Swine Flu 101: This Little Piggy Went To Mexico

A little history lesson.

The influenza pandemic of 1918-1919 killed between 20 and 40 million people across the globe. Over 28% of all Americans ended up being infected, with 675,000 actually dying from the strain also known as the “Spanish Flu”.

Get your attention?

Let’s move forward to February 5, 1976. At Fort Dix in New Jersey, an army recruit complained of feeling tired and weak. He died the next day. Four other soldiers were later hospitalized with the same symptoms. Two weeks later, health officials announced that swine flu was the cause of death and that this particular flu appeared to be closely related to the strain responsible for the 1918 pandemic.

A botched vaccination program was rushed into place with more people dying from reactions to the vaccine than from the flu strain.

It wasn’t until 30 years later that another significant swine flu outbreak occurred. This was in 2007 in the Philippines and was contained.

Present day.

In March and April of 2009, over 1,000 cases of swine flu have been reported in Mexico with at least 80 deaths resulting from the disease. The new virus — which combines genetic material from pigs, birds and humans in a strain researchers have not seen before — has also sickened at least eight people in Texas and California, though there have been no deaths in the U.S.

“We are very, very concerned,” World Health Organization spokesman Thomas Abraham said. “We have what appears to be a novel virus and it has spread from human to human … It’s all hands on deck at the moment.”

With all the advances in modern medicine, when the head of the WHO expresses concern over an outbreak, I’m pretty sure we need to pay attention.

So, the concern about a major outbreak appears to be legit and the more you know about this particular form of the flu, the better prepared you can be to recognize the symptoms.

What is swine flu?

It’s a flu that typically occurs in pigs. Humans can catch it from having close contact directly with infected pigs, but historically it is rare for that to occur. The 2009 version of the flu, however, is concerning because the strain can pass directly from person to person.

Is the strain being detected in the U.S. cases the same as the one spreading in Mexico?

The virus that is being found in the U.S. cases does appear to be the same strain as the one in Mexico. However, while the disease has caused multiple deaths in Mexico, the reported cases in the U.S. have been far less severe. Most patients have been able to recover from the flu symptoms without requiring hospitalization.

No one knows why there is such as disparity between the occurrences in the two countries, but CDC officials do warn that more severe cases are likely to occur here in the States.

I feel like I have the flu. Could it be the swine strain?

According to health officials in New York City, people with “ordinary” flu symptoms should not rush to seek emergency care. However, some warning signs to watch for are:

• Difficulty in breathing
• Bluish skin tint on body extremities
• Flu symptoms that appear to improve, then return with fever and a severe cough
• Pain or pressure in the abdomen
• Dizziness or confusion
• Persistent vomiting

Is the swine flu treatable with drugs?

There are two drugs that are effective in reducing the severity of the swine flu symptoms: Tamiflu and Relenza. However, for the U.S. cases reported to date, the use of these drugs has not been required. One key thing to remember is that neither drug is a vaccine so their use is limited to treatment rather than prevention. Typically used for the short term treatment of severe symptoms, the drugs are ony available via prescription.

What can people do to reduce the spread of the disease?

The usual. Cover your nose and mouth when you sneeze or cough. Wash or sanitize your hands frequently. Avoid touching your moth, nose, or eyes with unwashed hands. Stay away from infected people.

Anyone even experiencing mild symptoms should stay home and avoid human contact until at least 48 hours after the symptoms have subsided.

What’s that old tag line from some series of t.v. commercials?  The more you know…

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Popeye: A Sailor Ahead Of His Time

Looks like Popeye has been right all along.

For the past eighty years, our favorite diminutive sailor of the high seas has been tossing back cans of spinach every time he needed to put a whooping on one of the bigger cartoon bullies that were out to get him or his ‘goil’ Olive. Spinach gave him the strength to knock the bad guys across the screen.

Interestingly enough, Popeye’s dependence on the leafy green vegetable arose from a decimal point error made by a scientist in the late nineteenth century. This error led to the publication of nutritional information stating that spinach had ten times the iron content that it really does, making it the first advertised “superfood”.

The error was not corrected until 1937, by which time Popeye and thousands of American children were already hooked on the green stuff.

Now scientists at Rutgers University have discovered that eating spinach really does boost strength. Turns out spinach contains strains of natural muscle enhancers called phytoecdysteroids, and they’ve been shown to speed up muscle growth in human tissue by 20%. Experiments on mice have also demonstrated that ingestion of these chemicals can result in substantial strength increases in just a matter of weeks.

