasn't bad enough (maybe I'm just a little sour about the 90 minutes I spent on the tarmac at Newark last night), a new study [PDF] in Emerging Infectious Diseases shows that flying can make you as sick as you are miserable.
Australian researchers studied flu infections that spread aboard two large airliners during May 2009, at the height of the H1N1/A flu pandemic, and found a zone of infection around sick passengers. And — no surprise here — the closer you sit to someone who's sick, the better the chance you'll be coming down with the flu.
Sit within two rows of someone with flu-like symptoms, and your chance of getting ill increases by 3.6%. Sit within two seats of the sick passenger, and your chance of coming down with the flu goes up by 7.7% (and, I imagine, your chance of generally having a horrible flight increases by 100%).
Paul Kelly, one of the paper's authors and an epidemiologist at Australian National University, told LiveScience that the time spent aboard the plane played a role in the chance of infection as well:
"The closer you are to an infectious person, the higher your chances of becoming infected yourself," said study researcher Paul Kelly, an epidemiologist at Australian National University in Canberra. "This is especially the case on long-haul flights," those lasting more than four hours.
Kelly believes that governments should screen patients for flu symptoms and prevent them from flying — a practice that tends to spike during pandemics and other outbreaks, but usually wanes not long after. (From my experience, you'd need to be breaking out with bubonic plague before most U.S. airlines would take you off a flight.)
If you do end up near a sick person, Kelly suggests you ask to be moved — good luck with that — wear a cotton mask, or even suggest that you're [SIC] sick neighbor wears one. (It's considered common courtesy in Asia for those with flu-like illnesses to wear masks when venturing out in public.)
The results of the study have consequences for infectious disease control beyond stopping the sniffles. Modern airline travel allows us to move from one end of the globe to the other in less than a day, and that means we can bring our germs with us. In the case of the SARS outbreaks of 2003, the disease was almost always introduced into a new country via airline passengers. The next big infectious disease — which could be much more deadly than SARS or H1N1 — is out there somewhere, and it will almost certainly be riding a plane.
Read more: http://healthland.time.com/2011/06/16/its-true-flying-can-give-you-the-flu/#ixzz1PbjVa9VJTime...
How Flu Spreads on a Plane
By Bryan Walsh Thursday, June 16, 2011... more
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Not a big shocker here, but the United Nations Plaza farmer’s market has finally banned the sale of something that has already been against the law to sell in San Francisco—live chickens.Not a big shocker here, but the United Nations Plaza farmer’s market has finally... more
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The Governments are set up for handling these potential disasters through FEMA early on. Nixon set up a third attempt for a military coup and dictatorship starting in 1969 to 1972. His [Nixon] planned takeover never transpired and the planned table was passed on to President Carter and every president after him.
In order to contain the population, control methods [verichips] have been set up going back to the turn of the 20th century and carried through to the present day with various plans [Iron Mountain Report, NSSM 200, Global 2000, et al], to contain the population. It involves setting up a crisis and creating chaos and from chaos comes order or normalization.
CIVIL WAR II
http://www.nwofighters.org/new-madrid-2011-earth-quake-imminent-haarp-kills-birds-proof-fema-drills/The Governments are set up for handling these potential disasters through FEMA early... more
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The medical committee that decided against vaccinating all under-fives against flu this winter should conduct a "comprehensive review" of extending immunisation, an influential committee of MPs has urged.
link:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/8356723/Review-flu-vaccine-for-all-under-fives-say-MPs.htmlThe medical committee that decided against vaccinating all under-fives against flu... more
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The Faces of Influenza campaign is designed to put a "face" on influenza and make money doing it. The Pharmaceutical companies received numerous duplicitous bailouts which in turn fund this propaganda.
The ad council does underhanded publicly funded service advertisements for large for profit corporations under the ruse that they are non-profit.
