Depending of the current season, the flu seems to monopolize much of the media headlines no matter where we turn. We are constantly told to immunize, in come cases, multiple times. What the media doesn't give us enough information on is how to prevent the flu.
Prevention - What's The Big Secret?
It's a topic that seems to be danced around in every interview. Why can't the powers that be give us the secret on how to prevent the flu? Sure, they tell us to wash our hands, cough into our sleeves, but where is the well researched information? Why aren't they telling us about natural treatments, vitamins and supplements? Why isn't there a media onslaught about building and maintaining a strong, healthy immune system?
Unfortunately the answer is simple. Natural treatments, vitamins and supplements are not a money maker for pharmaceutical companies. Also, millions of healthy people don't make good business for the health care industry, but millions of sick ones do.
The Immune System - The Bodies First Line Of Defense
It's no secret the immune system fights off all things foreign that want to invade your body including germs, bacteria and flu viruses. The question for many is how to build up the immune system to work effectively and efficiently to fight off illness like the flu.
There is quite a selection of natural treatments, vitamins and supplements to aid you in building up your system. One choice in particular is to use a good colloidal silver product. A quality colloidal silver is lethal against up to 650 various strains of bacteria and viruses, including flu viruses. It's job when working side by side with the immune system is to eliminate these viruses before they invade the body. That way the immune system remains strong, healthy and actively protecting you against illness and a plethora of ailments.
Showing posts with label swine flu. Show all posts
Showing posts with label swine flu. Show all posts
Monday, November 16, 2009
Thursday, October 8, 2009
The Side Effects Of Flu Shots
The flu vaccines are here, particularly the Swine Flu vaccine and the media is blitzing the subject every where you look. Each time I turn on a news show, there is yet another government official, spokes person from the CDC or a hired "authority" speaking to us about the necessity of receiving a flu shot.
Scare tactics are used left and right, statistics are skewed, images are shown of schools looking abandoned, veritable ghost towns. We are left to believe the worst if we don't rush off to the doctors office or clinic to get poked with a needle or sprayed up the nostrils.
The schools here where I live have remained opened, full of students, all activities happening as planned, even though the media says my state has been very hard hit. I'm puzzled by this.
Another part of this topic that puzzles me is how all of the experts I see on TV and read about in the newspaper and online are claiming the "total safety" of the flu shot. I'm sure you have read how the vaccine was rushed through products with little to no testing, so how do we really know it's safe?
Here are some of ingredients that can be found in flu vaccines:
Scare tactics are used left and right, statistics are skewed, images are shown of schools looking abandoned, veritable ghost towns. We are left to believe the worst if we don't rush off to the doctors office or clinic to get poked with a needle or sprayed up the nostrils.
The schools here where I live have remained opened, full of students, all activities happening as planned, even though the media says my state has been very hard hit. I'm puzzled by this.
Another part of this topic that puzzles me is how all of the experts I see on TV and read about in the newspaper and online are claiming the "total safety" of the flu shot. I'm sure you have read how the vaccine was rushed through products with little to no testing, so how do we really know it's safe?
Here are some of ingredients that can be found in flu vaccines:
- Thimerosal (a mercury derivative)
- Ethylene Glycol (Anti freeze)
- Aluminum
- Benzethonium Chloride (a disinfectant)
- Phenol (a disinfectant die)
- Formaldehyde (a preservative & disinfectant)
- Chicken Embryos
Thimerosal, which contains mercury has been known to induce membrane damage and cell death. It has been linked to a possible cause of autism. This possibility resulted in the use of Thimerosal to be reduced or eliminated from pediatric vaccines, however not from the flu vaccine.
I don't know about you, but I am not anxious to have even one of these "ingredients" injected into my body. I am happy to say that I have never had a flu shot and never plan on getting one. Ironically, I don't believe I have had the flu either, thanks to my healthy immune system. However from what I understand, it is often mistaken for a cold and sometimes people don't even realize they have the flu. I prefer to live with the discomfort of a cold and/or flu than to have myself injected with who only knows what.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
More Swine Flu Vaccine Information
The news continues to grow about the underlying dangers of the Swine Flu vaccine. It has become increasingly clear the vaccine is far more deadly that the Swine Flu. Following is an article written by Dr. Russell Blaylock about more truths of the dangers to you and I, as well the deceptions practiced in order to market this "life saving" vaccine.
An outbreak of swine flu occurred in Mexico this spring that eventually affected 4,910 Mexican citizens and resulted in 85 deaths. By the time it spread to the United States, the virus caused only mild cases of flu-like illness.
