Swine Flu Update

A recent study on the swine flu revealed that Hispanics and blacks are more likely to suffer from H1N1 than other races:

source: Swine flu was four times more likely to send blacks and Hispanics to the hospital than whites, according to a study in Chicago that offers one of the first looks at how the virus has affected different racial groups.

The report echoes some unpublished information from Boston that found three out of four Bostonians hospitalized from swine flu were black or Hispanic.

The cause for the difference is probably not genetic, health officials said. More likely, it’s because blacks and Hispanics suffer disproportionately from asthma, diabetes and other health problems that make people more vulnerable to the flu.

But, according to my research, the reason is varying levels of Vitamin D3 in a person's system.  Studies have shown that people with darker skin require longer exposure to the sun to absorb enough Vitamin D for it to do them any good.

I learned today that 2 children have died recently in Tennessee, apparently from the H1N1 virus.  It's August.  It is not yet "flu season," but this killer virus is already picking up steam.  

I recently watched a news program in a large city near me in which mayors from 2 towns were quoted as saying they expected this flu to be a really serious problem this winter, but they were leaving the details of how to deal with it up to the health care professionals. The "blonde" newscaster at the end of the piece said, "The swine flu is different than the seasonal flu, because it is spreading in the summer."  AARRRGGH!  I could scream!  The woman missed the whole point:  The swine flu is different than the seasonal flu, because if it's spreading like this in the summer, what will it do when flu season gets here??

If you want to know what to expect from the H1N1 influenza, go to YouTube and do a search for "1918 influenza" or search it on Wikipedia.

This flu is acting like the deadly 1918 Spanish Flu.  The 1918 flu:

1. Began in the spring (very much unlike normal flu behavior)

2. Attacked young adults -- 11-30 years old -- the hardest (also very much unlike normal flu, which kills primarily the very old and the very young)

3. Killed by lung inflamation and by stirring up a "cytokine storm" -- an autoimmune reaction, which explains why young adults would be the primary victims, because they have the strongest immune systems.

According to the Wikipedia entry:

The 1918 flu pandemic (commonly referred to as the Spanish Flu) was an influenza pandemic that spread to nearly every part of the world. It was caused by an unusually virulent and deadly influenza A virus strain of subtype H1N1... Most of its victims were healthy young adults, in contrast to most influenza outbreaks which predominantly affect juvenile, elderly, or otherwise weakened patients... The pandemic lasted from March 1918 to June 1920, spreading even to the Arctic and remote Pacific islands. It is estimated that anywhere from 50 to 100 million people were killed worldwide. An estimated 500 million people, one third of the world's population (approximately 1.6 billion at the time), became infected.

...This huge death toll was caused by an extremely high infection rate of up to 50% and the extreme severity of the symptoms, suspected to be caused by cytokine storms.[4] Indeed, symptoms in 1918 were so unusual that initially influenza was misdiagnosed as dengue, cholera, or typhoid. One observer wrote, "One of the most striking of the complications was hemorrhage from mucous membranes, especially from the nose, stomach, and intestine. Bleeding from the ears and petechial hemorrhages in the skin also occurred."[12] The majority of deaths were from bacterial pneumonia, a secondary infection caused by influenza, but the virus also killed people directly, causing massive hemorrhages and edema in the lung.

From the information I have read, Vitamin D3 is a good preventative for the flu, and will help minimize the effects if contracted, because it balances the immune systems, preventing the cytokine storm that is the primary killer with this disease.  Studies have shown that daily doses of 400 IU of Vitamin D3 are safe for children, while daily doses of 2000 IU or more are necessary for adults.

I am not a doctor, so take what I am telling you "for what it's worth." I am taking 4000 IU of Vitamin D3 each day until this flu pandemic is over, and may increase that amount if someone I know comes down with the flu.  Vitamin D3 reserves need to build up to an effective level, so it won't work to "take a dose" once you're sick; you need to be taking it NOW.

Other things you can do to avoid contracting the swine flu are:

* Stay away from places where large numbers of people congregate, like restaurants and theaters.

* If someone is coughing or sneezing, remove yourself from the room (although authorities say that people infected with the swine flu are contagious for a day or 2 before they show symptoms, the disease is spread primarily through water droplets from coughs and sneezes).

* Wash your hands frequently with soap and water, while singing a short song like "Old MacDonald" or "Jesus Loves Me," to make sure you wash long enough to kill virus.

* Don't go to the doctor unless you absolutely have to, because there are sick people there, who  can spread their disease to you.

If you get sick:

* Do the usual -- bed rest, lots of fluids, fever reducer if your fever gets too high.

* Take an expectorant or medication like Mucinex(tm) to clear your lungs.

* If you are knowledgeable in the use of herbal remedies, elderberry syrup (brand name Sambucol) and curcumin are supposed to be good to relieve symptoms of flu.

* If it becomes difficult to breathe, or your chest hurts, your fever spikes above 103, or your fingernails/lips turn blue, go to the hospital or see your family physician.

Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga has posted some flu tips at their Website: http://www.erlanger.org/body.cfm?id=583

Of the 2 children that died in recent weeks in Tennessee, one was in school on Tuesday and was dead by Wednesday.  This is a terribly deadly plague.  Please take it seriously.  It's not flu season...yet.

For additional information on Vitamin D3 and the swine flu, read some of the posts on this forum: http://www.thetreeofliberty.com/vb/showthread.php?t=70251

Latest news on H1N1 influenza virus: Swine Flu Spreading At Unbelievable Rate  http://www.thetimes.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=1057324