American Lung Association's Influenza Prevention Program in "Collaboration" with sanofi pasteur www.facesofinfluenza.org
Some artwork by Deesillustrations.com Go to his website to view his entire collection.
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You call this health care?The Faces of Influenza campaign is designed to put a "face" on influenza and... more
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What if having sex literally made you sick?
It’s a nightmare scenario for most guys to even imagine, but for a handful of men across the world, it’s a crippling reality. Immediately after ejaculating, these men experience flu-like symptoms including a fever, runny nose, apathy, joint stiffness, and loss of short-term memory. Researchers have dubbed it “post-orgasmic illness syndrome” (POIS), and it’s as horrible as it sounds.
Jason*, a 31-year-old software engineer from Colorado, has suffered from POIS since he first hit puberty. Whether it’s through sex, masturbation, or even nocturnal emission, Jason’s symptoms kick in for 20 minutes after he ejaculates—and typically last up to 2 weeks. Because the pain is often so intense, it’s effectively killed his sex life.
“It’s gotten to the point where I will not have sex or ejaculate,” he says. “As a result, I’ve been abstinent for about a year now.”
Once thought to be a psychological illness, research from the Netherlands recently suggested that POIS may be caused by an allergy to semen. A Utretcht University team studied 33 Dutch men who reported POIS symptoms by giving them skin-prick tests using a diluted form of their own semen. Eighty-eight percent of the men tested positive for the allergy.
In a follow-up study, researchers injected two of the men with increasing amounts of their own semen so they could gradually build tolerance to the allergy. (It’s sort of like how allergists desensitize people to pollen, only with, you know, semen.) Sure enough, after 3 years, both men saw significant reductions in their symptoms.
But some experts are skeptical that allergies are to blame. In fact, David Resnick, M.D., director of allergy at New York-Presbyterian Hospital Columbia, says the notion of men being allergic to their own semen is almost impossible.
“If they were allergic, they’d have a reaction when they produced it internally, too. That’s why I find it hard to believe,” says Resnick. While women can be allergic to men’s semen—their bodies recognize semen as a foreign protein, in a condition known as seminal plasma hypersensitivity—Resnick says the same allergy would make no sense in a man. “If a man produces his semen, he would already have an allergic reaction to his own prostate.”
So what’s causing the “allergic reactions”? Jonathan Bernstein, M.D., a professor of medicine at the University of Cincinnati, has seen men react to positive skin tests for their seminal fluid, but says that doesn’t necessarily mean an allergy is to blame. “The reaction could be more of an irritation to the fluid, and not an immunologic response.”
Because POIS is relatively new—it’s only been documented in medical journals since 2002—and very uncommon (researchers estimate that it affects less than one percent of the population), treatment in America is limited.
Jason lives a relatively normal life—his girlfriend understands his issues and is okay with not having sex. Though he’s managed to accept his celibacy, it certainly hasn’t come easy. “You know how guys are, especially when we’re young. In our early 20s, we want to have sex often, and if we wait two weeks, that’s a long time! But if you have POIS and have sex frequently, you always have these horrible symptoms. You feel horrible when you have POIS, and the only way to feel better is to have sex. It’s a vicious cycle like a drug user would have.”
So how does he deal with his celibate life? “You need to meet the right person for a meaningful relationship—someone who doesn’t need sex, who’s understanding and patient. To maintain the relationship without sex, you need to do the small things like spending quality time with your partner, doing kind gestures, and giving small gifts to show you appreciate her. Really go above and beyond. You can still have the physical connection . . . just not a sexual one.”
That’s good advice even for guys who can’t get enough sex. Strengthen your emotional bond by reading How to Keep Her Hot … Forever!
If you suffer from POIS symptoms and feel shame and anxiety because of it, Men’s Health sex advisor Debby Herbenick, M.P.H., Ph.D., suggests seeking a sex therapist through the Society for Sex Therapy and Research
http://blogs.menshealth.com/health-headlines/the-orgasm-flu/2011/01/25What if having sex literally made you sick?