So, in addition to the heart healthy ingredients, spinach can also pump you up.

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Road Warriors Win The Airlines Battle Of The Bulge

I have noted in earlier posts that it’s going to start costing obese people real dollars to keep the weight on.  Now United Airlines has joined several of the other major carriers in bumping people who can’t fit in the seats from full flights and making them buy an additional ticket if they want to be rescheduled on another flight that’s full. United claims to have received 700 complaints in 2008 from people who were frustrated with having to share a seat with someone spilling over or under the arm rest.

Now, I’ll be the first to admit that, as a former road warrior myself, I used to hate the experience of being crammed into an airplane’s coach section.  I’m certainly not obese and even for me those seats are cramped and leave little room for breathing, much less getting comfortable.

I believe that the airlines got together and commissioned a study that determined the optimal seat size that represented a balance between reasonable comfort and maximum capacity.  The problem is, this study must have been conducted back in fifties, because seat sizes haven’t changed.  And I know people back then were smaller.  It was a littler time.

So, maybe it’s time for the airlines to reevaluate the seating design of their aircraft.  They certainly have done wonders over the last 10 years to make the business and first class sections the ultimates in travel comfort.  They put lounge chairs with mini theater systems, sleep shades, and even beds into some of these premium seating areas.

But as soon as you part that curtain and stare down that narrow aisle in coach, you’ll still see the same cattle car of thinly cushioned sheet metal seats bolted together row after row, like one big flying sardine can.

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Howard Dean Triple Dog Dares Barack Obama To Compromise On Health Care

Anyone who has been a regular reader of this blog knows that I am a staunch free market, less government, let me keep the money I earn kind of guy.  Some might call that right wing.  Some might call it selfish.  I call it taking responsibility for my own welfare.

And I, like many of my friends who float left and right of center, am somewhat confused by what is going on in Washington.  Well, even more so than usual.

We have a Democratic president that spent much of his campaign promising to basically turn the United States tax system into a pot luck dinner where everyone gets to eat steak, whether or not they even brought a side dish. I particularly remember an interview with a young woman at one of his campaign rallies.  She was emotional and clearly caught up in the magic that was the pre-election Obama Experience.  Much like the films I’ve seen of the old Beatles concerts where women were passing out in their seats.

Anyway, when asked what she had learned from Obama’s speech, she replied to the effect that once Obama was elected, she was finally going to be taken care of.  She actually made the statement “Barack is going to pay my mortgage”.  Clearly she was just one of many that expected an Obama presidency to bring riches to the masses.

Here’s why I am somewhat confused.  President Obama’s words and actions in these first 100 days or so tend to make me think he’s either  much more of a moderate than we thought, or even the unified power of a Democratic Congress and Democratic President can’t bring about the radical changes they were promising right up til Election Day.

For example, Howard Dean, after being passed over for the top job at Health and Human Services, has decided to take his health care vision to the masses in the form of a new web site: StandWithDrDean.com

Howard Dean flies pretty left of center and has for years been a strong proponent of a public - i.e. “universal” - health care system.  He was a staunch supporter of President Obama and his plan for making public health care a priority for his first year in office.

Now Dean is concerned that Obama may compromise on the proposed health care package that the Executive office put together. Any compromise would likely eliminate or water down the provisions establishing a government sponsored health care system for the American public. Dean has established a grass roots organization via his StandByDrDean web site to garner support for the health reform package as originally outlined in the Obama-Biden Plan.

Obama seems prepared to accept the fact that the government sponsored public health plan pieces of his proposal will never pass through even a Democratically controlled Congress. At least not in its current form. Dean has drawn a line in the sand by stating that reform is not reform unless all Americans are provided economical access to health care.

Personally I’m somewhat surprised that Obama has not been trying to push his original vision for a public health care system through. He seemingly could be using the public and their current-but-fading love-all-things-Barack to be putting pressure on Congress to pass the proposal. Instead he appears to be willing to compromise without much of a fight.

Savvy politician?  Or just in over his head.

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Bet They Rule At Donkey Kong

I’m willing to make a bet. I bet that if you are over 60, you probably own a Wii, or at least have friends who own a Wii.

