New, deadly swine flu jumps to humans. Outbreak in Mexico, may spread

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New, deadly swine flu jumps to humans. Outbreak in Mexico, may spread

http://www.alertnet.org/

A deadly strain of swine flu never seen before has broken out in Mexico, killing at least 16 people and raising fears it is spreading across North America.

The World Health Organization said it was concerned about what it called 800 "influenza-like" cases in Mexico, and also about a confirmed outbreak of a new strain of swine flu in the United States.

Mexico canceled classes for millions of children in its sprawling capital city and surrounding areas on Friday after authorities noticed a higher number of deaths involving flu-like illness than normal in recent weeks.

"It is a virus that mutated from pigs and then at some point was transmitted to humans," Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova told the Televisa network.

He linked the disease in Mexico to a new kind of swine flu that struck seven people in California and Texas.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the virus in the United States was a never-before-seen mixture of viruses typical among pigs, birds and humans. All seven American patients have recovered.

The Mexican government warned people not to shake hands or kiss when greeting or share food, glasses or cutlery for fear of contracting the flu.

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Ahh the swine flu is coming. I can see it, run, run, run. Stay out of airplanes, railway cars, bathrooms. ahhhhhhhh Who says pigs can't fly....

It is time to take your medicine Mr. Biden, please get off the internet...... Yor best buddy Dan Quayle will read you a story

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Not this guy, but many other commentators make it seem like the Obama administration wildly over-reacted to the swine flu. The alleged motives usually center around some kind of political gain. Those same people continue to credit Bush for keeping the US safe by taking proactive measures to prevent another attack. Why is being ready for one problem bad while being ready for another good?

Healthy young people were dying in Mexico at an 8% rate, not just babies and old folks. For several days, the suspected case numbers and death rates rose exponentially, and they maintained their 8% death rate. It was a wholly new strain of flu, which means that most folks' immune systems have never seen it. A recipe for pandemic, if history is a guide.

The fact that for now, the outbreak hasn't become a pandemic is some combination of our good luck and rapid response from our administration, the WHO and other countries' public health systems.

Choose one: Be ready for a pandemic that never appears, or be unprepared and uninformed when the neighbors start dropping. Obama got this one right.

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