It’s a nightmare scenario for most... more
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Professor Helen Sang: "Not only could we use this approach to tackle bird flu but other diseases"UK scientists have created the world's first genetically modified chickens that do not spread bird flu.
:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12181382Professor Helen Sang: "Not only could we use this approach to tackle bird flu but... more
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Recently Entertainment News Updates Miss Katie Savoy is the girl from that Verizon commercial where she goes into the pool and emerges as Mr. Adrian Peterson. The Wynot Lady Blue Devils traveled to Ponca on Tuesday to take on an opponent from the eastern division of the Lewis and Clark conference.Recently Entertainment News Updates Miss Katie Savoy is the girl from that Verizon... more
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CHICAGO (Reuters) – A study of antibodies from people infected with H1N1 swine flu adds proof that scientists are closing in on a "universal" flu shot that could neutralize many types of flu strains, including H1N1 swine flu and H5N1 bird flu, U.S. researchers said on Monday.
They said people who were infected in the H1N1 pandemic developed an unusual immune response, making antibodies that could protect them from all the seasonal H1N1 flu strains from the last decade, the deadly "Spanish flu" strain from 1918 and even a strain of the H5N1 avian flu.
"It says that a universal influenza vaccine is really possible," said Patrick Wilson of the University of Chicago, who worked on the paper published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.
Many teams are working on a "universal" flu shot that could protect people from all flu strains for decades or even life.
U.S. officials say an effective universal flu vaccine would have enormous ramifications for the control of influenza, which kills anywhere from 3,300 to 49,000 people in the United States each year.
Wilson's team started making the antibodies in 2009 from nine people who had been infected in the first wave of the H1N1 swine flu pandemic before an H1N1 vaccine had been produced. The hope was to develop a way to protect healthcare personnel.
Working with researchers from Emory University School of Medicine, the team produced 86 antibodies that reacted with the H1N1 virus, and tested them on different flu strains.
Of these, five were cross-protective, meaning they could interfere with many strains of flu including the 1918 "Spanish flu" and a strain of H5N1 or avian flu.
Tests of these antibodies in mice showed they were fully protected from an otherwise lethal dose of flu.
And some of these cross-protective antibodies were similar in structure to those discovered by other teams as having potential for a universal flu vaccine.
"It demonstrates how to make a single vaccine that could potentially provide permanent immunity to all influenza," Wilson said in a telephone interview.
"LOLLIPOP STICK"
Flu vaccines and drugs focus on proteins found on the surface of the flu virus called hemagglutinin and neuraminidase, which give influenza A viruses their names, as in H5N1 or H1N1.
Hemagglutinin is a lollipop-shaped structure with a big, round head. This head is so large it attracts most of the immune system antibodies, but it mutates readily.
Two years ago, researchers working for Crucell NV and a separate team found that antibodies that attach to the "stick" or stalk part of the hemagglutinin lollipop mutate much less -- providing a perfect target for a vaccine that could neutralize a range of different flu viruses.
"Previously, this type of broadly protective, stalk-reactive antibody was thought to be very rare," Jens Wrammert of Emory said in a statement. But in the H1N1 patients, he said, they were "surprisingly abundant."
That may be because the H1N1 virus was so different from other flu strains that the immune system made antibodies for the only parts of the virus it recognized -- this "stick" or stalk region that is common to many flu strains.
Wilson said the study proves it is possible to get the immune system to make these antibodies if it has the right stimulation. The team is working with an unnamed biotechnology company to develop a vaccine or drugs based on this notion.
And a team at the National Institutes of Health is testing a two-step vaccine that uses DNA from stalk-reactive antibodies to "prime" the immune system, followed by a regular flu shot.
