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Firstsies!
And the bubble for actual should be 1/20 of it’s size.
flopculture
Wrongo, people. In the last 1 week the flower girl in a wedding I was at got H1N1, the daughter of a co-worker got H1N1 and several people in the hospital I work at were positive for H1N1 itself, not just Influenza A. The only reason actual proven infections aren’t more is because they are not testing for H1N1, just for I-A, of which H1N1 is a sub-group. They only test the really bad cases.
Almost 6,000 dead worldwide, over 4,000 in the Americas. And history shows us that pandemics usually last around 3 years. You might be sick of hearing about it, but it’s only just begun…
6000 world wide for (insert cause of death here) is not really much.
3000 die each year on the roads in Britain alone (like, 1% of the total world population, and our roads are comparitively safe) but it doesn’t gather anything like that mass hysteria… just a few poorly researched and patronising ads and a gaggle of speed cameras.
Though it’s arguable that the media hysteria is one of the (several) things (including protracted hard work of researchers and medical staff) that’s STOPPED it from blowing up so far, so we might not want to disparage it that much so far.
Not that the graph does, it just points out the facts
And it gave me an actual lol for once rather than just a smile, so well done. Good use of ludicrously big circles.
Oh god no! Considering 30,000 people die annually of the normal flu, the H1N1 “pandemic” is but a joke.
ive heard its even more than that about 20 fold
oh and swine flu hasnt auctually killed 6000 (more like 500) because what kills them is a secondary bronchitus and if u DO die its because you have a horrible immune system
Or, you die because you have a TERRIFIC immune system, so strong and swift that it overwhelms your respiratory system with fluid and you either die very quickly (rare) or you develop a pneumonia. This is why both the novel H1N1 and the 1918 flu killed the young healthy population far more than the more “feeble” patients you’d normally expect.
I know that graphjam isn’t really the place for education but there’s a lot of misinformation floating around. While you’re right that technically it’s a secondary infection in a lot of people, the young and healthy can die from the flu itself– not just H1N1, but especially H1N1.
6000 is nothing, the normal flu kills 36000 yearly! in the past 20 years since swine flu started only 18000 have died total, that is still 1/2 of the normal flu yeary, the swine flu is total bull.
No. They had a cold. People are naturally melodramatic. Simples.
For what it’s worth, we test people who need “proof” of why they’re going to be out of work or school for 7 days. The severity of the infection does not determine testing. A very sick person will be treated supportive measures in the hospital and an uncomfortable person will be treated at home regardless of what the test says– the test is for epidemiological data gathering and not for directing treatment.
The circle of infections should be small, but it should also have a field outside the media coverage circle, as many (most!) people are not tested and are part of media speculation but not actually covered, per say.
Obligatory:
Venn diagrams DO NOT show relative size, only overlap. Also, it has to be in the same units.
In persons, this graph should be reversed.
don’t believe there’s any law about you also using them for size if you want.
and almost every death has brought some kind of media coverage, so far. the “actual deaths” circle should maybe be down in one corner so that a small sliver of it is outside the “media” one, but i won’t personally grudge them that slight detail
I Lol’d.
Then showed my co-workers and we Lol’d together.
I’d rather you showered with your co-workers and layed together.
lol…and I am feeling guilty about it.
okay ew. u r nasty…
I don’t know about that, I’m a teacher and I’ve never seen so many students out at once because they had swine flu. We had over 20% absentee rates a couple weeks ago, and the majority of those absences were because the students had swine flu. It might not (typically) be very strong, but it is still highly contagious.
Bad news boaks. Your students are either 1. Lying to get out of school or 2. Have stupid and easily fooled parents. Not sure what grade you teach.
Elementary school. I wonder who taught those kids to fake a fever?
Or it could have been just a cold that the parents were freaking out over…
Colds don’t cause fever, flu does.
According to the World Health Organization’s own numbers, total worldwide serious infection for H1N1 is approximately 500,000 – 600,000.