Thanks to air travel and the failure of public health officials to control travel from Mexico, the virus spread worldwide. Despite predictions of massive numbers of deaths and the arrival of doomsday, the virus has remained a relatively mild disease, something we know happens each year with flu epidemics.
Worldwide, there have only been 311 deaths out of 70,893 cases of swine flu. In the United States, 27,717 cases have resulted in 127 deaths. Every death is a tragedy, but such a low death rate should not be the basis of a draconian government policy.
It is helpful to recall that the Centers for Disease Control with the collusion of the media, constantly tell us that 36,000 people die from the flu each year, a figure that has been shown to be a lie. In this case, we are talking about 300 plus deaths for the entire world.
This virus continues to be an enigma for virologists. In the April 30, 2009 issue of Nature, a virologist was quoted as saying,“Where the hell it got all these genes from we don’t know.” Extensive analysis of the virus found that it contained the original 1918 H1N1 flu virus, the avian flu virus (bird flu), and two new H3N2 virus genes from Eurasia. Debate continues over the possibility that swine flu is a genetically engineered virus.
Naturally, vaccine manufacturers have been in a competitive battle to produce the first vaccine. The main contenders have been Baxter Pharmaceuticals and Novartis Pharmaceuticals, the latter of which recently acquired the scandal-ridden Chiron vaccine company. Both of these companies have had agreements with the World Health Organization to produce a pandemic vaccine.
The Baxter vaccine, called Celvapan, has had fast track approval. It uses a new vero cell technology, which utilizes cultured cells from the African green monkey. This same animal tissue transmits a number of vaccine-contaminating viruses, including the HIV virus.
The Baxter company has been associated with two deadly scandals. The first event occurred in 2006 when hemophiliac components were contaminated with HIV virus and injected in tens of thousands of people, including thousands of children. Baxter continued to release the HIV contaminated vaccine even after the contamination was known.
The second event occurred recently when it was discovered that Baxter had released a seasonal flu vaccine containing the bird flu virus, which would have produced a real world pandemic, to 18 countries. Fortunately, astute lab workers in the Czech Republic discovered the deadly combination and blew the whistle before a worldwide disaster was unleashed.
Despite these two deadly events, WHO maintains an agreement with Baxter Pharmaceuticals to produce the world’s pandemic vaccine. Novartis, the second contender, also has an agreement with WHO for a pandemic vaccine. Novartis appears to have won the contract, since their vaccine is near completion. What is terrifying is that these pandemic vaccines contain ingredients, called immune adjuvants that a number of studies have shown cause devastating autoimmune disorders, including rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and lupus.
Animal studies using this adjuvant have found them to be deadly. A study using 14 guinea pigs found that when they were injected with the special adjuvant, only one animal survived. A repeat of the study found the same deadly outcome.
So, what is this deadly ingredient? It is called squalene, a type of oil. The Chiron company, maker of the deadly anthrax vaccine, makes an adjuvant called MF-59 which contains two main ingredients of concern—squalene and gp120. A number of studies have shown that squalene can trigger all of the above-mentioned autoimmune diseases when injected.
The MF-59 adjuvant has been used in several vaccines. These vaccines, including tetanus and diphtheria, are the same vaccines frequently associated with adverse reactions. I reviewed a number of studies on this adjuvant and found something quite interesting. Several studies done on human test subjects found MF-59 to be a very safe immune adjuvant. But when I checked to see who did these studies, I found—to no surprise—that they were done by the Novartis Pharmaceutical Company and Chiron Pharmaceutical Company, which have merged. They were all published in “prestigious” medical journals. Also, to no surprise, a great number of studies done by independent laboratories and research institutions all found a strong link between MF-59 and autoimmune diseases.
Squalene in vaccines has been strongly linked to the Gulf War Syndrome. On August 1991, Anthony Principi, Secretary of Veterans Affairs admitted that soldiers vaccinated with the anthrax vaccine from 1990 to 1991 had an increased risk of 200 percent in developing the deadly disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also called Lou Gehrig’s disease. The soldiers also suffered from a number of debilitating and life-shortening diseases, such as polyarteritis nodosa, multiple sclerosis (MS), lupus, transverse myelitis (a neurological disorder caused by inflammation of the spinal cord), endocarditis (inflammation of the heart’s inner lining), optic neuritis with blindness and glomerulonephritis (a type of kidney disease).
Because squalene, the main ingredient in MF-59, can induce hyperimmune responses and induce autoimmunity, a real danger exists for prolonged activation of the brain’s immune cells, the microglia. This type of prolonged activation has been strongly associated with such diseases as multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, ALS and possibly vaccine-related encephalitis. It has been shown that activation of the systemic immune system, as occurs with vaccination, rapidly activates the brain’s microglia at the same time, and this brain inflammation can persist for long periods.