A study in July showed this two-step approach protected mice and ferrets against flu strains from 1934 through 2007. This vaccine is now being tested in people.CHICAGO (Reuters) – A study of antibodies from people infected with H1N1 swine... more
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2009 H1N1 outbreak was proven to be contrived hoax
Big Pharma is licking its lips at the prospect of cashing in on a second round of the swine flu epidemic, despite the fact that the first outbreak of the virus in 2009 was proven to be a contrived hoax perpetrated by pharmaceutical companies in concert with the World Health Organization.
Flu experts in Britain are warning that an H1N1 epidemic is weeks away as 9 million children prepare to return to school after the Christmas holiday. There have been 36 deaths from swine flu in Britain since October.
However, with skyrocketing numbers of people in the British Isles refusing to take flu vaccines after their dangers were widely publicized, prepare for the situation to be swiftly exploited by the establishment who will push fears of a pandemic to coerce people into taking mercury-laden shots that have been linked with paralyzing neurological disorders, convulsions, and deaths.
A Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe found that the 2009 H1N1 outbreak was exaggerated by pharmaceutical giants as a ruse to make vast profits from the sale of dangerous and unnecessary vaccines.
Chair of the Council of Europe’s Sub-committee on Health Wolfgang Wodarg said that governments were “threatened” by special interest groups within the pharmaceutical industry as well as the WHO to buy the vaccines and inject their populations without any reasonable scientific reason for doing so.
Wodarg said he was alarmed when the WHO cited early cases in Mexico as a threat and quickly moved to pandemic status, despite the fact that the cases were relatively mild and the virus was not new.
“This was the mildest flu ever and the people were much more clever than the government so we have to find out what was going on with WHO – why did they do this pandemic alarm,” asked Wodarg, noting that pharmaceutical interests within the World Health Organization were instrumental in creating the panic and reaping the financial dividends.
Wodarg said there was “no other explanation” for what happened than the fact that the WHO worked in cahoots with the pharmaceutical industry to manufacture the panic in order to generate vast profits, labeling the entire episode a hoax.
He also explained how health authorities were “already waiting for something to happen” before the pandemic started and then exploited the virus for their own purposes.
Any new attempt by health authorities to hastily declare a new pandemic emergency should be treated with the utmost suspicion given the fact that these same entities were caught lying and scheming in 2009 to manufacture fearmongering surrounding swine flu in order to cash in to the tune of billions.
http://www.prisonplanet.com/big-pharma-prepares-to-exploit-new-swine-flu-scare.html2009 H1N1 outbreak was proven to be contrived hoax
Big Pharma is licking its lips... more
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Doctors shocked by spread of swine flu – and its severity
Jeremy Laurance
London Independent
Dec 11, 2010
The swine flu virus that swept the world last year causing a global health emergency has returned to claim the lives of 10 adults in the UK in the past six weeks.
The 10 deaths were in younger adults under 65 and associated with H1N1 swine flu. Most had underlying conditions but “a small proportion” were healthy before being struck down by the virus, according to the Health Protection Agency (HPA).
Seasonal flu normally causes severe illness and death in the elderly. The H1N1 swine flu virus targets pregnant women, younger adults, and those with chronic conditions, making it a cause of particular alarm.
No other similar reports of deaths linked with swine flu have been received from elsewhere in Europe. Official figures show GP consultations for flu-like illness in England were at 13.3 per 100,000 population last week, well below baseline levels.
This is a post I found that in my opinion really sums up the way this article was written.
Carroll Quigley Says:
December 11th, 2010 at 9:40 am
Wow… typical mainstream newsmedia BS
“The swine flu virus that swept the world last year.”
- It didn’t in fact last year’s flu season was milder than usual.
“The 10 deaths were in younger adults under 65″
- So in this context 64 could be described as a younger adult.
“Most had underlying conditions but “a small proportion” were healthy before being struck down by the virus.”
- A small proportion of 10 would be 1? Or would it be 2? How do we know they how healthy they really were? The correct term would be “apparently healthy.”