Total worldwide serious infections of your typical “seasonal flu” is between 2 and 5 million. We’re looking at almost a full order of magnitude difference.
Also, deaths from seasonal flu are typically about 500,000 a year, or approimately 10% of all serious infections. H1N1 currently has less than 6000 deaths worldwide. That’s approximately 1% of all serious cases.
So we’re looking at an infection that is about 1/10 as prevalent as the average seasonal flu… and has a death rate 1/10 of the seasonal flu.
Exactly… I keep trying to tell people this, but they never listen to me. =/
Tiny difference, swineflu’s hasn’t had time to spread for a few decades.
Flu mutates every year, which is the reason for a new flu shot every season. And regular flu has been around for way more than a few decades, it just keeps changing slightly.
Actually Swine Flu has been recorded all the way back to the 1960’s, so yeah it’s had plenty of time to spread!!
You’re so right! I was diagnosed with it back then and was so deathly ill it was scary! I “gave” it to my dad and it nearly killed him! Thank God he pulled through! But as others have stated, so many times it’s mutations!!!
There are also the many cases where doctors just call it off as the A H1N1 even when the patients don’t have it just as a “security measure”
lol My Poli Sci class was canceled today because my professor has h1n1. lol
We had a 25% absentee rate because of the flu. Very high for this time of year. The death rate is high for this time of year but very low for the flu season as a whole.
Also, at one point, my daughter’s 4th grade had 7 of 20 out. And my brother and two sisters and a sister-in-law are nurses and say that they are inundated with cases. Worse they have seen. And they are in 4 different cities in 3 states.
Graph fact fail.
One 4th grade class at one of my schools had 13 out of 24 absent one day a couple weeks ago. I teach orchestra, and when I saw how few instruments there were in the hall, I was upset that so many had forgotten their instruments, then when I picked them up for class, everyone that came to class had an instrument–there were just that many absent! It’s really crazy.
Refer to my reply to boaks.
I’m in college, and I’ve seen a lot of it, too. Lots of absences, lots of sick friends, and now I have it too. Its probably not a big deal yet among those of you who work in offices and whatnot (because you’re less likely to be exposed), but it’s spreading like wildfire amongst student bodies around the country.
You and your friends probably just have the flu.
Yeah. Where I live there are two flus going around. I’ve got the “other” flu. It’s pretty awful.
At Rowan U. in NJ, they actually quarantined a section of the campus housing to H1N1 cases… But the quarantined rooms are interspersed with the regular ones… So, quarantine fail.
And how do you know that those who are out of school actually have it?
They need to report the reason for their absence. Seeing as I teach elementary school, I’m going to assume the parents aren’t lying about why their student is home. No, you can’t be 100% sure, but I have faith in people, so I’m going to believe them.
You can’t know. Most states aren’t even testing for H1N1. People are out sick due to ILL. The only people currently tested are either extremely ill or are part of surveillance testing. The surveillance testing is to measure the presence of seasonal flu and of H1N1.
WIN
Many docs test for influenza A, of which H1N1 is the only strain going around right now. My kid has it, and 34 out of 70 kids at her school are absent with similar symptoms. Not much of a stretch to think they likely have it as well. The graph’s based on faulty data.
So far the symptoms aren’t horrible but it seems pretty contagious.
Similar symptoms ≠ H1N1
Check out Code Monkey’s post above. Yeah, H1N1 is contagious, just like, oh I dunno… any other flu that has ever existed?
At my college, doctors aren’t even testing to see whether or not students have it: My friend had a runny nose and cough for only one day, and was literally restricted to her apartment, unable to attend classes, for five days. All in all, this graph is not talking about whether or not H1N1 exists; it’s portraying how much everyone has over-exaggerated its effects.
The only reason 34 kids at your daughter’s school are absent is because people fear H1N1’s unorthodox origins – and with fears, come silly precautions. “Johnny! You sneezed! You are -not- going to school today. You could have H1N1.”
