Here are the facts, don't panic!
http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20090427/hl_time/08599189402900
Idk why but this doesn't concern me in the least...it may be simple, blissful ignorance on my part but I have zero worries about this at this time.
Increase your intake of vitamin C so you have stronger immunity if you live in areas close to Mexico or if you are simply concerned.
I see this as yet another mass panic. Idk, sometime back when bird flu was the big thing, I tried to save an injured dove (that died in my car on my way to try to save it ) and when I told my mom she completely freaked out about bird flu, and btw, tending to a clearly sick bird was probably not a smart move on my part so I can't blame my mom for her reaction but I am still here and did not get bird flu.
I have gotten West Nile before due to the mosquitoes we get around here, especially because I like to hike in the Everglades, which is a mosquito breeding ground and I survived that also, it's no big deal.
My best friend from college lives in Taipei where they had a huge SARS scare and she had two babies at the time and they are all fine too.
Obviously, people die of these things so it's not to say that just because my friend and I got through all this that there is no scare at all but seriously, no need to panic yet.
Just be prepared.

Ya, I don't get the hype either. Hopefully, no one I know gets it, but from the news stories, some people got sick and are now better. ??

i guess they have to do this to warn everyone to watch for it.. I dont know. But it does make me feel a bit better to know the cases out of mexico( usa, canada) are just mild cases and no deaths.

I heard this morning, there were 100 deaths attributed to the Swine Flu- in Mexico, I think.

Some times I think the hype is made just so vaccine companies can find something else to bill our medical insurance for.

This post has been edited by DVFlyer on Apr 27 2009, 07:56 AM

Yes, you are right, there have been quite a few deaths, but I think all the deaths are from Mexico too. They don't have the healthcare we have though, so it's not surprising to me.

I'm not worried about it, yet at least. I hate getting all worked up over something like this. If someone I know gets it, then I'll worry. Until then, I'll go about my normal every day life.

yeah im pretty sure there were deaths in mexico

someone i know had their kids school close down for a week as a precaution in tx...

hopefully no cases pop up here bc i live next to tx and we have a lot of mexican immigrants who do construction...

but im not too worried about it at this point...

what does that have to do with anything? costruction dudes are not transporting the meat.

I'm not scared but cautious even though we are in VA. i started buying my german meat from the german gormet until pork in the usa gets the clear bill that it's ok again.

My understanding is that it's not passed from eating meat. It's passed like a normal cold and flu. That's why washing your hands is important.. and why you see people wearing masks.

Oh and I think she meant that they are coming in and out of Mexico.. and possibly bringing the germs with them.

This post has been edited by Calimama on Apr 27 2009, 04:12 PM

its not the meat they are getting it from, its spread from face to face contact. i'm kinda worried about the migrant workers too.

Yes, that is right, it is called a "flu" for a reason. You get it like you would any other flu. The flu is passed from the pigs through snot, mucus, etc. onto humans, then passed onto others the same way. It has nothing to do with eating the pork. In fact, if you go to a fair and pet the pigs, chances are you may be carrying some swine flu home with you. It's not a new thing, it's just that the number of cases as of recently are more than what is considered normal.

This post has been edited by Boo&BugsMom on Apr 27 2009, 04:47 PM

I did not realize it was a flu,. what i heard (from my sitter was obviously inacurite information) but still every construction worker is not mexican and not every mexican is new here. Also if it's a flu any tom, dick or harry could be carrrying it not just "mexicans". Just because it started there doesn't make an entire race a carrier.

Its not necessarily Mexicans, its the migrant workers from Mexico that I am worried about. The worst, most, and severe cases, where people are dying are IN mexico. So, anyone coming out of mexico would have a greater chance of having it.
We get a lot of migrant workers up here this time of year to help with construction and farming, and there is a chance of those people carrying the strain up here. Its not just them tho, If I had a friend that went on vacation there, I wouldn't be running over to their house for a visit either.

