Wikipedia says: A pandemic (from Greek pan “all” + demos “people”) is an epidemic of infectious disease that is spreading through human populations across a large region; for instance a continent, or even worldwide. A widespread endemic disease that is stable in terms of how many people are getting sick from it is not a pandemic. Further, flu pandemics exclude seasonal flu. Throughout history there have been a number of pandemics, such as smallpox and tuberculosis. More recent pandemics include the HIV pandemic and the 2009 flu pandemic.
Preparing for a pandemic now will keep you healthy during an outbreak.
Here’s A Guest Post by Angelika Young
The Secret Way to Protect Yourself Against the Swine Flu Virus
The H1N1 or Swine Flu virus has expanded to so many countries across the globe that there seems to be an unstoppable panic regarding what will happen everyone. This always happens when new strains arise and seem to catch fire through contagious infection. The World Health Organization (WHO) itself has redefined the word “pandemic”. The definition has changed from a disease that kills millions of people to one that could infect millions of people. There are some different ways to look at this action.
Could the WHO be changing their definitions to help out the pharmaceutical companies? That is possible. The Pharmaceutical companies all over the world wield a great deal of influence and power and are certainly in the business of selling drugs to as many people as possible. By creating or marketing drugs that could prevent possible infection with a disease it is definitely to their advantage to have a pandemic spread of any kind. The H1N1 vaccine in particular is suspect when you consider that it does not have a very good track record with the at risk populations. This particular vaccine works best in people who have a natural immunity and resilience to disease, adults in good health. The WHO may be facilitating the use of a vaccine that is less than effective and needs significant trials to prove its worth.
The other way to look at this pandemic issue is that Swine Flu or another virus could be a precursor to something even bigger. The focus on Swine Flu may distract us from something much more lethal such as Spanish Flu. This focus is typical with Western medical thought. You treat the symptoms and not the cause of the disease. Interestingly, it is known that creatures living in close proximity breed diseases which quickly spread throughout the close-knit population. Is it a coincidence then that the two last world pandemic alarms have come from the two most closely bred animals, pigs and birds? Or even that humans in prisons, or high-density urban areas spread disease equally as fast? It is my hope that in the future, equal effort and attention will be paid to the cause of pandemic disease and not just treating the symptoms.
It is most important to remember when we hear all of the hysterical news about pandemics that best way to prevent disease is to wash your hands, cover your mouth, and avoid densely populated areas. By doing these simple things you immediately reduce your overall risk. Fortunately for those of use in developed countries it is very easy to do these things. These are the weapons that every human being should employ against any type of virus, even a pandemic.
It is also important to remember that a healthy body fights off disease better than an unhealthy one. Reduce or eliminate your stress, exercise regularly, eat a healthy balanced diet, and keep yourself well hydrated. This will put you at optimum levels of energy to fight off any type of disease that comes your way. Overall balanced healthy living and a positive attitude should not be overlooked as immunity boosters. No injection or pill can replicate true good health.
The last key issue to remember when you are faced with the world wide panic over pandemics is that the WHO and other health oversight organizations are also concerned with emergency management issues. They are responsible for distributing information and medicine in the case of a pandemic level crisis. To better facilitate their reliability and the readiness of these organizations to respond to a true pandemic whenever it comes, it is necessary for them to treat each developing situation as a potential global problem. In this way, they avoid creating situations such as those that occurred during Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans when no one knew where to go, how to get there, what they were supposed to do, or who was supposed to give the orders. It may seem at times like these organizations are over reacting and making mountains out of mole hills, but they are essentially preparing themselves to help in the best way that they can in the event that they are truly needed.
The best action and advice regarding viral diseases that sweep the globe from time to time is to take of yourself every day, not just the days when you are afraid of getting sick. Take care of yourself, treat your body well, and keep a positive mental outlook. By keeping a holistic view of your own health you can live in a state of balance that will give you the greatest kind of immunity to disease that there is… Our ultimate weapon ” A natural, healthy and balanced immune system”.
Angelika Young is the author of this article and runs the website http://www.supernutritionadvice.com offering a free e-book and common sense advice in field of health, fitness and nutrition.
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