Now for the rest of you that are out of touch with today’s video gaming trends, the Nintendo Wii is one of the fastest selling video game consoles in history.  Even 2-3 years after the Wii’s release, stores can’t keep them stocked around holiday time.

But you know what?  I don’t know many kids who own one.  We do, but that’s just because my wife has occasional urges to flaunt her inner Nancy Wilson with Guitar Hero.  Nancy Wilson….Heart…the band?…Barracuda, Magic Man…Never mind..

The Wiis that are flying off the shelf are being bought by senior citizens!  Nintendo has discovered a brand new market for video consoles - the Golden Age Gamers.

I was at Best Buy the other night and as I wandered through the video game section, I saw an older couple gazing at a screen where a demo of the Wii Fit program was playing.  Wii Fit is a “game” for the Wii console that hooks to some kind of pad and leads you through an exercise routine including yoga, stretching, and other physical activities.  I overheard this couple as they watched the demo.

Let’s call the man Gus and the woman Jenny.  The conversation went something like this:

Gus: “I hear they got this game where you take a fishing pole and cast for electronic fish that pop up on your tv screen.”

Jenny: “Why I never heard of something so crazy.”

Gus: “Just think you can do exercises with it.  Right in the living room.  Beats having to go down to the center for those water aerobic classes.  If I live to be a hundred I hope it’s without having to see Marjorie Franks in a bathing suit again.”

Jenny: “Now Gus…We don’t need a silly video game thingamajob.  You want to play video games, spend more time with the grandkids.”

Gus: ” Ahh Jenny, I really want it.”

Jenny: “Maybe for Christmas.  If you’re good”

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Look, Up In The Sky…It’s A Bird..It’s a…Bird?

A new article in Science Daily is reporting that the omega-3 fatty acids commonly found in animals such as cold water fish and shrimp may do more than just manage cholesterol levels and protect against cardiovascular disease.

A study of sandpipers that undertake the world’s longest annual migration (from the Canadian Arctic to their Winter condos in South America) has discovered that these little birds make a pit stop every year before beginning the long flight south.

Prior to their migration, they stop off and spend two weeks at the Bay of Fundy on the east coast of Canada.  They spend those two weeks gorging on a breed of mud shrimp that are plentiful in the Bay area.  These mud shrimp contain some of the highest concentrations of omega-3 fatty acids of any marine animal, including salmon and tuna.

Scientists postulated that the birds were loading up on the omega-3s to somehow better prepare themselves for the long flight south.  The question was, while the omega-3s have been proven to work in the prevention and treatment of heart disease, what could they be providing to assist in a marathon migration?  So, like any good scientists should, they got a grant and did some testing.

Turns out that birds who are given a diet rich in omega-3s for two weeks increase their aerobic capacity by anywhere from 58%-90%.  This capacity was measured by the level of oxygen producing enzyme related activity in the blood.  This is pretty amazing when you consider that a human undergoing intensive cardio training for seven weeks can only expect to see a 38%-76% increase in these aerobic levels.  And the birds are making those gains by just resting on their tail feathers and chowing down on shrimp.

Further studies are underway to try and isolate the particular stamina increasing effects of the omega-3s on the birds.

I’m not planning on jogging south for the Winter, but if a few shrimp help me pump out a few more miles on the treadmill, I’ll bring the cocktail sauce.

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Dr. Seuss Explains The Bailout

This is the house that Bob bought.

This is the cash that came from the stash and paid for the house that Bob bought.

This is the bonus they weren’t supposed to have shown us that turned into the cash that came from the stash and paid for the house that Bob bought.

This is Senator Chris Dodd who gave the payouts the nod that led to the bonus they weren’t supposed to have shown us that turned into the cash that came from the stash and paid for the house that Bob bought.

This is Secretary Tim who went out on a limb to help his friend Senator Chris Dodd who gave the payouts the nod that led to the bonus they weren’t supposed to have shown us that turned into the cash that came from the stash and paid for the house that Bob bought.

This is CEO Liddy who was totally giddy when he suckered Secretary Tim who went out on a limb to help his friend Senator Chris Dodd who gave the payouts the nod that led to the bonus they weren’t supposed to have shown us that turned into the cash that came from the stash and paid for the house that Bob bought.

This is the Stimulus Bill that crawled down from the Hill and handed the keys of the city to CEO Liddy who was totally giddy when he suckered Secretary Tim who went out on a limb to help his friend Senator Chris Dodd who gave the payouts the nod that led to the bonus they weren’t supposed to have shown us that turned into the cash that came from the stash and paid for the house that Bob bought.

