Here are Nine ways to proactively prepare for the upcoming flu season. With the return of the H1N1 flu, Swine Flu, are you ready? (Additional CDC Tips, Click here) Swine flu has become the world’s dominant strain of influenza and the World Health Organization predicts that within two years, nearly one-third of the world’s population will have caught the swine flu.

Consider taking these 9 steps now, before you or your family comes down with swine flu.

1. Make a plan. Both medical and workplace experts suggest you create your plan now; know your company or child’s school flu policy.  Schools and workplace will be stricter in preventing the spread of illness.  Don’t be surprised later due to poor planning.  Does your company have a leave policy? How to keep up with class work?

2. Do you recognize the signs of illness? The CDC recommends you stay at least 6 feet away from people with flu-like symptoms, and you stay the same distance if you become ill. In fact, avoid others until you’ve been free of fever for 24 hours.  Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth. Have your doctor’s phone number and current medication easily located.

Children should get medical attention if they:

• Have fast breathing or trouble breathing
• Have bluish or gray skin color
• Are not drinking enough fluid
• Are not waking up or not interacting
• Have severe or persistent vomiting
• Are so irritable that the child does not want to be held
• Have flu-like symptoms that improve but then return with fever and a worse cough
• Have fever with a rash

Adults should seek urgent medical attention if they have:

• Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
• Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
• Sudden dizziness
• Confusion
• Severe or persistent vomiting
• Flu-like symptoms that improve but then come back with worsening fever or cough

3. Stock up now. Get in the habit of taking your laptop home daily.  Do you and your children have portable sanitizers to use when washing is not available?  They are available at local drug stores. (These sanitizers are drying, so make sure to also carry lotion!) Stock up now with food supplies and comfort foods – electrolyte drinks, household cleaners, soft foods, pudding cups, extra canned soups, tissues and toilet paper.  Also make sure you have a thermometer to take your temperature. Here is the link to the Pandemic Mask.

4. Decide who the care-giver is if/when children become ill. One parent to take care of the ill, one to maintain normal household duties. If you live alone, fatten up your social network now and create “flu-buddies”

5. Don’t Go to Work Sick or Send Sick Children to school. Always be ready to work from home. DVD, magazines and Books - keep a few light, uncomplicated diversions for the down time.

6. Preventive steps: Get vaccinated. Get the regular seasonal flu shot and the swine flu shot when available.  Check your local listings for availability.

7. Don’t touch your face.  The virus enters the body through the eyes, nose and mouth. Keeping your hands clean is a huge preventive step.

8. Be healthy, take vitamins, eat healthy, exercise and reduce stress.
9. Enjoy time in a sauna a couple of times a week, the steam and heat can supposedly kill off viruses (if it’s over 80 degrees).

Although the outbreak may be milder than anticipated, it would be irresponsible to completely ignore all the warnings.  One of my favorite quotes is: “Four steps to achievement: plan purposefully, prepare prayerfully, proceed positively, pursue persistently.” William A. Ward

Comments are appreciated. I love feedback.Thanks.

Yesterday, federal health officials urged Americans to be vigilant against swine flu.   Stating that the virus seems to be milder disease yet could still be a serious threat to the health of certain individuals.
Richard E. Besser, acting director of the federal Centers for Disease Control is concerned that Americans could wrongly believe the worse is over.
U.S. confirmed 1639 cases in 42 states and the District, an increase of 743 cases a day earlier.
This increase is mainly due to further testing, but more accurately, it is clear that people are still infected. At least 57 Americans were in the hospital, including 26 who also had another condition.
U.S. Department of Education said more than 81,000 students returned to class yesterday, 155 schools re-opened. At least 166 schools were closed, but federal officials have stated that they expect all students back in class on Tuesday.
Influenza H1N1 has infected 3440 people in 29 countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Saturday.  45 people have died from the new strain of flu, a mixture pigs, birds and human viruses.

Swine influenza H1N1 is spreading rapidly in the U.S. The situation is worrying – but increasingly, the responsibility for health are wearing what could happen this fall.
Because the swine flu H1N1  was milder than originally expected, the CDC has loosen some of its guidelines, including school closings.
New outbreaks of H1N1 swine flu continue over the United States, and Thursday, the US Center for Disease Control (CDC) confirmed 896 cases in 44 states ranging from mild to severe infections.
Acting Director of CDC, Dr. Richard Besser said “So far we have seen no evidence of this diminishing”.  He also stated “Only about 10 percent of the cases have related trip to Mexico”.  This suggests that the virus is very easily transmitted between people.  The new virus is very similar to the seasonal flu, CDC scientists are trying to answer many questions about the new strain.  Including how long a person with the virus is contagious.
Besser said that over the next few months, we need to prepare for the possibility that the virus will return during the fall/winter months, a greater danger.

There are simple everyday steps you can take to help prevent the spread of influenza:
* Cover your mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze.
* Wash your hands frequently; with either warm, soapy water for 10-15 seconds or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer, especially after you sneeze or cough.
* Keep living or work areas clean by using household detergents (e.g. hand soap, dishwashing liquid) and sanitize surfaces with bleach or alcohol.
* Avoid contact with others who are sick. If you are sick, stay home from work or school.
* Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
*More information: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention @www.cdc.gov/swineflu

Recommended:
If you are unable to wash your hands, you may want to purchase a hand sanitizer with moisturizers. If you use a sanitizer multiple times during the day, use lotion to prevent excessive dryness.

The World Health Organization said on Thursday, up to 2 million people could be infected with swine flu if a pandemic outbreak lasts two years. Keiji Fukuda, Head of the WHO(World Health Organization) Flu said that the history of flu pandemics is one third of the world’s population could become infected with these outbreaks. Independent experts agree that the estimate was possible.

Mexico, the country with the strongest impact so far, opened high schools and universities, for the first time in two weeks. A senior official of the Mexican Government suggested that the epidemic is declining. All students have been inspected for symptoms of swine flu, and some were dismissed from school.

Fukuda stated, “If we look at the past pandemics, a reasonable estimate would be maybe a third of the world infected with this virus.” With the current total world population of more than 6 billion, that means a possible total of 2 billion infected. However, he added that the world has changed from previous generations, pandemics, and experts are not able to accurately predict. The past is not a prediction of the future.

Since, this virus is new to the population; the whole world is immunologically compromised. The WHO states that 2 million people can be catch the flu. Yet, half the people show no symptoms or the symptoms are mild.

Fukuda also said that it is impossible to say whether the current flu strain swine is difficult or easy, but even a slight flu “from the global perspective, there are many people; they may develop pneumonia, which can lead to death.” A mild impact in the rich countries can be very different in their impact on developing countries, said Fukuda. People react differently to the flu, the global health and other factors, including malnutrition, war, HIV and other factors.

So far, 24 countries have reported cases of the swine flu virus.  Mexico has two new deaths, a total of 44, while 1160 people were ill, 90 on Wednesday.

Swine flu seems to be a long incubation period – five to seven days before the symptoms, said Dr. Marc-Alain Widdowson, medical epidemiologist of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now monitoring influenza in Mexico City.