Swine flu strikes asthmatics more than others

I have made a decision and a reservation regarding the swine flu (h1n1) vaccination I would like to share with my readers.

First for the decision. I have written earlier that I would not let my children get the vaccination due to the fact it has Mercury in it as a preservative. Some kids have a mitochondrial disorder where they can't get rid of Mercury, and this can cause other disorders later in life. It's also been linked with the increased incidence of autism.

So, rather than risk it, I'd rather my kids not get any more Mercury. I have, however, learned since then that while mercury is used in the multi use vials as a perservative, it is not used in the individual use syringes of the vaccine.

I therefore will allow my children to get the vaccine if the doctor has these individually wrapped syringes.

Now for the observation. A recent report has been released showing that while 10% of the U.S. population is asthmatic, 25% of those admitted with H1N1 have asthma. The report notes:

"Less than 10% of the total population has asthma. But this spring, those with the disease accounted for nearly a third of all hospitalizations for H1N1 flu. It's not known exactly why this group is at higher risk. Asthma medications may blunt a person's immune response to the new flu or the person's decreased lung function may play a role. In an effort to better protect those with asthma, Dr. William Busse, is leading a clinical trial that involves giving some participants twice the dose of vaccine than others. He says the trial will answer important questions about the effectiveness of the vaccination and if those with asthma are responding normally to the vaccination.

Doctors won't know until next year how well --or poorly-- asthma sufferers in the study fight off the virus with different amounts of vaccine. In the meantime, Busse advises those with asthma to get vaccinated against H1N1."

What went through my mind as I read this was: What? They're going to spend thousands of dollars doing a study to determine why 25% of those admitted with the swine flu have asthma?

Hello! I can save you the wasted money. The reason there are more asthmatics than anyone else is because asthma is a lung disease, and the swine flu is a lung disease, and the combination results in some of them needing to be hospitalized.

It's not rocket science.

The swine flu vaccine: get it, or not!

There are laws that say you have to wear a helmet if you ride a motorcycle. There are seat belt laws that say you have to wear a seat belt. But there are no pig flu vaccine laws that say you HAVE to get the pig flu vaccine.

(You can learn more about the swine flu by clicking here and here. To learn the difference between influenza and the stomach flu click here)

I'm not saying you shouldn't get it. I'm not saying you should. I'm not saying you need to panic because there is an impending pandemic. I am not saying there will not be. I'm not a pig flu expert, yet I am educated as you are.

I'm not saying the swine flu vaccine is completely safe and I would definitely let my kids get it. I'm not saying it is unsafe and I wouldn't let my kids get within a 10-foot pole's length from the pig flu vaccine.

However, there are those who would argue both sides. You have government officials for the CDC and in the Whitehouse saying the pig flu vaccines that didn't exist a few months ago are completely safe.

Then there doctors like Doctor Ken Hartoff (an infectious disease expert) who said the following on Fox News (see video here):

"I have more concern about the vaccine than I do about the swine flu. It's been rushed to market. There are high levels of adjuncts, which make it more potent. It's kind of an unrefined method that they used."

Likewise, he added that it has antiseptic preservatives in it that has "been shown to cause autism in children with mitochondrial dysfunction... and the problem is you don't know if your child has mitochondrial dysfunction. I also worry about children, pregnant women, chronic neurological illnesses, and chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia. I've seen people (who have been) devastated by these vaccines."

On the other hand, the NYDailynews.com notes Health and Human Services Secretary Katherine Sebelius said, "I think that the flu is serious, that we have a very targeted vaccine and we'd like people to take advantage of it - it's the best way to protect themselves."

Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, notes:

"This is the same vaccine factories, the same companies, the same process that's used every year for seasonal flu. We know that it has an excellent safety record, and we are confident it will be safe."

So should we be scared about the pig flu vaccine or should we be scared about a pandemic. The truth is, you have to make a common sense decision based on the facts, and weigh the posible risks against the potential benefits.

Of course, we also have a history of the government being wrong. We had the government telling us in 1976 there was going to be a pig flu pandemic (I wrote about that here), yet more people died from the vaccine than the flu that year.

So now we have people scared of the vaccine, and for good reason. And we have people scared there might be a pandemic. However, while the flu may have caused a pandemic in 1909, medicine has come a long way since then. And while the vaccine may have been bad in 1976, the way they are made today are said to be much safer.

