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US public at risk from complacency over flu -CDC

Triad

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ATLANTA, May 6 (Reuters) - The U.S. public could become more vulnerable to a flu pandemic if complacency about the need for heightened vigilance sets in, health experts said on Wednesday.

Those concerns would escalate if the H1N1 virus that has killed two people in the United States and made 642 others sick mutates into a more virulent form by the start of the traditional flu season in the fall.

In all, there are 1,516 confirmed cases of the swine flu virus in 22 countries, according to the U.N. World Health Organization.

But in the United States fear about flu appears to have subsided since the epidemic came to public attention more than two weeks ago because many cases appear to be mild.

"The risk of complacency, or a sense that we have weathered this, is a serious one," said Stephen Redd, director of Influenza Coordination at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.

"What we are going to be looking very hard at over the months to come is what's happening in other parts of the world and really trying to understand whether we would be at risk for a resurgence in the fall," Redd said.


CDC officials say they walk a fine line between ramping up public warnings to encourage people to take precautions such as washing hands while not adopting an alarmist posture that could risk their authority as the epidemic persists.

In one small sign of waning public interest in the flu threat, nationally syndicated talk show host Neal Boortz told his audience recently that the issue of flu was getting "really overblown."
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They are conscious of a historic parallel -- in 1918, a relatively mild flu pandemic emerged, only to return with a vengeance months later to kill millions.
Reuters AlertNet - US public at risk from complacency over flu -CDC
 
Well, the information and paranoia itself is sometimes enough to curb an epidemic, especially one like this that can be thwarted by a little bit of self-awareness. It just so happens that what the WHO needs people to understand coincides with the media establishment's incessant desire to scare the public into watching their programs and reading their newspapers. Anything for a buck, you know.

Oh, and let's not forget the millions who will now rush out with money in hand to get the flu vaccine.
 
Well, the information and paranoia itself is sometimes enough to curb an epidemic, especially one like this that can be thwarted by a little bit of self-awareness. It just so happens that what the WHO needs people to understand coincides with the media establishment's incessant desire to scare the public into watching their programs and reading their newspapers. Anything for a buck, you know.

Oh, and let's not forget the millions who will now rush out with money in hand to get the flu vaccine.
 
I dunno. I suppose just assume its not over and take precautions.

Also that they have stated they lost control of it across the USA and that it can still come back in a few months.

Don't Panic.
 
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I dunno. I suppose just assume its not over and take precautions.

Also that they have stated they lost control of it across the USA and that it can still come back in a few months.

Don't Panic.

"Don`t panic".

I`ll see that, and raise you,...Complacency expends far less energy. By expending less energy you will be more apt to have the energy needed either to fight this dreaded illness, or comment on its nondemic status in DP this fall.

:cool: <<< Ole poker face. Come on ... call or fold.
 
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