So, how would the gp120 get into the brain? Studies of other immune adjuvants using careful tracer techniques have shown that they routinely enter the brain following vaccination. What most people do not know, even the doctors who recommend the vaccines, is that most such studies by pharmaceutical companies observe the patients for only one to two weeks following vaccination—these types of reactions may take months or even years to manifest.
It is obvious that the vaccine manufacturers stand to make billions of dollars in profits from this WHO/government-promoted pandemic. Novartis, the maker of the new pandemic vaccine, recently announced that they would not give free vaccines to impoverished nations—everybody pays.
One must keep in mind that once the vaccine is injected, there is little you can do to protect yourself—at least by conventional medicine. It will mean a lifetime of crippling illness and early death. There are much safer ways to protect oneself from this flu virus, such as higher doses of vitamin D3, selective immune enhancement using supplements, and a good diet.
An outbreak of swine flu occurred in Mexico this spring that eventually affected 4,910 Mexican citizens and resulted in 85 deaths. By the time it spread to the United States, the virus caused only mild cases of flu-like illness.
Thanks to air travel and the failure of public health officials to control travel from Mexico, the virus spread worldwide. Despite predictions of massive numbers of deaths and the arrival of doomsday, the virus has remained a relatively mild disease, something we know happens each year with flu epidemics.
Worldwide, there have only been 311 deaths out of 70,893 cases of swine flu. In the United States, 27,717 cases have resulted in 127 deaths. Every death is a tragedy, but such a low death rate should not be the basis of a draconian government policy.
It is helpful to recall that the Centers for Disease Control with the collusion of the media, constantly tell us that 36,000 people die from the flu each year, a figure that has been shown to be a lie. In this case, we are talking about 300 plus deaths for the entire world.
This virus continues to be an enigma for virologists. In the April 30, 2009 issue of Nature, a virologist was quoted as saying,“Where the hell it got all these genes from we don’t know.” Extensive analysis of the virus found that it contained the original 1918 H1N1 flu virus, the avian flu virus (bird flu), and two new H3N2 virus genes from Eurasia. Debate continues over the possibility that swine flu is a genetically engineered virus.
Naturally, vaccine manufacturers have been in a competitive battle to produce the first vaccine. The main contenders have been Baxter Pharmaceuticals and Novartis Pharmaceuticals, the latter of which recently acquired the scandal-ridden Chiron vaccine company. Both of these companies have had agreements with the World Health Organization to produce a pandemic vaccine.
The Baxter vaccine, called Celvapan, has had fast track approval. It uses a new vero cell technology, which utilizes cultured cells from the African green monkey. This same animal tissue transmits a number of vaccine-contaminating viruses, including the HIV virus.
The Baxter company has been associated with two deadly scandals. The first event occurred in 2006 when hemophiliac components were contaminated with HIV virus and injected in tens of thousands of people, including thousands of children. Baxter continued to release the HIV contaminated vaccine even after the contamination was known.
The second event occurred recently when it was discovered that Baxter had released a seasonal flu vaccine containing the bird flu virus, which would have produced a real world pandemic, to 18 countries. Fortunately, astute lab workers in the Czech Republic discovered the deadly combination and blew the whistle before a worldwide disaster was unleashed.
Despite these two deadly events, WHO maintains an agreement with Baxter Pharmaceuticals to produce the world’s pandemic vaccine. Novartis, the second contender, also has an agreement with WHO for a pandemic vaccine. Novartis appears to have won the contract, since their vaccine is near completion. What is terrifying is that these pandemic vaccines contain ingredients, called immune adjuvants that a number of studies have shown cause devastating autoimmune disorders, including rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and lupus.
Animal studies using this adjuvant have found them to be deadly. A study using 14 guinea pigs found that when they were injected with the special adjuvant, only one animal survived. A repeat of the study found the same deadly outcome.
So, what is this deadly ingredient? It is called squalene, a type of oil. The Chiron company, maker of the deadly anthrax vaccine, makes an adjuvant called MF-59 which contains two main ingredients of concern—squalene and gp120. A number of studies have shown that squalene can trigger all of the above-mentioned autoimmune diseases when injected.
The MF-59 adjuvant has been used in several vaccines. These vaccines, including tetanus and diphtheria, are the same vaccines frequently associated with adverse reactions. I reviewed a number of studies on this adjuvant and found something quite interesting. Several studies done on human test subjects found MF-59 to be a very safe immune adjuvant. But when I checked to see who did these studies, I found—to no surprise—that they were done by the Novartis Pharmaceutical Company and Chiron Pharmaceutical Company, which have merged. They were all published in “prestigious” medical journals. Also, to no surprise, a great number of studies done by independent laboratories and research institutions all found a strong link between MF-59 and autoimmune diseases.
