Quote:
Originally posted by Rondinone
Keep in mind that it's the World Health Organization that is talking most about the bird flu. That's under the UN, not the White House. They've been talking about this since 1997, so it's not at all recent.
Yes, it is indeed H5N1 that they are worried about. It can't yet go from person to person (easily, has happened only twice), but it has a 50% mortality rate in humans when it goes from bird to human. The regular flu does not have a 50% mortality rate in humans.
If you say it's not H5N1, then you have not been paying attention for the last eight years. Science magazine recently had an entire issue devoted to H5N1.
Most of the birds found dead are in the wild. Hundred of millions of domesticated birds have been culled in an attempt to stop the virus, but most were not sick.
All flu viruses start in birds. They are the natural reservoir. The 1918 flu was a bird flu that mutated so that it could jump from person to person. It is expected that H5N1 will follow that same path within a few years.
The thing that worries WHO so much is that they recently discovered that H5N1 will not require recombination with a human flu virus to become virulent, which greatly increases the chances that there will be a pandemic soon. This was published just last week.
No, there's nothing you can do about it, so there is not much point in worrying.
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I have never had nor will I ever get a Flu shot.
I said that the Bird Flu does not necessarily mean H5N1. That may be what they are worried about but Bird Flu could be different strains.
As far as your statment on wild birds: Its just not true, here are a hole bunch of links that disagree with that statment as well.
Ducks Unlimited Statement on Avian Flu
Most of us in the waterfowling community are by now aware of the media reports regarding the H5N1 strain of the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAI H5N1) that has spread throughout much of Southeastern Asia. Although the virus has primarily affected domestic poultry operations, it is receiving great attention within the medical community because it has caused more than 50 human deaths in Asia since the winter of 2003-2004. Domestic poultry (contact with infected birds or contaminated surfaces) have been the principle vector for the H5N1 transmission in most of those cases, with only a handful of human infections having resulted from human-to-human contact.
Although there have been recent reports that the virus has caused deaths in wild migratory birds in a few isolated locations in Asia, there is no evidence yet that wild birds have transmitted HPAI H5N1 to humans, nor that migratory birds have been responsible for dispersing the virus in Asia. However, with the possibility that wild birds could become vectors for the new HPAI H5N1 virus, and because some waterfowl and shorebird species migrate between Alaska and Asia, authorities in the wildlife conservation, hunting and medical communities are taking steps to monitor the situation closely and take action if necessary.
DU is reassuring fellow waterfowl enthusiasts that HPAI H5N1 is not a current threat in North America. Although the probability of future occurrence in North American waterfowl cannot be predicted, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) National Wildlife Health Center are diligently monitoring migratory birds in Alaska in conjunction with state and university support. To date, thousands of waterfowl and shorebird samples from Alaska have been analyzed, and no evidence of the virus has been discovered. Thus, with respect to this year’s hunting season, federal authorities have stated that “it is unlikely that H5N1 will be carried by birds migrating from Asia to North America this fall or winter.”
In light of these facts and observations by authorities, DU suggests that the appropriate response by hunters at this time is to simply stay informed and educated. With no reports of HPAI H5N1 in North America, there is no reason to be concerned about the virus while waterfowl hunting during the 2005-2006 season.
While HPAI H5N1 is not a current threat to waterfowl hunters in North America, Ducks Unlimited encourages hunters to heed the standard precautions offered by the USGS National Wildlife Health Center for protecting themselves against other diseases for which there is always a low probability of transmission by handling harvested animals:
1.) Do not handle birds that are obviously sick or birds found dead.
2.) Keep your game birds cool, clean and dry.
3.) Do not eat, drink, or smoke while cleaning your birds.
4.) Use rubber gloves when cleaning game.
5.) Wash your hands with soap and water or alcohol wipes after dressing birds.
6.) Clean all tools and surfaces immediately afterwards; use hot soapy water, then disinfect with a 10 percent chlorine bleach solution.
7.) Cook game meat thoroughly (155-165 degrees F) to kill disease organisms and parasites.
For more information about avian influenza and wildlife diseases:
USGS - National Wildlife Health Center:
http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/research/avian_influenza/avian_influenza.html
http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/research/a..._influenza.html
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avian/
World Health Organization
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/en/
APHIS-USDA
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Memorandum 8/25/2005
http://www.fws.gov/policy/m0271.html
USGS-NWHC: Field Manual of Wildlife Diseases
http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/pub_metada...eld_manual.html
Ducks Unlimited Canada Article: Invisible threat: the impacts of disease on wild duck populations
http://www.ducks.ca/aboutduc/news/c...r/261/bot1.html