This is our President who’s spending and killing all lending who wrote the Stimulus Bill that crawled down from the Hill and handed the keys to the city to CEO Liddy who was totally giddy when he suckered Secretary Tim who went out on a limb to help his friend Senator Chris Dodd who gave the payouts the nod that led to the bonus they weren’t supposed to have shown us that turned into the cash that came from the stash and led to the foreclosure of the house that Bob bought.

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Bonus Babies (Or How I Got My Piece Of The AIG Bailout)

I have a friend who is one of the 400+ AIG employees, current and former, who received one of those “retention” bonuses that everyone is in such an uproar about.  As an aside, why do you pay retention bonuses to people who have left?  Wouldn’t that be more of a “please come back” bonus?

Anyway, my friend’s share of the total $165m that was paid out last week was small, but it was enough for a nice vacation or a decent used car (which he might need as he is no longer employed).

Now, I am not surprised by the public outcry around these bonuses being paid by a company that ran itself into the ground and is only being propped up by Barack Obama’s ever spinning printing press. And I love the way that the same lawmakers that 1) authorized the billions of dollars for the bailout, and 2) selected the management team to go in and run the company, are jumping onto the pile and lambasting AIG for so “frivolously” spending their our money.

But let’s look at the stated rationale for paying out these bonuses. The Federal Government decided to rescue AIG from a certain and deserved corporate death by handing over billions of dollars to be used to keep the company afloat. Why do I say deserved? Because if I start a company, make bad decisions, and consequently go out of business, I don’t expect the government to reward my efforts by handing me a blank check. I fail, I fall, and hopefully I dust myself off and learn to make better decisions the next time around.

So, AIG gets all this cash to keep the doors open. Well, if they are to have any chance of success, they need to keep the only real assets they have left - their key employees. Retention bonuses are a common method that companies use to keep key people during periods of upheaval such as a merger or bankruptcy. So is paying out a chunk of cash to retain valuable assets wrong? Not in theory.  It happens all the time.  So I get that retention bonuses might be needed to keep the employees necessary to fulfill the government’s pipe dream of making AIG self reliant again.

I just find it laughable that all these lawmakers who handed over the money and chose the people to come in and run the company are so vehement and loud in their criticism. Hello?! You’re giving out all this money to these beleaguered companies without demanding a comprehensive plan on how they intend to use it? What do you expect?

If nothing else, the silver lining in all this AIG bonus mess is that public sentiment for the bailouts and the government jugheads who approved them is taking a decidedly nasty turn. Hopefully the seeds of discontent will continue to grow and force some changes.

Oh, my buddy, the AIG bonus baby? He gave me $10. So, I gots me my piece of the bailout pie.

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Time To Start Raising Goldfish

Eating fish is healthy. That message has been pushed ever since the benefits of omega-3 fatty acids, substances contained in most cold water fish, were discovered.

Omega-3’s are good for the heart. Omega-3’s are good for the skin. Omega-3’s can cure male pattern baldness. Okay, maybe not the last one. But aside from multivitamins, omega-3 based pills are probably the most popular supplements sold. And my local Kroger can’t keep fresh salmon stocked due to demand from my health conscious suburban neighbors.

Well, it appears that the popularity of the omega-3’s has led to a severe depletion in the fish populations of the oceans, especially the waters surrounding the United States, Europe, and Asia. Fish activist groups are warning of critical shortfalls that will significantly affect the oceanic balance of life.

The activists are even sponsoring studies that “prove” that omega-3s really aren’t the miracle cure they are touted as being. They claim that the benefits are minimal and the reason they seem to improve health is because healthy people eat them. You really have to read that twice to get the gist.

I’m all for the replenishment of our oceans. I mean I want something to look at down there when I go scuba diving. I’d even be in favor of stronger regulations around fishing to prevent trawlers from hauling out ton after ton of netted sea creatures. Make it one man, one boat, one fishing pole.

But what I’d really be in favor of, is to start harvesting some of the omega-3 nutritional goodies from other sources. Large concentartions of omega-3 fatty acids can also be found in ocean plants and algae. And trust me, there’s plenty of that stuff down there.

So, if the fish activists want to really help their friends with fins, maybe they should divert some of that money away from omega-3 attack campaigns into research on how to economically harvest other omega-3 sources.

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