Swine Flu On The Rise: Protect yourself With These Home Remedies

The Tamil Nadu state already had their hands full with the Dengue cases, but there's no respite for them as the H1N1 virus has swept them away, with almost 3000 cases being reported since January. This indicates a mammoth 32-fold increase since last year, when around 122 people were infected. Till the mid of July, this deadly virus has affected 13,188 people and has killed 632 of them. Compared to 1,786 infections and 265 deaths last year, it's clear that the situation is worsening at a dreadful rate.

The conditions in other states is not much good. Tamil Nadu might lead the table for the highest detections of the virus, but Maharashtra had the highest mortality rate, around 300 deaths and 2,738 infections.

Director of Public Health K Kulandaisamy stated that the situation is not as bad as it is being portrayed, and went on to saying that the virus has been brought under control. "Most of these cases were reported from February to April, during the cooler months. Now we see only around five to six flu cases a month," he said, attributing the drop to sanitation campaigns and weather change. Coimbatore, Chennai and Tirunelveli had the highest share of infections.

Public health officials are looking to increase their surveillance of the virus. "In our surveillance we usually look for only five symptoms that have the potential to be an epidemic-prone infection. This doesn't include respiratory distress," said Kulandaisamy. He said most doctors look specifically for H1N1 when they receive a patient with symptoms of flu. "They just rule out or confirm H1N1and don't diagnose what other type of influenza the person has," he said. But this year the symptoms and conditions have not matched in many cases.

"These small genetic changes usually produce viruses that are closely related to one another. An immune system exposed to a similar virus usually recognises it and responds," said infectious disease specialist Dr Dilip Mathai. But in certain cases, these viruses can accumulate over time and produce mutated viruses which our body's immune system might not recognise. " Every viral infection happens in a cyclic pattern. We see a chikungunya outbreak once in 40 years, measles, once in five years. H1N1 is relatively new. We are still learning" he said.

What is Swine Flu

Swine flu, also known as the H1N1 virus, is a relatively new strain of an influenza virus that causes symptoms similar to the regular flu. It originated in pigs, but is spread primarily from person to person. Swine flu made headlines in 2009 when it was first discovered in humans and became a pandemic. Pandemics are contagious diseases affecting people throughout the world or on multiple continents at the same time.

Like other strains of the flu, H1N1 is highly contagious, allowing it to spread quickly from person to person. A simple sneeze can cause thousands of germs to spread through the air. The virus can linger on tables and surface areas like door knobs, waiting to be picked up.

Prevention

The best means of dealing with swine flu is to prevent it. The best way to prevent swine flu is to get a yearly flu vaccination. Other easy ways to prevent swine flu include:

• frequently washing hands with soap or hand sanitizer
• not touching your nose, mouth, or eyes (the virus can survive on surfaces like telephones and tabletops)
• staying home from work or school if you're ill
• avoiding large gatherings when swine flu is in season

Here are some easy tips you can follow to keep the flu away.

1. Have five duly washed tulsi leaves (basil) every morning. Tulsi is known to have a number of therapeutic properties. It helps in strengthening your immunity.

2. Do Pranayam daily and go for morning jog/walk regularly to keep your throat and lungs in good condition. Even in small measures, it will work wonders for your body's resistance against all such diseases which attack the nose, throat and lungs, besides keeping you fit.

3. You can have a a small piece of kapoor or camphor. Adults can swallow it with water while children can take it along with food. Please remember camphor is not to be taken everyday, but only once each season, or once a month.

4. You should eat citrus fruits rich in vitamin c daily especially amla.

5. Take two pods of raw garlic first thing in the morning by swallowing it with lukewarm water. It will strengthen your immunity.

6. Take a glass of hot or lukewarm milk every night with a small measure of haldi (turmeric).

7. The thick and long, cactus-like leaves of aloe vera have an odourless gel. A teaspoon of this gel taken with water daily can work wonders for not only your skin and joint pains, but also boost immunity.

8. Lastly, always wash your hands with soap and warm water daily as frequently as possible. Also, encourage your children to do the same.  

 

 

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