Squalene in vaccines has been strongly linked to the Gulf War Syndrome. On August 1991, Anthony Principi, Secretary of Veterans Affairs admitted that soldiers vaccinated with the anthrax vaccine from 1990 to 1991 had an increased risk of 200 percent in developing the deadly disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also called Lou Gehrig’s disease. The soldiers also suffered from a number of debilitating and life-shortening diseases, such as polyarteritis nodosa, multiple sclerosis (MS), lupus, transverse myelitis (a neurological disorder caused by inflammation of the spinal cord), endocarditis (inflammation of the heart’s inner lining), optic neuritis with blindness and glomerulonephritis (a type of kidney disease).
Because squalene, the main ingredient in MF-59, can induce hyperimmune responses and induce autoimmunity, a real danger exists for prolonged activation of the brain’s immune cells, the microglia. This type of prolonged activation has been strongly associated with such diseases as multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, ALS and possibly vaccine-related encephalitis. It has been shown that activation of the systemic immune system, as occurs with vaccination, rapidly activates the brain’s microglia at the same time, and this brain inflammation can persist for long periods.
So, how would the gp120 get into the brain? Studies of other immune adjuvants using careful tracer techniques have shown that they routinely enter the brain following vaccination. What most people do not know, even the doctors who recommend the vaccines, is that most such studies by pharmaceutical companies observe the patients for only one to two weeks following vaccination—these types of reactions may take months or even years to manifest.
It is obvious that the vaccine manufacturers stand to make billions of dollars in profits from this WHO/government-promoted pandemic. Novartis, the maker of the new pandemic vaccine, recently announced that they would not give free vaccines to impoverished nations—everybody pays.
One must keep in mind that once the vaccine is injected, there is little you can do to protect yourself—at least by conventional medicine. It will mean a lifetime of crippling illness and early death. There are much safer ways to protect oneself from this flu virus, such as higher doses of vitamin D3, selective immune enhancement using supplements, and a good diet.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Swine Flu Vaccine Linked To Guillian-Barre Syndrome?
The organization that oversees the public healthy system in the UK, the Health Protection Agency is demanding an explanation from neurologists in the UK as to why the public has not been warned of the risks of the swine flu vaccine. The risk of concern is an increase in the nerve disease, Guillian-Barre Syndrome, a disorder in the brain that attacks the lining of the nerve, causing paralysis, inability to breathe and often death.
The Health Protection Agency references in a letter the swine flu vaccine that was released here in the US in 1976 where more people died from the vaccine than the flu.
Read more from: The Daily Mail - August 15, 2009
The Health Protection Agency references in a letter the swine flu vaccine that was released here in the US in 1976 where more people died from the vaccine than the flu.
Read more from: The Daily Mail - August 15, 2009
Monday, August 31, 2009
Natural Treatments For....
The New Silver Solution, a colloidal silver product, has a plethora of uses, many of them I write about here on this blog.
Additionally I have begun publishing individual pages for specific uses on a website called Squidoo. I wanted a means to highlight each use on a "permanent" type page and Squidoo allows me to do that.
Please be my guest and visit my new lenses (pages). I will continue to add more in the future.
Here are the links:
I hope you enjoy your visit while you are there.
Thanks for reading.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Swine Flu Deaths
We continue to see the panic button pressed daily on the Swine Flu.
The vaccination that may or may not be mandatory.
Whether this wonder vaccination will be ready in time. (Ready for what?)
Is it safe to travel here...or there?
The Obama administration is using terms like "Preparing for the worst."
No matter what form of media you read or watch, the Swine Flu or H1N1 is everywhere. It's no wonder we aren't all running in terror through the streets over this alleged Super Killer.
Well how about we give it the attention it deserves?
Here are some statistics that may help you see a little clearer what is happening with the Swine Flu:
In 1967 the Hong Kong Flu killed 700,000 people worldwide. This was the last time the World Health Organization declared a flu pandemic until....
Now. A flu pandemic has been declared even though the Swine Flu has only killed 1462 people globally to date. Hmmmm.
Millions and millions of people get some variety of the flu every year. Statistically a relatively low number die from it, especially directly from it. For example, in 2006 in the US, 56,326 people died from the flu, however 55,477 of those people died from underlying complications they had before contracting the flu. In other words, their immune systems were already weakened when they contracted the flu. The number of people in the US who died from the flu in 2006 was 849.
The number of people who have died here in the US from Swine Flu to date is 447.