Now, I certainly don't want to get the flu, and I dont' want any one else out there to either. But is this really something we need to worry about, or something "they" just want us to worry about.

My place of emplyment is worried about the pig flu and the bird flu too for that matter, and has a plan of action in place just in case. They expect 40% of the workforce to be sick, and expect one nurse to take care of 10 patients. That's the plan.

They expect that to be a worse case scenerio. One good thing about this "scare" is we now have suction and oxygen regulators in every room, something the admins here at shoreline were reluctant to order due to cost prior to the scare.

And we got a new Vision and 2 new transport ventilators all free from the homeland security department. Although they weren't really free, as we all paid for them.

I had the flu wipe me out once. That was back in 1998 and I ended in the hospital with a bad asthma attack for 10 days. So getting the flu is nothing to take for granted.

The regular flu shot I think is proven safe for most people. I'm not letting my kids get it because I don't think they need some of the ingredients that are in it, but I get it. I get it because I can't afford to get sick, and I owe it to my patients not to give them the flu.

The pig flu vaccine, however, I'm not getting unless someone tells me I have to get it or I'll lose my job. Call me naive, but I dont' want to be a guenne pig, and I definitely don't want my kids to be guenne pigs. It stuns me when I see hundreds of people waiting in lines to get the vaccine, all of them obviously trust the government more than I do.

I'm not alone in not wanting my kids to get it, as according to Yahoo Health 40% of parents will not let their kids get it. But the reasons stated in the article are not the same reasons I have. The article notes the 1976 scare as the main reason people are "leary" of the swine flu vaccine. I'm leary of it because of long term unknown side effects as those mentioned by Dr. Frieden.
And my place of employment can legally tell me to get it or they'll fire me, because they don't need a reason to fire me. Your hospital and mine can fire either of us on the spot for any reason it chooses.

So, to fear the pig flu or not to fear the pig flu. So, to get the pig flu vaccine or not to get the pig flu vaccine. Those are your decisions to make. You have the freedom to choose You have the right. You have the right to be smart. You also have the right to be stupid.

My point here is the RT Cave is niether endorsing the pandemic scare nor telling you it's a hoax to sell vaccines so the company that makes it can make money (of course only one U.S. company has the guts to make such a vaccine due to the 1976 scare, so it won't benefit our economy much).

My point here is neither to tell you to get yourself vaccinated with the pig flu vaccine nor to tell you you must get it. It's your choice. Do your research. Be responsible.

I mean be responsible. If your boss says you have to get it you will have no choice but to get it, unless you prefer to find another job. And even if you get a new job your new place of employment may also make you get it.
----------------------
Ah, one more thing. If the U.S. government mandated that everyone in the U.S. get the vaccine like it did in 1976 (it stopped the mandate after it realized the vaccine was killing more people than the flu), lawyers have confirmed you will have to get it or face the punishment whatever it be.

And yes the fed does have the power to put you in a confinement camp if it chooses (although when the fed has done this in the past it has not gone over well with the people).

If the government does decide to mandate this pig flu vaccine, there is only one legal grounds you have to not get it, and that is for religious or health reasons. So, if you wish to be adamant about not getting the vaccine, you had better start looking for a religion that is opposed to it.

One of my coworkers said she's going to make up her own religion and call it the vaccine religion.
-----------------
Update: After I wrote this I ended up getting both flu vaccines. I have a band aide on each arm to prove it. Likewise, I have also learned there is an individually packaged vaccine available that does not have the preservative (mercury) in it that is safe for kids to get.

Myth busted: Influenza does not cause nausea!

So, my daughter has been vomiting any food intake the past couple days. One evening I said -- jokingly -- to my wife, "She's probably got that swine flu thing. You know: H1N1."

My wife, wise as wives are, corrected my fallacious statement. She said: "I think that most people get influenza and gastroenteritis mixed up. Influenza is an infection of the lungs, and the stomach flu is what causes nausea and vomiting.

"In fact," she continued, "I think most people who get the flu shot and complain that they got the flu anyway definitely don't know the difference. Because the flu shot you get every year does not prevent the stomach flu (gastroenteritis), it prevents you from getting influenza."

According to HealthCentral.com:

"Influenza, usually known as the flu, is a respiratory infection caused by the influenza virus. The infection typically is spread by air or by direct contact, from one person to another. Most cases occur during epidemics, which peak during the winter months nearly every year. Influenza virus is very contagious. A particularly widespread and severe epidemic is called a pandemic...