A-FREAKING-MEN
Parents need not disclose that their child has/had H1N1 due to right of privacy. It was going around my boy’s class and we were never notified. Only after talking to several parents did we find out what was going on.
next day’s function, high class lucheon?
I think a dot labelled “Actual deaths” is missing
It’s too small, you can’t see it without a microscope. A powerful one at that.
Look REALLY REALLY close. Don’t go blind now, but see that one pixel that is just slightly off color? There it is. Somewhere. I think..
LOL. This I can’t argue with. It’s really contagious, but it’s just as hard as regular flu to die from.
No, it’s HARDER.
lol!XD
and, about the sick people, you can only be sure if its H1N1 if a doctor tests you, and guess what? doctors usually wont test due to safety reasons
so you can rarely be suree that someone has the swine flu instead of the normal 1 ^^
Safety reasons? What? They test for the flu. If it is type A they assume swine because something like 99% tested at the CDC were swine. They did thousands of tests. The doctors tested both my daughters. One had it one didn’t. I have no idea what danger it proposes that goes above someone with the flu being in your office.
Logic fail.
97%
Timeline fail. It was over 90% during April and May. Now it is closer to 50/50 with seasonal flu from surveillance testing.
104% of all percentages and claims are made up on the spot, and are not factual at all.
Allie, I was looking at year-to-date data. Sorry. It has dropped.
Admit fail.
But mature response win!
Actually, it is pretty prevalent where I am living. In some parts of the country, its non-existent. Schools around me are canceled due to 40% absent rates.
Ah, satire taken seriously…
Definitely teachers.
Yup.
Actually, I think it is the basis of the satire. Print satire on an actual fact and I will grin. Satire is … oh crap, I did it again.
Teacher til death.
OMG so much ignorance here…
I work/volunteer at a hospital and the infection rate is actually very high. Many people have it, or have had it already. Also, if you have a flu right now, it’s probably H1N1 because the regular flu season hasn’t started yet…. that comes later.
ALSO it is NOT THE SWINE FLU. That was a misnomer by the media and now everyone is running with it. The swine flu was something else like 10 years ago. This is H1N1, NOT the swine flu.
ADDITIONALLY, H1N1 is not as bad as everyone seems to think it is. You should only be concerned if you live in a not very developed country, or if you are young, elderly or have a compromised/unhealthy immune system. It’s also not NECCESSARY that you get a vaccination.
FTW. I have been trying to explain to people at work that they don’t need to panic over it. I think the unfortunate thing is that it was declared “pandemic” and the media has run with it, not apprising people that pandemic doesn’t indicate how severe it is, but how far it’s gotten.
I will start to worry when, like the 1918 flu, 25 million people die in the span of six months.
thank you for the info! i felt it wasn’t really necessary to get vaccinated for that (it’s not this horrible zombie plague that everyone has been claiming it is). amazingly i have yet to catch it even though the majority of my co-workers have come down with it and have been in the office.
First, it is “swine flu”, says the CDC: http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/vaccination/general.htm
Second, the death rate isn’t that high, but you’re wrong about only needing to worry if you’re immunocompromised or elderly. (In fact, the elderly have LESS than normal to fear this time around as many of them were exposed to a similar strain in, what was it, the 50s?) One of the scary things about this strain is that it has taken an unusually high number of otherwise healthy, young people.
This isn’t to say you should panic, but there’s reason to take precautions. A vaccine, once they actually have them decently available, is a good idea for most people.
Absolutely correct. A fifteen year-old girl in my area just died from it. The dangers are not limited to the extremely vulnerable.
She’s 15. She probably already had like 5 STD’s, so how was she not immunocompromised?