There are those who argue a vaccination is necessary even with this ridiculously low number because if we had an outbreak of the Flu, our health care system may not be equipped to deal with all the people suffering from underlying conditions and have weakened immune systems. Therefore the fix is to vaccinate them with an newly developed, under tested vaccination. I guess we can all be the test study for this vaccination and just see what happens.
Not me. I prefer to have a healthy strong immune system that can fight off the flu and countless other health villains, so I can go on about my life without missing a beat. Fortunately I'm not alone in my belief as thousands of others are beginning to educate themselves about the Swine Flu and other health issues thus taking the responsibility of their health into their own hands.
Which side of the fence are you on?
The vaccination that may or may not be mandatory.
Whether this wonder vaccination will be ready in time. (Ready for what?)
Is it safe to travel here...or there?
The Obama administration is using terms like "Preparing for the worst."
No matter what form of media you read or watch, the Swine Flu or H1N1 is everywhere. It's no wonder we aren't all running in terror through the streets over this alleged Super Killer.
Well how about we give it the attention it deserves?
Here are some statistics that may help you see a little clearer what is happening with the Swine Flu:
In 1967 the Hong Kong Flu killed 700,000 people worldwide. This was the last time the World Health Organization declared a flu pandemic until....
Now. A flu pandemic has been declared even though the Swine Flu has only killed 1462 people globally to date. Hmmmm.
Millions and millions of people get some variety of the flu every year. Statistically a relatively low number die from it, especially directly from it. For example, in 2006 in the US, 56,326 people died from the flu, however 55,477 of those people died from underlying complications they had before contracting the flu. In other words, their immune systems were already weakened when they contracted the flu. The number of people in the US who died from the flu in 2006 was 849.
The number of people who have died here in the US from Swine Flu to date is 447.
There are those who argue a vaccination is necessary even with this ridiculously low number because if we had an outbreak of the Flu, our health care system may not be equipped to deal with all the people suffering from underlying conditions and have weakened immune systems. Therefore the fix is to vaccinate them with an newly developed, under tested vaccination. I guess we can all be the test study for this vaccination and just see what happens.
Not me. I prefer to have a healthy strong immune system that can fight off the flu and countless other health villains, so I can go on about my life without missing a beat. Fortunately I'm not alone in my belief as thousands of others are beginning to educate themselves about the Swine Flu and other health issues thus taking the responsibility of their health into their own hands.
Which side of the fence are you on?
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Educate Yourself About Swine Flu
Educate yourself about Swine Flu and particularly about a vaccination to prevent Swine Flu. This is especially important when there is talk about instituting a manadatory vaccination for some. A mandatory vaccination that has been developed and tested all in a matter of a few short weeks.
Watch the video below and read the excerpt from Mercola.com on this extremely important topic.
Watch CBS Videos Online
Following is an excerpt from a post from Mercola.com. To read the entire post, please click the link at the end of the excerpt.
By Dr. Mercola
You’ve probably noticed the escalating hype and hysteria surrounding the swine flu pandemic as colder months approach and the number of worldwide cases climbs.
It’s true the virus is spreading.
Much more important, however, is the fact that reported cases continue to be symptomatically mild, requiring little or no medical intervention. And deaths from the H1N1 virus remain extremely low, at less than one half of one percent of reported cases as of July 6.[1]
Despite this fact, the United States has committed to spending another $1 billion on ingredients for an H1N1 vaccine, according to U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, with plans for a mid-October vaccination program intact.[2]
Plans are also underway to implement vaccine programs around the world. In Germany, for instance, the health ministry announced the government had plans to order 50 million vaccine units and up to 22.5 million people may be vaccinated in the first stage of the plan starting in September (even though no fatalities have occurred in the country to date).[3]
The cost of the vaccination program is estimated at two billion euros -- even though only 800 infections, none of them fatal, have been reported in the country.
The White House Speaks About Swine Flu
If you’re on the White House email distribution list, you received an email recently announcing the “H1N1 Influenza Preparedness Summit” held on July 9. The note was signed by the Secretaries of Health and Human Services (HHS), Homeland Security, and Education.
The message said, in part:
“We are working together to monitor the spread of 2009-H1N1 and to prepare to initiate a voluntary fall vaccination program against the 2009-H1N1 flu virus, assuming we have a safe vaccine and do not see changes in the virus that would render the vaccine ineffective.”
Two things in this paragraph stand out. Number one -- the vaccination program is still voluntary. A plan for mass swine flu vaccinations is not good news, but it appears that at least for now, the choice is still up to you.
The other item which stands out in that paragraph is the phrase, “... assuming we have a safe vaccine.”
How safe is a vaccine that has been developed, “tested,” and shipped for mass distribution in a matter of weeks? The answer -- it isn’t.