"With many other types of infections - for example, mumps - having the disease once protects against a second infection because the body's immune system 'remembers' the returning virus, attacks it immediately and rapidly eliminates it. With influenza, the virus usually has mutated (changed) somewhat since the first infection, but the change is enough to fool our immune system. Instead of attacking the virus rapidly, as it would a virus that it had seen before, the immune system responds slowly. By the time the immune response is in full gear, millions of the body's cells already have been infected with the virus."

It is because the flu virus mutates that you need to get a flu vaccination each year, rather than just once. Each year the vaccination is adjusted to prevent against the current "mutated" strain.

Symptoms of influenza are as follows:

• Chills
• Moderate to high fever (101° to 103° Fahrenheit)
• Sore throat
• Runny nose
• Muscle aches
• Headaches
• Fatigue
• Cough
• Diarrhea
• Dizziness

As I was perusing the web looking for some information on the stomach flu, I came across a neat article at HealthCentral.com called, "Five Myths about the flu," by David Stanley. He writes that when someone says "I have the flu," and is face to face with him, he knows with relative certainty the person does not have the flu.

He gives the person what he calls the Fast Test, which consists of the following questions:

• Fever - The flu typically produces a high fever that lasts three to four days. Fever with a cold is rare.
• Aches and pains - Headache is a trademark of the flu. Other general aches and pains are common as well.
• Sudden onset - A person can go from feeling perfectly healthy to a full-blown case of the flu in a matter of hours. Cold symptoms tend to develop over days.
• Tiredness- If you have the flu and make it to the store to ask me about it, you are one tough cookie. Most people with a cold can carry on, but if you have the flu, do what your body is telling you to do and stay in bed.

So, basically, if you have the real flu you are not going to be out and about telling people you have the flu. Oh, and speaking of "real flu", Stanley writes that influenza rarely causes stomach irritation, and therefore there really is no such thing as the "stomach flu." Thus, if you are nauseous, what you actually have is gastroenteritis, which is an infection of the intestine caused by a different type of virus.

As per all the people I work with complaining that they won't get the annual flu shot because it caused them to get the flu, Stanley clears up this myth:

"This simply cannot happen. The flu shot uses a dead form of the virus to trigger an immune response, and that dead virus cannot come back to life and infect you. If you think your flu shot gave you the flu, first apply the FAST test to see if you have it or just caught a cold. If you do indeed have the flu, one of two things happened: You became infected during the one to two weeks it takes for the flu shot to begin to provide protection.You became infected with a version of the virus not covered by this year's vaccine.

The author, David Stanley, writes: "This may sound odd, but if you say this to me face-to-face at the store, you probably don't have the flu. While people can easily confuse a bad cold with the flu, I use what I call the FAST test to tell the difference. There are four questions to ask to distinguish the flu from a cold:

So, since my daughter is walking around all day with no fever, and playing with her toys, it's highly unlikely that she has the flu. Likewise, if you are having bouts of nausea and vomiting, you don't have the flu either.

And once again the wife was right.

Lungers must be vigilant of Swine Flu

On a yearly basis it is recommended that all people who have a suppressed immune system, a chronic illness like asthma and COPD, the elderly and very young get the annual flu vaccination.

So I think it's safe to bet those individuals are at the greatest risk of developing severe complications if they somehow contact the swine flu. When the flu hits it can hit us folks with already compromised lungs hard.

I witnessed this myself in 1998 when I ended up in the hospital for 10 days because of whatever strand of flu was making its way around that year. It wiped me out and nearly ended me up in critical care. For the longest time it seemed I might never catch my breath again.

I'm not saying anyone should panic, by all means. But this is a call for all of us to educate ourselves about this swine flu thing. What is it? How does it spread? And, most important, how do I prevent myself from getting it? Or, once I get it, what do I do? How is it treated?

Better yet, what do people with Chronic asthma, COPD, or other respiratory illness need to know about the swine flu?

At MyAsthmaCentral.com I answer these questions and more in my post "Here's what Asthmatics need to know about swine flu."

I wrote this on an asthma website, but the information holds true for all chronic lungers.

The important thing to note is to not panic, but be vigilant of the possible threat around us. To learn how, click here.