That being said, its STILL a mild form up here, people are not dying.

This post has been edited by PrairieMom on Apr 28 2009, 04:11 AM

Here is another scenerio. Troy use to work at a restaurant a long time ago back in college as a cook. A good 75% of the employees he worked with in the kitchen were from Mexico...some were illegal and some there on a work visa. Many of them on a regular basis would have to visit back home. Now...imagine, they go back home to Mexico, someone they know is "ill" and are around them, now they come back here and they are cooking your food and carrying this virus unknowingly. This is how illness is spread, usually through being a carrier and not even knowing it. It's not stereotyping a race...it's reality in the way things are spread and this particular illness just happens to come from Mexico.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and hypothesize (that doesn't look like it's spelled right?)...

The Swine Flu strain is no different (generally speaking) than any other flu we've had. The reasons there are 100 + deaths in Mexico is because they lack the hygiene and medical standards we have in the US.

The way to avoid "this" flu is no different than any other flu or cold. Wash your hands, avoid touching your face, avoid being in close quarters with people who are sick etc.

The elderly, very young and people with compromised immune systems should take extra precautions as they could be more severely affected by this flu.

This strain is spread like any other flu or cold.... i.e. one sick person comes in contact with another person.

Heard any of this before? Like EVERY time a new strain of flu comes around.....?

*knocking on wood I don't get sick*

This post has been edited by DVFlyer on Apr 28 2009, 07:10 AM

Uhhh, because its an AIRBORNE disease. Why on earth do you think people are wearing masks???

So we have a lot of immigrants passing from Mexico to here and back, could possibly be picking up the disease and bringing it here when they work.

We have a lot of immigrants who work here to do reconstruction from the hurricanes, esp after Katrina and Rita.

Yup, you got it. I thought what I was saying was pretty evident too...

*sigh*

The issues they are having right now are worst in Mexico.

We have a lot of mexican migrant workers here who are doing construction, especially in New Orleans but even in the city where I live, because of the damage from the hurricanes.

If they are travelling back and forth to Mexico, and pick it up, they can bring it here.

We have plenty of them come here newly from Mexico ALL THE TIME because the need for construction work is so abundant in a lot of areas due to the massive damage of the hurricanes and they can easily find jobs, and you dont have to travel all that far to get where I live (Louisiana) from Mexico.

I dont think the entire race (and really, their race is hispanic, I'm actually just talking about people in mexico, so its not a race thing, and its sort of rude to suggest I was saying so) are carriers. But right now its prevalent in Mexico and we have a lot of people coming in from there.

This is not a hard concept, right??

Right.

If this was happening in, say, France, and we suddenly had a bunch of french people in my area who might be carrying something like this, I'd be worried too.

I should reword this a little now that I reread what I wrote. It's not that the illness is "coming from Mexico" (I didn't even realize how that sounded until I just reread it). If you go to a fair and pet the pigs, chances are you might run into a farmer who has the virus on him/her. It's just that the deaths are in Mexico, I believe, and stemming from what DVFlyer has said...Mexico's cleanliness and healthcare system doesn't compare to what we have here. The thing that I believe CeCe is trying to point out is that because of Mexico's uncleaniness and poor healthcare system, the flu is spreading more like wildfire down there. So, given the scenerio that I pointed out, and others as well...if people were to go back and visit their families, etc. then come back to work, it's really making the virus spread even quicker because many could be carriers and not even know it. The virus is becoming even "stronger" because of the rapid spreading as well. Not to mention, usually someone is even more contagious before their symptoms even begin to show...which is a whole other thread.

I'm not sure if I make sense or not.

Either way...the chances of you getting the virus from a pig at the fair or zoo if you were to pet it and not wash your hands is just as much. This is not a new virus. Reports of swine virus in human's date back decades ago. However, if a person regularly doesn't take the precautions they are suppose to, just like any virus or bacterial infection...your chances rise no matter what.