Unfortunately, President Obama is fully onboard with the prospect of mass injections of inadequately tested, potentially deadly vaccines.
"We want to make sure that we are not promoting panic, but we are promoting Read More
Watch the video below and read the excerpt from Mercola.com on this extremely important topic.
Watch CBS Videos Online
Following is an excerpt from a post from Mercola.com. To read the entire post, please click the link at the end of the excerpt.
By Dr. Mercola
You’ve probably noticed the escalating hype and hysteria surrounding the swine flu pandemic as colder months approach and the number of worldwide cases climbs.
It’s true the virus is spreading.
Much more important, however, is the fact that reported cases continue to be symptomatically mild, requiring little or no medical intervention. And deaths from the H1N1 virus remain extremely low, at less than one half of one percent of reported cases as of July 6.[1]
Despite this fact, the United States has committed to spending another $1 billion on ingredients for an H1N1 vaccine, according to U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, with plans for a mid-October vaccination program intact.[2]
Plans are also underway to implement vaccine programs around the world. In Germany, for instance, the health ministry announced the government had plans to order 50 million vaccine units and up to 22.5 million people may be vaccinated in the first stage of the plan starting in September (even though no fatalities have occurred in the country to date).[3]
The cost of the vaccination program is estimated at two billion euros -- even though only 800 infections, none of them fatal, have been reported in the country.
The White House Speaks About Swine Flu
If you’re on the White House email distribution list, you received an email recently announcing the “H1N1 Influenza Preparedness Summit” held on July 9. The note was signed by the Secretaries of Health and Human Services (HHS), Homeland Security, and Education.
The message said, in part:
“We are working together to monitor the spread of 2009-H1N1 and to prepare to initiate a voluntary fall vaccination program against the 2009-H1N1 flu virus, assuming we have a safe vaccine and do not see changes in the virus that would render the vaccine ineffective.”
Two things in this paragraph stand out. Number one -- the vaccination program is still voluntary. A plan for mass swine flu vaccinations is not good news, but it appears that at least for now, the choice is still up to you.
The other item which stands out in that paragraph is the phrase, “... assuming we have a safe vaccine.”
How safe is a vaccine that has been developed, “tested,” and shipped for mass distribution in a matter of weeks? The answer -- it isn’t.
Unfortunately, President Obama is fully onboard with the prospect of mass injections of inadequately tested, potentially deadly vaccines.
"We want to make sure that we are not promoting panic, but we are promoting Read More
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Swine Flu Update
BY MARIA CHENG and FRANK JORDANS, Associated Press Writer Maria Cheng And Frank Jordans, Associated Press Writer
GENEVA – The World Health Organization told its member nations it was declaring a swine flu pandemic Thursday — the first global flu epidemic in 41 years — as infections climbed in the United States, Europe, Australia, South America and elsewhere.
In a statement sent to member countries, WHO said it decided to raise the pandemic warning level from phase 5 to 6 — its highest alert — after holding an emergency meeting on swine flu with its experts.
GENEVA – The World Health Organization told its member nations it was declaring a swine flu pandemic Thursday — the first global flu epidemic in 41 years — as infections climbed in the United States, Europe, Australia, South America and elsewhere.
In a statement sent to member countries, WHO said it decided to raise the pandemic warning level from phase 5 to 6 — its highest alert — after holding an emergency meeting on swine flu with its experts.
The long-awaited pandemic decision is scientific confirmation that a new flu virus has emerged and is quickly circling the globe. It will trigger drugmakers to speed up production of a swine flu vaccine and prompt governments to devote more money toward efforts to contain the virus.
"At this early stage, the pandemic can be characterized globally as being moderate in severity," WHO said in the statement, urging nations not to close borders or restrict travel and trade. "(We) remain in close dialogue with influenza vaccine manufacturers."
On Wednesday, WHO said 74 countries had reported nearly 27,737 cases of swine flu, including 141 deaths. Read More
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Cruise Ship Passenger Dies From Flesh Eating Bacteria
by Scott Carmichael on May 7th 2009 at 2:00PM
Have you had your breakfast/lunch/dinner yet? Because this story is bound to upset your stomach.
While on a Mediterranean cruise, 58 year old Raymond Evans hurt his knee during a fall. The injury was nothing serious, but the ships doctor put Mr. Evans on an antibiotic regimen, just to be safe.
Despite the shots, his widow said his condition started to deteriorate, and that the back of his knee was turning black. This developed into a "blotchy blackness" that spread to his chest, elbow and fingers, and he was admitted into the ships hospital.
When the ship docked in Alexandria, Egypt, Mr.Evans was transported to the intensive care unit of the city's hospital where he died hours later. The total time from noticing the blackness on his knee till death was just 24 hours.