For the latest updates on swine flu and flu symptoms, click here.

Here's what asthmatics need to know about swine flu by Rick Frea Wednesday, April 29, 2009

By now most of us know about the swine flu, but do we know what it is and how to prevent it? Should we be panicked? As asthmatics, should we purchase a giant bubble and move into it? Are we doomed? Will this be another pandemic like The Great Flu of 1918?

Well, no, we are not doomed. And of course we asthmatics don't need to isolate ourselves into a bubble. Sure diseases can travel over the world in a day now, but medical wisdom has grown exponentially since 1918.

Besides, living in a bubble wouldn't be any fun anyway. Instead of panicking, we should educate ourselves and become vigilant, something us Gallant Asthmatics love to do anyway.

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the swine flu is a typical respiratory virus that usually only effects pigs, but has mutated and now can be contacted by humans, and spread by human to human contact by breathing in air droplets of people you come in contact with, or by touching contaminated surfaces.

The virus then infects cells of the nose, mouth and throat, and usually takes 3-5 days for symptoms to surface.

Government officials have said there is no reason to panic, and I agree. Still, According to a press release from the American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology "Asthma sufferers more at risk of swine flu", asthmatics may be at greater risk.

The article quotes Dr. Thomas B. Casale, executive vice president of the AAAAI:

"As with other influenza viruses, this virus typically attacks the respiratory tract. So if you have a chronic respiratory condition like asthma, it can take a turn for the worse, exacerbating your asthma."

Still, according to the Mayo Clinic, most cases (98%) are generally mild. Yet it's good to be vigilant of the flu symptoms, and contact your physician right away if you have a:

• Fever
• Cough
• Sore Throat
• Body aches
• Headache
• Chills
• Fatigue
• Diarrhea
• Vomiting

Note please that the experts advise you see your family physician and not to panic and rush to already busy emergency rooms. If you are having asthma symptoms, you should follow your Asthma Action Plan, and call your physician or go to the ER as appropriate.

Instead of panicking, or moving into a bubble, or wearing a mask in public like Michael Jackson has for years, what you should do is make sure you are taking your asthma controller medicine and follow these recommendations of the CDC:

• Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way.
• Try to avoid close contact with sick people.
• If you get sick with influenza, CDC recommends that you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.
• Try to stay in general health
• Get plenty of sleep
• Be physically active
• Manage your stress
• Drink plenty of fluids
• Eat nutritious food.

While the majority of those in contact with this virus have had mild symptoms (some may not even notice they have it), a few will develop serious complications such as pneumonia and respiratory distress, and about 1-2% will die (which is the average for any year).

Our goal here is to prevent it from becoming serious. This is where vigilance comes in handy again. If you notice any of the following symptoms as recorded by the CDC, you should go to the emergency room right away:

In children emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:

• Fast breathing or trouble breathing
• Bluish skin color
• Not drinking enough fluids
• Not waking up or not interacting
• Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held
• Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough
  Fever with a rash

In adults, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:

• Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
• Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
• Sudden dizziness
• Confusion
• Severe or persistent vomiting

There is no treatment for the influenza virus, but if you call your doctor within the first 48 hours of symptoms he can prescribe Tamiflu or Relenza, antiviral medications. The bird flu has shown sensitivity to this antiviral medicine, which can reduce symptoms and even decrease duration of illness. Tamiflu is also safe for asthmatics.

Other treatment would include treating the symptoms. If you are dehydrated from vomiting a doctor may have you treated with hydration therapy. If you have asthma, your doctor may prescribe additional anti inflammatory medicines such as systemic corticosteroids.

So, according to Dr. Casale asthmatics are at greater risk for developing complications from the swine flu, yet we need not panic. Most of us are gallant asthmatics who take good care of ourselves and effectively manage our asthma all the time anyway, so we are always prepared.

For the latest updates on swine flu and flu symptoms, click here.

Swine Flu: Everything you need to know

If you suspect you have the swine flu, or if you have recently traveled to Mexico or had contact with someone who has been diagnosed with it, definitely do not panic. Most of the cases of the flu are no different than the common flu contacted on a daily basis.

According to the Mayo Clinic, the swine flu (more commonly referred to as h1n1 influenza virus) is contacted from infected pigs, and infects the cells lining your nose, throat, and lungs. The virus enters your body when you inhale contaminated droplets or transfer live virus from a contaminated surface to your eyes, nose or mouth on your hand.