Uhm.. Alex? Nice post and all.. but flu season usually stretches from October to February … It’s a cold-loving virus, and we’re well in it. I’m glad to see at least some people aren’t going OMFG FWINE SLU, but careful what you say. ^_^
Thanks for saying what I was going to! I thought, gee, how strange, MY doctor always stressed the flu season starting in Sept/Oct. I AM immune compromised with severe respiratory issues and was told NOT to get that shot! I had the “regular” flu” several years ago (even with my shot) and it was absolutely the worst case I have ever had in my entire life (over the big 5-0 now), and I ended up in the ER!!!
So, be safe, but don’t, for crying out loud, believe the “sky is falling” ca-ca!!!
swine flu and H1N1 are two different things… look it up
The CDC thinks you’re wrong:
http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/vaccination/general.htm
i have swine flu
why do ass holes call it h1n1
can’t they be normal??
The pork industry lost $1 Billion because retards thought they could catch the flu from pigs because of the name “Swine flu” so they started reporting the name as H1N1.
People assumed you could get swine flu from contact with pigs (not true) like you can get bird flu from contact with infected birds (true). But the name came from that it’s a hybrid flu, comprised of pig, bird and human strains. Bird flu was already taken, and since it’s a special flu they couldn’t just call it “the flu”. So pigs got the bad rap, albeit unfairly.
The bird flu, aaah those were the days. It was a media hysteria much like this one. Any day, the bird flu would mutate and become more contagious to humans or something, and immediately decimate half of Asia. A year or 2 later, and everyone is still here. *yawn*
I like bacon.
Ditto.
At the beginning of the year I would say this was absolutely accurate, but I am not seeing quite as much hysteria in the media, and a LOT of people are sick. Who cares if it’s swine flue or regular flu? If they’re not testing for it then NO ONE knows, including the skeptics (both sides) posting on here. This chart sucks.
I actually caught H1N1… I felt awfully blah for a little over a week and slept a lot, and then I got better. PLUS I lost about five pounds from lack of foodage, which is a horrible way to lose weight but hey, it worked.
My point being is that when I got back to work my coworkers were very worried about me being back to work ’so soon’ and were afraid of catching it. They seemed to think I was on my death bed when, really, I was just ill for a while.
I had the flu for a week as well, including the five pounds weight loss. No clue if it was THE flu (dun dun dunnnn), because while I could be wrong, I figured it’d get treated the same either way and oh look, no insurance.
I just laugh at people getting psycho paranoid about things. Precautions are one thing, but there ought to be limits.
I just got over H1N1. It’s VERY painful. Please try not to get it.
Okay… let’s get some facts straight.
H1N1 IS A REAL PROBLEM- this is the same type (and is showing the same first characteristics) of the Spanish Influenza that killed more people than all the world wars combined – and it only killed 10% of people infected. Last time, hospitals were not prepared and bodies piled up around them people dying while they waited for a respirator. Even if we’re more prepared now, there’s 3 times as many people worldwide now! Hospitals simply can’t cope with a thousand people daily – it’s worrisome.
GET VACCINATED – Vaccines are pretty much the safest form of medication around. It’s been *proven* safe and effective. There’s really no reason not to get it unless you’ve been tested positive for H1N1. Even if you’ve been sick recently, there’s no way to tell! The idea is to stop the *spread*. You never know if you’ll come in contact with an immunocompromised person. Protect them by protecting yourself.
IT’S NOT KILLING PEOPLE… YET – True, the virus is not very virulent yet, but now that there are so many people becoming infected, the likelihood of a “bad” mutation increases dramatically. It’s also killing a disproportionate number of young people mostly due to cytokine storms (Google that, lol), and not secondary infections. Very, very unusual.
Anyway, there’s the microbiology major’s take on it. I know it seems like a lot of hoopla, but this virus could take a very nasty turn very fast, so it’s better to be over-prepared. Just in case.
– Atalanta
At least in the US and Europe they banned the use of Squalene (known to cause auto-immune disorders such as Lupus and Lou Gherig’s) in H1N1 vaccines. It is being used in the Canadian vaccine made by Glaxo-Smith Klein! I will not knowingly endanger my family like that by getting them vaccinated!