A pathologist told the official inquiry that Mr.Evans had been infected by the flesh-eating bug necrotising fasciitis (warning: graphic images on that page!).
The pathologist concluded that Mr.Evans had not caught the bug during his fall, because the symptoms of the flesh eating bug usually start hours after being infected, so the most probable source was something on the cruise ship that entered through his wounds.
This is of course just another example of the health risks involved with cruise ships. For years, cruise lines have struggled with the norovirus as we previously covered here, here and here. Still, common sense and basic hygiene precautions should help keep you perfectly safe when you get on board.
Have you had your breakfast/lunch/dinner yet? Because this story is bound to upset your stomach.
While on a Mediterranean cruise, 58 year old Raymond Evans hurt his knee during a fall. The injury was nothing serious, but the ships doctor put Mr. Evans on an antibiotic regimen, just to be safe.
Despite the shots, his widow said his condition started to deteriorate, and that the back of his knee was turning black. This developed into a "blotchy blackness" that spread to his chest, elbow and fingers, and he was admitted into the ships hospital.
When the ship docked in Alexandria, Egypt, Mr.Evans was transported to the intensive care unit of the city's hospital where he died hours later. The total time from noticing the blackness on his knee till death was just 24 hours.
A pathologist told the official inquiry that Mr.Evans had been infected by the flesh-eating bug necrotising fasciitis (warning: graphic images on that page!).
The pathologist concluded that Mr.Evans had not caught the bug during his fall, because the symptoms of the flesh eating bug usually start hours after being infected, so the most probable source was something on the cruise ship that entered through his wounds.
This is of course just another example of the health risks involved with cruise ships. For years, cruise lines have struggled with the norovirus as we previously covered here, here and here. Still, common sense and basic hygiene precautions should help keep you perfectly safe when you get on board.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Swine Flu Continues To Spread
By VOA News
13 May 2009
The swine influenza A-H1N1 virus is still spreading around the world.
Belgium on Wednesday confirmed its first case, becoming the 34th country to report an infection of swine flu. The World Health Organization says worldwide, the number of confirmed cases stands at more than 5,700.
Almost all the deaths from the virus have been in Mexico. Mexican authorities on Wednesday raised the death toll there to 60, though authorities say the outbreak in Mexico is declining.
Swine flu has also killed one person in Costa Rica, one in Canada and three people in the United States. On Wednesday, the U.S. said it had confirmed more than 3,300 cases of the virus. U.S. officials say they expect more.
On Tuesday, Finland and Thailand each confirmed two cases, the first for both countries. Authorities say each of those four patients had recently traveled to Mexico.
China also confirmed its second case on the mainland, while Hong Kong confirmed two as well.
Other swine flu cases have been confirmed in Cuba, Guatemala, El Salvador, Panama, Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, France, Ireland, Britain, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Poland, Germany, Austria, Israel, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.
The WHO has released a report warning that although a flu virus may be considered mild, it can change over time as it spreads around the globe.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Treat or Prevent?
It appears the Swine Flu is stubbornly pushing it's way into cities, towns and countries around the world as well as into the limelight of the media.
As of today, the cases in the US have risen to 20 and are scattered throughout the lower 48. It seems that some of those fallen to the virus have recently returned from Mexico where the virus seems to have sprung from while some have not.
It is said that this particular strain of flu originates from pigs, hence the name, and is typically transferred by pig to human contact. It is, however, capable of transferring from human to human contact where it allegedly mutates and becomes stronger, thus making it more difficult to both treat and fight off. Swine Flu is not believed to transfer to us by eating pork.
In the event we are struck by this virus, the medical community as well as big pharma are quick to tell us there are antiviral drugs available to treat us once we are sick.
My personal plan, not giving advice here, but rather sharing my best practices which haven't let me down for quite some time, is as follows. I prefer to prevent the onset of any flu, virus, bacteria or germ, rather than trying to treat it after it attacks me. A strong immune system will prevent disease, bacteria and virus from entering your body in the first place.
My personal arsenal for a strong immune system?
As of today, the cases in the US have risen to 20 and are scattered throughout the lower 48. It seems that some of those fallen to the virus have recently returned from Mexico where the virus seems to have sprung from while some have not.
It is said that this particular strain of flu originates from pigs, hence the name, and is typically transferred by pig to human contact. It is, however, capable of transferring from human to human contact where it allegedly mutates and becomes stronger, thus making it more difficult to both treat and fight off. Swine Flu is not believed to transfer to us by eating pork.
In the event we are struck by this virus, the medical community as well as big pharma are quick to tell us there are antiviral drugs available to treat us once we are sick.
