Your Daily Health Tips

Swine flu as it is commonly called is caused by the H1N1 virus which is a very contagious and acute respiratory disease in pigs. It has now jumped over to humans and after first being diagnosed in Mexico has now spread around the world. The H1N1 virus has not been around long enough for extensive data to accumulate but it is pretty safe to assume that it spreads in the same way as any other flu virus.

There are two ways in which a flu virus can be acquired by humans. The airborne virus is the result of coughing and sneezing by infected persons. It is most likely to be encountered in enclosed spaces where large numbers of people are present. You can avoid it by staying away from large gatherings of people and carefully keeping away from anyone who is coughing or sneezing. If an epidemic is taking place in your area it may help to wear a surgical type mask when outside the home. In the workplace anyone who shows flu symptoms or is coughing should be sent home immediately to avoid infecting others. Some people take immense pride in a perfect work attendance record but safety of others must take precedence and the suspected flu case must stay away from work till fully recovered.

The second means by which the swine flu virus may be acquired is by handling any object which has been handled by an infected person. The virus is present in the nose and mouth and will spread to the hands then to anything which is handled. It is necessary to be very thoughtful and vigilant in protecting against this type of infection. You can wash you hands frequently and disinfect them with hand sanitiser and this will keep your hands free of the virus. However as soon as you touch any door handle or other item which hundreds of others may have touched you may be reinfected. Not only door handles but counters in stores and fast food outlets are commonly used as hand rests. Public transit system doors, seat backs and support rails are handled by thousands daily. Even coins and bills which you may receive in change should be suspect. If you should pick up the virus from any such surface and then put your hand to your face you could become infected.

Should you be seriously concerned if there is a swine flu outbreak in your area? Yes you definitely should and you should take all possible precautions to keep you and your family members as safe as possible from infection. Should you panic if there is an outbreak of H1N1? No definitely not. Most cases are quite mild and recovery at home is fast. The infection is no worse than ordinary seasonal flu in nearly all instances. Remember that hundreds of people die every year from the normal seasonal flu and we have no great concern over this. Nor should we be more concerned about swine flu.

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With the swine flu now holding the potential for a worldwide pandemic, there is perhaps no one more worried about getting sick than women who are pregnant.

This is particularly true for those of you over 35 who may already be struggling with fertility issues – or maybe undergoing fertility treatments right now.

The good news is that pregnancy doesn’t necessarily increase your risk for getting the swine flu – or any other type of flu. However, it is important to note that if you do get the flu while you are pregnant, studies show you are up to five times more likely to suffer serious complications – such as pneumonia. And that is often where most of the flu fatalities lie.

In terms of risks to your baby, the greatest threat from illnesses such as the flu occur from high fevers in the mother during pregnancy. Sustained body temperature over 101 degrees, and particularly over 102 degrees can increase the risk of miscarriage and lead to an increased risk of neural tube defects in your baby – which include life-threatening malformations of the brain and spine.

The good news is there are things you can do to prevent these problems even if you get the flu.

The first is to control your fever.The March of Dimes recommends acetaminophen (Tylenol) but talk to your doctor first to make certain it’s okay for you. You should also try to keep your body as cool as possible with cold compresses, and drink plenty of fluids. Pregnancy is not the time to “sweat out ” a fever.

Second is continue to take your prenatal vitamins – particularly 1000 mcg of folic acid. Studies conducted at the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities in England, found that women who took a multi vitamin high in folic acid during pregnancy decreased their baby’s risk of birth defects, even if they ran a fever while pregnant.

In terms of the the two medications used to treat swine flu – Tamiflu and Relenza – like other flu medications they are ranked by the FDA as “Category C ” drugs – meaning they have not been tested for use during pregnancy. That said, it’s important to note that there have not been any cases of birth defects or other serious health concerns linked to the use of these drugs in pregnant women who have used them.

So, if symptoms are severe, your doctor might suggest a course of either drug, and if this is the case, experts say don’t be fearful.

Finally, relax and don’t worry! Right now, the stress and anxiety of worrying about getting sick is likely to cause you more harm than the risk of actually getting the flu, which at this point is still quite small.

For more tips and information on swine flu and pregnancy, and some important details on what to do if you contract swine flu while undergoing fertility treatments, check out this article on GettingPregnantNow.org.

For more health and beauty information for women over 35 visit www.RedDressDiary.com.

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Every time I hear something about H1N1 on the TV or the radio it is always revolved around support for the vaccination. This is the same type of vaccination that caused Guillan-Barre syndrome in some of the people who took it back in the 70’s. This new version of the vaccine was hardly tested before it was handed out to mass quantities of scared citizens. Somehow they didn’t tell us that you should not take Tylenol when you have the flu because a little boy has now died from doing so. How many times have we given our children Tylenol or Motrin to reduce a fever when they have the flu or after they’ve had their vaccinations? How many times have our pediatricians recommended this?

Many people who die with complications related to H1N1 are young people. If you do your homework, you’ll find that children and teenagers who take aspirin while they have the flu are at risk for Reye’s Syndrome. This disease is horrific and destroys the internal organs very rapidly with the liver and the brain getting the worst of it and eventually causing death. The weird thing is, I’ve heard about this syndrome but wasn’t really sure what it was until I did a little research of my own. My child’s pediatrician certainly never pointed it out. Good thing I never gave my daughter aspirin when she had the flu last year. Phew, that was close. The doctor will tell you what to give your child, but doesn’t always tell you why not to give them something else. Tylenol and Motrin were supposedly okay to give to our children and now they’re not. Doctors are now recommending cool baths and more old-fashioned techniques for fever reduction when your child has the flu. We probably should have stuck with those in the first place.

There have been many deaths in Mexico linked to a combination of the flu and fever reducers because patients have not been informed of the deadly effects. Japan put a stop to the use of NSAID’s (ex. Tylenol, Advil, Motrin, etc.) for reducing fever for children with the flu in 2000 and the fatality rates for children with the flu declined. Many people with flu related deaths between 1918 and 1919 in the U.S. were found to have complications beyond pneumonia at the time of death that were attributed to taking aspirin. Just before the high rates of death occurred, the Surgeon General and other health organizations recommended aspirin to the public. According to The British Medical Journal, antipyretics (pain relievers and fever reducers) are the cause for many flu related deaths and people should not take any of these should they get H1N1.

The H1N1 pandemic has been haunting us since last year and you would think that I would not have to dig for this type of information to find it. The deadly combination of flu and fever reducers should have been public knowledge well before this pandemic even began. The government is so obsessed with pumping out this ridiculous flu vaccine that they are not paying attention to the fact that people are dying from something as simple as Tylenol and aspirin.

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