“The H1N1 swine flu virus targets pregnant women, younger adults, and those with chronic conditions, making it a cause of particular alarm.”
- Nonsense. Read Janine Robert’s book Fear of the Invisible to see how this is, as they say in the UK, total bollocks. Viruses do not work like that. They do not target like some invading army on a planned mission.
“No other similar reports of deaths linked with swine flu have been received from elsewhere in Europe”
- Not sounding too severe to me.
“Official figures show GP consultations for flu-like illness in England were at 13.3 per 100,000 population last week, well below baseline levels.”
- Flu like illnesses could mean anything and it doesn’t mean H1N1… and they are are at lower levels.
I can sum up that story in five words… Be afraid. Take the vaccine.
Jeremy Laurence has just re-written a press release from big pharma.Doctors shocked by spread of swine flu – and its severity
Jeremy... more
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A breakthrough discovery into how cells can fight off the most common viruses such as the winter flu and common colds may lead to new wonder drugs within the next few years.
Until now experts had thought that antibodies, such as white blood cells, could only tackle viral infections by blocking or attacking viruses outside cells. But work done by the Medical Research Council shows antibodies can pass into cells and fight viruses from within.
The landmark discovery was made at the University of Cambridge’s Laboratory of Molecular Biology, also known as the ‘Nobel Prize Factory’ due to its ability to win the prestigious prize (it’s tallied up 14 awards so far).
Viruses remain mankind's biggest killer, responsible for twice as many deaths each year as cancer, and are among the hardest of all diseases to treat.
The new discovery by Dr Leo James and his colleagues at the Medical Research Council has transformed previous scientific understanding of our immunity to viral diseases like the common cold, 'winter vomiting' and gastroenteritis.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/a-cure-for-the-common-cold-may-finally-be-achieved-as-a-result-of-a-remarkable-discovery-in-a-cambridge-laboratory-2122607.htmlA breakthrough discovery into how cells can fight off the most common viruses such as... more
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It was Superhero mania in Times Square Friday! Ace Clean, the germ-fighting Super Hero joined forces with Iron Man as part of a new disease prevention program. The two Superheros offered germ fighting tips and gave a hand washing demonstrations. Comic-book style book covers were also given out to NYC school children to help them protect their books.It was Superhero mania in Times Square Friday! Ace Clean, the germ-fighting Super Hero... more
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This video is viral - pun intended! Dr. Jim Risser wrote and performed, "Get Your Flu Shot!" Hit play to watch and share it. Just don't be mad at us when you can't get this jingle out of your head!This video is viral - pun intended! Dr. Jim Risser wrote and performed, "Get Your... more
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GPs have been told not to use a particular flu jab on 110,000 children under five after it was linked with a tenfold increase in fits, it can be revealed.
Children under five are only routinely vaccinated against seasonal flu if they are in designated 'risk groups' because they have chronic asthma Photo: ALAMY
Doctors should stock alternative vaccines for under fives who are due to have the seasonal flu vaccine this winter, a letter from the head of immunisation at the Department of Health has said.
The action is being taken as rate of convulsions caused by high fever among children in Australia given the jab was ten times higher than normal.
p to one in 100 children given the jab, made in Australia by CSL and marketed in the UK by Pfizer, suffered febrile convulsions in the following hours and days.
It is not known what is causing the problem and no other flu vaccines have been linked to an increased risk of fits. Adults given the vaccine do not appear to have been affected.
Children under five are only routinely vaccinated against seasonal flu if they are in designated 'risk groups' because they have chronic asthma, have been admitted to hospital with a respiratory infection previously or have other long-term conditions which means they would be particularly badly affected if they caught flu.
Seasonal flu vaccines contain three strains which have been identified by the World Health Organisation as the most common in circulation that year. This year the vaccines contain the pandemic strain H1N1.