My personal plan, not giving advice here, but rather sharing my best practices which haven't let me down for quite some time, is as follows. I prefer to prevent the onset of any flu, virus, bacteria or germ, rather than trying to treat it after it attacks me. A strong immune system will prevent disease, bacteria and virus from entering your body in the first place.
My personal arsenal for a strong immune system?
- One Tsp of Apple Cider Vinegar with honey twice per day.
- A Green Superfood once per day, usually with a home made smoothie.
- One Tsp of Silver Solution once per day.
- A whole food multiple vitamin, my choice is an Acai vitamin.
- An Omega 3-6-9 supplement.
- Fifteen minutes of direct sunlight every day.
- A minimum of ten 8oz. glasses of water per day.
To your ideal health!
Saturday, April 25, 2009
swine flu
Below is an article reprinted from CNN.com. It's discussing the potentially "pandemic virus" that has recently popped up seemingly out of nowhere, the Swine Flu Virus. While I don't think it's a cause for panic, it surely indicates we need to educate ourselves on the possibility it could visit our respective neighborhoods. I'm interested in hearing what you think.
More cases of swine flu reported; WHO warns of 'health emergency'
(CNN) -- A potentially deadly new strain of the swine flu virus cropped up in more places in the United States and Mexico on Saturday, in what the World Health Organization called "a public health emergency of international concern."
The most recent reports Saturday afternoon were of two confirmed cases of the virus in Kansas -- bringing the number of confirmed U.S. cases to 11.
Those joined nine confirmed cases in Texas and California and an apparent outbreak at a private school in New York City, where officials say eight children likely have the virus.
Mexican health officials say 81 deaths are now "likely linked" to the swine flu virus.
President Felipe Calderon on Saturday issued an executive decree detailing emergency powers of the Ministry of Health, according to the president's office.
The order gives the ministry with the authority to isolate sick patients, inspect travelers' luggage and their vehicles and conduct house inspections, the statement said.
The government also has the authority to prevent public gatherings, shut down public venues and regulate air, sea and overland travel.
The WHO's Gregory Hartl said the strain of the virus seen in Mexico is worrisome because it has mutated from older strains.
"Any time that there is a virus which changes ... it means perhaps the immunities the human body has built up to dealing with influenza might not be adjusted well enough to dealing with this new virus," Hartl told CNN.
In Mexico, otherwise young and healthy people have been hit by the virus -- "one of the pieces of the puzzle that is worrying us," he said.
Mexico City has closed all of its schools and universities because of the virus, and the country's National Health Council said all Saturday's soccer games would be played without public audiences.
WHO has sent experts to Mexico at the request of the country's government, Chan said.
Dr. Jason Eberhart-Phillips, director of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, was expected to officially announce the two cases later Saturday, a written statement from the state said.
All of the eight U.S. patients in Texas and California have recovered, Dr. Richard Besser, the acting director for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Friday. Two of the cases were in Texas, near San Antonio, and six of the cases were in southern California, the CDC said.
More than 1,000 people have been sickened in Mexico, and officials are trying to determine how many of those patients have swine influenza, the country's health minister, Jose Angel Cordova Villalobos, said.
U.S. health officials said Friday that some cases of the virus matched samples of the deadly Mexican virus.
On Saturday, New York's Bureau of Communicable Diseases said preliminary tests from a Queens school suggest that eight out of the nine cases of the virus found there are probably swine flu.
Dr. Don Weiss said the samples will be sent to the CDC in Atlanta, Georgia, to determine the subtype of the strain. The results will likely come back either Sunday or Monday.
He said the samples, which were taken from oral and nasal swabs from nine students at St. Francis Preparatory School, came back positive for "Type A" flu and the tests will need to determine the samples' subtype -- which could be swine flu.
He said up to 200 students at the school reported feeling ill.
"What's concerning about this is, first, that it's likely swine flu; second is that at this time it is spreading from person to person," Weiss said.
When the flu spreads person-to-person, instead of from animals to humans, it can continue to mutate, making it a tougher strain that is harder to treat or fight off.
The people sickened in Kansas are a man who traveled to Mexico on business and his wife, Eberhart-Phillips said. The man had flu-like symptoms when he returned and went to his doctor, and his wife got sick about three days later, officials said.
Neither of them was hospitalized, and one is still sick, he said.
The United States had not issued any travel warnings or quarantines by Saturday afternoon.
The Canadian Public Health Agency had issued a travel health notice, saying, "The Public Health Agency of Canada is tracking clusters of severe respiratory illness with deaths in Mexico."
Symptoms of swine flu include fever, lethargy, lack of appetite, coughing, runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, the CDC said.
Besser advised people with flu-like symptoms to stay home from work or school and to see a doctor.
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