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All This Swine Flu Stuff- Fact or Fiction?

Every day there's more news about how many new cases of flu have been discovered and where. The latest numbers that I have seen:

Officials have confirmed at least 93 cases in the United States, including 51 in New York, 14 in California, 16 in Texas, three in Maine; two in Kansas, two in Massachusetts, and one each in Indiana, Ohio, Arizona and Nevada. CDC also said Michigan had two, but state officials maintained only one was confirmed. As of yesterday a 23 month old in Texas who traveled with it's mother from Mexico, is the only victim in the US that has died, and they have discovered 2 more cases in San Mateo, CA this morning.
I have to confess, until this happened I have never really understood what a "Pandemic" was. I just thought somehow it was connected to an "epidemic". I never really paid attention during SARS or the bird flu because it never seemed to get so out of hand so fast. Now it's hitting close to home so if any one else doesn't understand it here you go-

A pandemic is an epidemic that spreads around the whole world. Pandemics also often cause more severe disease than epidemics.
I think it's very important to keep the public informed and remind them of ways to prevent getting it. Unfortunately informing the public also means panic in most cases. Once again "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" and most of it is just pure common sense precautions you would take in any situation where you may catch an illness from someone else.
According to the news here, in some places there isn't a face mask or bottle of anti-bacterial soap to be had. While these are great to have on hand, according to a lot of physicians they don't really help much. The main things to remember are to wash your hands often, don't touch any of your sinus cavities (eyes, nose, mouth), and stay out of places where people are breathing on you, sneezing, or coughing. If you have symptoms yourself, take precautions not to infect others. This means no matter how guilty your boss makes you feel for calling in sick, STAY HOME. Wash your hands often, cover your mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing, and throw tissues away immediately.

The initial symptoms of this flu virus are like those of the regular, annual flu viruses: fever, muscle aches, runny nose, and sore throat. Nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may be more common with this swine flu than with the regular flu, although to me those are the things that always defined a flu vs. a cold, etc. People should seek medical attention immediately if more serious symptoms develop.

For adults, teens, and kids age 3 to 12, the most worrisome symptoms are:

Shortness of breath
Persistent vomiting
Confusion
Dizziness

For children younger than 2, the most worrisome symptoms are:

Very rapid breathing
Not interacting normally, not eating or drinking normally, being unusually irritable, or appearing unusually sleepy
High fever and rash
A bluish color of the lips and skin

Adults should be considered contagious until at least 7 days after the start of symptoms; with children, it may be 10 to 14 days.

Another symptom of the panic is people are starting to order Tamiflu online without a prescription and self medicating. This is really scary. The regular yearly flu shot is ineffective for this particular strain of flu, so people are looking for other answers. I saw on one of the message boards this morning where someone was bragging about being "all stocked up without a prescription" and telling others where to get it. According to one of the health newsletters I get-
Let's not forget that Tamiflu comes with its own problems, including side effects like nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, dizziness, fatigue, cough…the very symptoms you're trying to avoid. And let's not forget that Japan banned this drug for children back in 2007, after links to suicidal behavior.
They are in a dead heat to find a vaccine for this and unfortunately if they come up with one they won't have time for clinical trials to see how effective or how dangerous it is, so the best thing is to do what you can to protect your own immune system. Personally in our house, we use Nutrilite Triple Guard Echinacea. I know there were a couple of headlines that say it doesn't work, but between my kids and my customers, you'd be hard-pressed proving to them it doesn't work. My kids reach for it as soon as they feel like they're coming down with something and I don't even have to remind them. LOL.

Oh, and by the way, cooked properly it's as safe as it ever was to eat pork. LOL.

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Stop The Travesty! Updates on Gardasil


I don't know how many of you read my original post on Gardasil about 3 weeks after my oldest daughter got her 3rd shot. She had decided to do this on her own without my knowledge (she's 27 now). By the 3rd week after her 3rd shot her arm was still so sore that she couldn't raise it past her shoulder. She had been having trouble working and was starting to become concerned and finally told me about it.