The virus is not airborne. It can only be contacted if you breathe in actual air droplets from a contaminated person, such as when a contaminated person sneezes. For this reason, a basic mask over your mouth and nose, along with good hand washing, can help prevent the spread of this virus.
The following are the symptoms of the swine flu to watch out for as recorded by the the Mayo Clinic. They usually occur 3-5 days after contact with the virus is made:

1. Fever
2. Cough
3. Sore throat
4. Body aches
5. Headache
6. Chills
7. Fatigue
8. Diarrhea
9. Vomiting

The Mayo Clinic reports that you should:

"See your doctor immediately if you develop flu symptoms, such as fever, cough and body aches, and you have recently traveled to an area where H1N1 swine flu has been reported. Be sure to let your doctor know when and where you traveled. Doctors have rapid tests to identify the flu virus, but there is no rapid test to differentiate swine influenza A H1N1 from other influenza A subtypes."

For more information to help decrease your chances of getting the virus click on over to the CDC. The key here is to see your doctor. You do not need to panic and inundate already busy emergency rooms. I think that is one of the main concerns of the government is a panic will ensue, and ER's will be inundated and overwhelmed.

So, don't panic. Call your doctor if you think you have the flu and have comfort knowing most cases are generally mild and no more potent than the normal flu people get on a yearly bases.

Technically speaking, there is no treatment for the disease other than to treat the symptoms. For example, if vomiting causes diarrhea, re hydration methods may be indicated. If you have asthma, or other chronic lung disease, your doctor may prescribe additional anti-inflammatory medicines such as oral prednisone.

There two antiviral drugs on the market the swine flu appears to be sensitive to, which may reduce symptoms and duration of the flu. They are called Tamiflu and Relenza. When the government declared a state of emergency yesterday, they basically made back up supplies of these drugs available to all areas in need.

However, most experts contend that if you suspect you have the flu you need to let your doctor know ASAP because Tamiflu and Relenza are most effective if given within the 1st 48 hours.

The key here is not to panic. Even if a pandemic is declared at some point (as of yet is has not), it is important to know that most cases of swine flu are mild and will pass without any long term complications.

The most important thing you can do is know that the swine flu can be obtained from person to person contact, or by touching surfaces containing the virus. So, the Center for Disease Control recommends the following to Prevent yourself from getting the Swine flu:

"First and most important: wash your hands. Try to stay in good general health. Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food. Try not touch surfaces that may be contaminated with the flu virus. Avoid close contact with people who are sick."

There, that's all you need to know about the swine flu. Don't panic, but be vigilant and wash your hands often, which is something you should do all the time anyway. If you suspect another person, such as a patient has the flu, wear a mask.

For the latest updates on swine flu and flu symptoms, click here.

Swine flu: we must remember 1918, yet not repeat the fiasco of 1976

As you probably well know by now, the White House has declared a state of emergency as 140 plus people have died of the swine flu in Mexico, the disease has been reported now in four countries, and in several states within the United States.

So far, of the 50 plus Americans to get the swine flu in the U.S., all cases have been generally mild and are not expected to be life threatening. Which begs one to wonder if the deaths in Mexico are due to lack of good medical care, or a more virulent strain in Mexico. This lack of knowing is certainly troubling to scientists and politicians, hence the seriousness of the matter.

Officials are wise to add that there needs NOT be a state of panic because of this outbreak, just a state of vigilance because officials are not quite positive how rapidly this virus spreads. The basic reason for the state of emergency is to "allow the federal and state governments easier access to flu tests and medications," according to HealthCentral.com.

I think it was Obama who wrote a memo regarding the seriousness of preparing for a possible flu outbreak when he was a young Senator, and George Bush set aside in his budget monies to prepare for such an outbreak, and to work on finding a cure if such a "mutated" virus were to cause havoc. Currently, drug makers are in a mad dash to create a vaccine.

So I think the Obama administration is making all the right moves at the present time to create awareness, and yet not cause a panic. Which, by the way, reminds me of what happened during the 1976 swine flu scare. One soldier at Fort Dix caught the flu and died, and an estimated 500 other soldiers had the flu while having only mild symptoms.

Yet, with a flu virus spreading so fast, the population -- including those in Washington -- were worried because any virus that spreads that fast could, possibly, cause a pandemic. So, does the government take the wait and see approach, or work to create a vaccine and make everyone take it?