Like previously mentioned...wash your hands, take the normal precautions like you would with anything else. You don't have to live in a bubble though. And believe me...with the amount of time our family has gotten ill this year, sometimes I'm tempted.

This post has been edited by Boo&BugsMom on Apr 28 2009, 07:39 AM

geesh, it would be really nice if when someone here doesn't understand something or wasn't given the right information that it could be explained to her without sighs, eye rolls and condescending speech, especially when the topic is a potentially fatal illness and the goal here is to make sure everyone remains safe and healthy.
I would think that a group of mothers would be the most likely to patient with those who may not have all the answers or may not understand some things, regardless of the reason.
We all have strong opinions about things and often those differ with the strong opinions of others but wouldn't it be nice if we could all just be nice, especially if someone truly didn't understand something as opposed to trying to goad someone on purpose?
Happy Tuesday, everyone, it's a beautiful, sunny day here and I hope as spring continues to spring that you are all having a beautiful sunny day wherever you live. Here's to spreading the sunshine instead of gouging into other people's potentially hurt feelings.

Well, since it was sort of being said with an undertone that I was being racist, it should be understood that someone wouldnt appreciate that.

But you have a good day yourself!

Living in NY, one of the hardest hit states, where I don't believe any of the cases involved "mexicans," I admit I know very little about the travel patterns of migrant workers. Having said that, if as some here have suggested, that many mexican workers are here illegally, is it likely that they make a habit of hopping back and forth between the borders on a regular basis? It was my understanding that once they made it here safely, they count their blessings and try to keep as low a profile as possible. The growing season in the states is happening now, why would they be in Mexico? Traveling long distances to visit family involves more cash than the typical migrant worker has at his/her disposal.
Furthermore, I believe all the cases in the US and beyond Mexico proper involve non-Mexicans who had traveled to Mexico for business or pleasure. That's the thing about germs--they don't discriminate. So, though the initial outbreak started in Mexico, let's not confuse that with what we're now dealing with. Anyone can be a carrier, and as I said, unless the migrant workers are jumping in and out of Mexico on a weekly basis, which I highly doubt, I believe fears around them are unfounded.
We had a nasty flu up here around the holidays. I'm wondering if it wasn't here long before they started testing for it.

I agree -- Rod and I had the worst flu we had ever had about a month ago. It started with fever and chills. It came on fast and for the first three to four days, neither of us could move an inch... we were so weak we just stayed in bed. It took us a good two weeks to recover. Ashley had it for about 2 days and didn't nearly have it as badly as we did. But, I think that this may have been the same flu. If not, it was still the worst flu that I have ever had. So, I think it is more wide-spread than reported and may or may not have originated in Mexico.

With that said, I don't think there is a reason to panic, but it should be taken seriously. And, people should take precautions. If a small child, elderly, or even someone who is pg had gotten the same flu that we had, it could have been more serious. So, I don't think the concern is unfounded. It's easy to say don't worry about it, it's all sensationalized by the media when it's not your neighbor, your family, or the kids in your school who have it.

I don't really want anyone to think that I am being racist or racial profiling or what ever.

My issue with the migrant workers is that they are going to be traveling up here soon, presumably from Mexico. They don't hang around here in the winter time. Its not Mexicans I am concerned with, its ANYONE coming from Mexico. The only reason the flu in Mexico is concerning to me is because that is where the people are dying from it. When they can figure why that is out, I will feel a bit better about it.
really, its just a mild flu now, I'm not to worried about it, the worry is IF it mutates and IF it starts killing and IF it comes here, there are a lot of if's.
I have to wonder tho, how long this has been floating around, its not like the Dr's have been testing for it, it could have been here for months already, shoot, I could have even had it. Maybe its just now starting to seem bad because we are actually looking for it and testing for it now.

That's the God's honest truth, Dee Dee.