I did quite a bit of research at that time and was quite alarmed to find how many adverse reactions had been reported and how many side effects were never mentioned by Merk. At that time I believe the death toll was about 9 girls. Here we are less than a year later and the numbers are staggering, and they are still promoting this to be safe and effective for all girls. The death toll was up to 29 as of January of this year, emergency room visits up to over 5000.

Now they are talking about starting little girls as young as 9 years old, giving it to boys to stop the virus where it starts, and some states are still talking about making it mandatory. I can see why Merk doesn't want to acknowledge what's happening. They're making a fortune on this drug, but to whose expense? I was astounded to see the number of videos on YouTube that were dedicated to the memory of young, vibrant, healthy girls that either have no life anymore due to their lack of ability to do anything, to actually dying after having the vaccine.

I am begging you if you have a daughter or know someone who has a daughter between the ages of 9 and 26 years old, please go to http://www.nvic.org/ and get the facts about this vaccine that is murdering our children. Please sign the petition to stop this insanity. Also, go to YouTube and search "Gardasil" and watch some of these tragic stories. Listen to the mothers who either have no daughter anymore, or live with guilt and regret every day over the decision to get their daughters vaccinated.

Ask President Obama if he's going to have his girls vaccinated with Gardasil when they are old enough. If not, why is it good enough for our daughters but not for his? I bet with a little education Michelle would have something to say about that.

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Who Will The Tax Man Get Next? You?


As I said in my previous post, I'm pretty upset about the (outrageous)raise of taxes on cigarettes. I (told you so) that we were just the first, but wouldn't be the last. Now they're hitting me in another vice. Below is what I received in my email from my subscription to Nightclub & Bar Magazine.



SAVE JOBS – STOP TAX HIKES! Join Us In The Fight To Protect Hardworking Americans

As a Nightclub & Bar partner, you need to know about a serious threat facing our industry. With the economy suffering, both state and federal government are considering huge tax increases on alcohol products. This will cost jobs in our industry— including those of small business owners, servers and bartenders like you who are the lifeblood of our economy. We need your personal involvement and help.
There's a real price to pay when elected officials misguidedly try to replenish state budgets with regressive taxes that will hit us at a time when we are already being hit hard economically. These taxes will cause folks who work hard every day to lose their jobs. In fact, the last time they raised taxes on alcohol, $1.3 billion in wages were lost, while 98,000 people found themselves out of work.
Hardly sounds fair, does it?
It's time to SAY NO to higher taxes that will put jobs at risk and raise prices on the people who can afford it the least. Taking action is easy and won't take much of your time, but it will make a giant difference: CLICK HERE to join the fight against irresponsible and regressive taxes.
Also, and very importantly, it is vital to our industry and our effort to protect jobs that everyone in the industry make their voice heard. I urge you to forward this link, http://corp.questexmediagroup.com/t/499706/7342787/33101/0/, to your friends, colleagues, and family members who share our conviction that these misguided taxes will harm our industry and cause severe job cuts. You can also send them an e-mail asking for their help on this issue by CLICKING HERE and providing their names and email addresses on our Send to a Friend form. The more voices our government representatives hear the more likely they are to listen and prevent these ill-advised tax increases. Thanks very much for your help on this important matter.
Together, we can protect our jobs, our livelihoods, and the right to responsibly enjoy a drink.
Cheers!
Donna Hood CreccaEditorial DirectorNightclub & Bar Please drink responsibly.
I'm telling you, it's just a matter of time until they get to something that affects what you eat, or drink, or do. How did it get to this?
I'm in the process of looking for a new place to live. This campaign to stamp out smoking has made smokers a complete outcast. It's easier to find a place to live with pets than if you smoke. What happens when they say if you're obese you can't rent because it causes wear and tear, like in the days when they made the rules against waterbeds? It sounds crazy, but then again, that's what they said when the anti-smoking laws were just coming into being.

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