The letter to all GPs from Prof David Salisbury, said: "Epidemiological information from Australia indicates that there has been a higher than expected increase in febrile convulsions in children related to the use of Fluvax (manufactured by CSL).
"This is the same product that will be marketed in the UK by Pfizer as Enzira and generic influenza vaccine for the 2010/11 influenza vaccination season.
"Evidence from Australia suggests a rate of febrile convulsions of about one per 100 for children who were vaccinated with Fluvax. This increased risk appears to be a product specific reaction and evidence from Australia of vaccination with other products has so far not indicated a similar level of risk.
"It is important that children over six months of age who are in clinical risk groups receive influenza vaccination. Given the availability of other influenza vaccine products, you should avoid offering Enzira or CSL Biotherapies generic influenza vaccine marketed by Pfizer to children aged under five years."
He added that the medicines regulator will be monitoring the situation.
Febrile convulsions affect around one in 20 children and are normally caused by an infection. The body reacts to the high fever with the child losing consciousness and their legs and arms jerk. They may go pale or turn blue briefly and after a few minutes the shaking normally stops.
The attacks can be very frightening for parents and children are usually admitted to hospital after the first convulsion to establish the cause. Some children are particularly prone to them but they are not normally dangerous.
In Australia, which is in its winter, stopped vaccinating all children under five when the increased rate of convulsions was found. It has since restarted vaccinating with other products.
A spokesman for Pfizer said: "The cause of the unexpected increased frequency of febrile convulsions remains unknown and investigations continue. Pfizer and CSL are working closely with regulatory authorities, health agencies and distribution partners to determine the most appropriate way to provide influenza vaccine for the Northern Hemisphere 2010/2011 influenza season.
"While, Pfizer supports the current precautionary approach to the use of our influenza vaccine in children under five years of age, it should be noted that the vast majority of patients in the UK receiving the influenza vaccine are adults, and febrile convulsions are not seen in the adult population.
"In addition, there is no evidence that the vaccine poses any increased risks to other groups, including pregnant women and those aged over 65.
"Pfizer and CSL are committed to ensuring the quality and safety our products. Pfizer is in ongoing dialogue with the Department of Health to help ensure the successful implementation of the 2010/11 Flu immunisation programme."
A spokesman for the Department of Health said: "As part of the Australian flu vaccination programme, a number of children were given a brand of flu vaccine known as Enzira (Fluvax in Australia). A small proportion of these children, aged under 5, had fits after they had this vaccine.
"The vaccine is also marketed in the UK as CSL Biotherapies generic influenza vaccine. It contains three strains of the flu virus that experts predict are most likely to be around this winter including swine flu (H1N1).
"We are asking GPs in the UK to avoid offering this vaccine to the under 5s in the coming flu season, there are several other vaccines available that are suitable for this age group. There is currently no indication that the vaccine poses any increased risks to other groups.
"Having the flu jab remains the best protection against flu and we recommend that people get vaccinated when they’re offered it in the autumn."GPs have been told not to use a particular flu jab on 110,000 children under five... more
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Hate needles? Well here is some good news, after it is reported scientists at Emory University have developed a vaccination patch. Unlike the processes of using one needle the patch is covered in microscopic needles, which dissolve into the skin and vaccinate the patient against flu.
The scientists claim the test performed on mice show the patch method is better at protecting the immune system against flu than the current system does.
The study into the technology is continuing, but with this break through some are saying the patch will mean people can vaccinate themselves from home via a home delivery. Human trails are set to carry out over the next few years.
"If proven to be effective in further trials, the patch would mean an end to the need for medical training to deliver vaccines and turn vaccination into a painless procedure that people could do themselves.
It could also simplify large-scale vaccination during a pandemic, the researchers said.
Although the study only looked at flu vaccine, it is hoped the technology could be useful for other immunisations and would not cost any more than using a needle."-BBCHate needles? Well here is some good news, after it is reported scientists at Emory... more
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