There was a lot of political pressure on Gerald R. Ford. Plus there was the memory of the Great Flu. According to capitalcentury.com, (an article by Paul Mickle) "The Great Plague... rivaled the horrid Black Death of medieval times in its ability to strike suddenly and take lives swiftly. In addition to the half million in America, it killed 20 million people around the world."

The irony of that last quote was the Great Flu more than rivaled the Great plague. The Great flu spread across a nation and killed 20 million people within a short time, and the black plague killed that many people in over a decade of work. The Great Flu, by all means, was an even greater threat as the plague.

And considering the Great flu spread so fast at a time when few people traveled great distances by plane, bus or train, or from one continent to another within a few short hours, it would seem the fear of a disease spreading in 1976 -- or today -- would spread faster and be twice as deadly.

The swine flu comes from poultry and swine, and people who have intense exposure are at most risk of getting it, as the strain can also effect humans. Unfortunately, the strain has the ability to genetically change (mutate), and thus become more resilient and difficult to inoculate against. As what happened in 1976, the current strain of swine flu seems to have mutated.

So Ford, in 1976, amid a highly politicized season where Reagan had just recently beaten Ford in the North Carolina primary, did not want to be seen as doing nothing, especially if a pandemic did spread. And so, he and Washington hastily made a flu vaccine available for mass inoculations, and a $135 million flu inoculation program was swiftly available. It was announced to the public on March 24, a day after the North Carolina primary.

My point is simple: politics had a hand in what happened next, and Obama does not want to make the same mistake. So, while there were the "naysayers" who warned Ford that the swine flu epidemic was limited to one military base, and only one person had died, the plan for inoculating the public was rushed through Congress. The goal was to get all 220 million Americans inoculated.

By October 1 the vaccine was ready and sent to many doctors, health departments and schools across the nation. Jim Florio, a top democratic Senator who supported Jimmy Carter, was the first to take the vaccine. He did this instead of taking a swipe at Ford for his hasty actions. He too was scared of the swine flu.

Soon thereafter two people who had been given the vaccine died of heart attacks. By Dec. 16 40 million poeple (20% of the population) had received the shot, many of whom later reported symptoms of a rare disease called Guillen Barre. Because of the "Epidemic that never was" people were now becoming paralyzed. In total, over 500 people became paralyzed because of the "Epidemic that never was."

Mickle states it best when he writes: "The swine flu case of 1976 forever reduced confidence in public health pronouncements from the government and helped foster cynicism about federal policy makers that continues to this day.Citing the swine flu fiasco, for instance, one scholar recently authored a report suggesting the threat of AIDS has been similarly overblown."

Said another way, because of the "Epidemic that never was" people lost confidence in the government (big surprise there). I can think of several other times where the government has failed the people, and these failures are spread across many presidencys, both republican and democrat.

The fear that "something has to be done" often superseded rational thought. On the other hand, fear that something will be done and it will be the wrong thing -- as was the case with Katrina -- makes governments fear they must do something -- however hastily.

Fear of the inoculations lead people to not want to get the vaccination, and the program was halted by Dec. 16. In total, over 500 people became paralyzed as a result of the vaccine, and 25 of them died. It is also true that only one person died of the actual flu.

So, fear -- especially fear in politics -- is a double edged sword. If you rush to create a vaccine and it works, you are a hero. If you rush and it doesn't work, you are a failure. If you don't do anything and nothing happens, you are fine. But if you do nothing and a pandemic hits, you are again a failure. So, it could turn out that no matter what Obama does, he may merely be a passenger on a roulette table.

So, with all due respect, our politicians must not rush to make judgements, yet they must -- as Obama has done -- educate and prepare, yet not scare, the public. How to do this in the most effective means has yet to be determined, and may prove impossible.

One other thing must be understood about the flu. The current outbreak is said to have effected (at this point) a few thousand individuals, 100 of whom have died in Mexico. One expert, however, was quick to point out that the total number of flu victims is widely inaccurate.

He said that when a flu virus mutates, the death total is usually 1-2% of the total number of cases of the flu. He said, if his calculations are correct, the actual number of people right now with the swine flu is more likely to be in the range of 10,000 to 100,000.

Yet, as government officials have said, we must not panic, yet we must also be prepared.

For the latest updates on swine flu and flu symptoms, click here.