Well, chalk up a great graph for the tin-foil-hat-wearing anti-science dupes.
A better graph would have been FLU VACCINE HYSTERIA GENERATED BY ANTI-VAXXERS (large circle) vs. ACTUAL PROBLEMS WITH FLU VACCINE (tiny little dot).
If you’re in one of the risk groups, get the shot or the spray. Herd immunity helps everyone.
I must admit, that ever since there have been flu shots, I’ve never had one. I truly believe I will get the flu from the vaccine. I’m not your typical anti-vaxxer, don’t worry about mercury, etc., just my gut feeling about the outcome. And, I haven’t had the flu since early 90’s, even though I’m in that “should get the vaccine” group.
However, if I had health insurance and could afford it, I would the the pneumonia vaccine. I’ve had pneumonia 4 times, and don’t have that same feeling about that vaccine.
And, to get even further off-topic, I think people who go to work sick (flu or other contagious disease) should be disciplined. I always wondered how many people were infected by coworkers who got “perfect attendance” awards.
So you know, you CANNOT get influenza from the vaccine. You’re injected with what’s called an “attenuated” virus. That is, the virus is half-dead – the only reason some people get flu symptoms afterwards is that their immune response is healthy and strong and the *body’s reaction* causes the symptoms, NOT the virus.
I hate to say it, but it’s an instance of magical thinking. The vaccine’s virus can’t hurt you, but people are automatically against the idea of being injected with it.
And one reason you may have pnemonia so often (not knowing your full medical history, of course) is possibly because of the flu. Classic secondary infection is after a flu virus weakens respiratory tissues, making it much more likely for you to be infected by, for example, Streptococcus pnemoniae. Just a possibility.
And anyone who’s truly had the influenza virus (not a gastrointestinal infection or a cold) knows it really knocks you off your feet for about a week. There’s no way you can be productive if you have difficulty getting out of bed. So it’s difficult to judge those who claim to have the flu – if they actually do, they’re not lying. They physically can’t get to work.
Atlanta,
That would explain why I was totally wiped out for a week after my one and only flu vaccination. I am immune-compromised because of the medication I’m on. Just dragging myself to the bathroom was a chore. I swore of flu vaccinations from then on. I’m glad to finally have it explained. I think I’ll just take my chances with H1N1 however.
Ah. That sounds great. You don’t actually get the flu, you just get all the symptoms. Wow. Sign me up.
lol, that’s not what I meant. For a *VERY* small percentage of people, they develop a little bit of lethargy or a low-grade fever for a few hours. You don’t actually get full-blown symptoms. Kinda defeats the purpose of a vaccine, ya think?
Yeah–as I said, it’s my gut feeling about the flu vaccines. Doesn’t seem particularly magical to me to have that feeling, but if you say so… And, half-alive is too alive for me.
Pneumonia–nah, I’d say flu related is unlikely. It was 3 times before I was 10 years old (while living in two different states), once in my 20’s (in yet another state), and I’m over 50 now–but I’d still get the vaccine if I could.
And the perfect attendance awards (given by the State agency I worked for) meant people with all manner of contagion were likely showing up, not just flu. Of course, I don’t believe everyone gets a contagious illness every year, so I’m sure some of those folks were non-contagious even if they felt bad (allergies, etc.). If they showed up they were probably just non-productive.
It’s not only half-dead, it’s nearly all the way there– it dies as soon as it approaches body temperature, which is why the slightly cooler nasal passage is where it’s instilled. The body mounts a Cell-based immunity instead of just an antibody immunity, making it superior to the shot, but I will admit that some of my patients have called and complained of feeling off after the nasal spray. They don’t have true flu sx though and I suspect that it’s more a reaction to the solution that the flu is shipped in– it tastes pretty gross anyway. So mostly confirmation bias, maybe some magical thinking, maybe some reaction to the solution. It beats the flu though.
…what kind of place of work gives out “perfect attendance” awards to its employees? I haven’t seen those since elementary school!
boaks,
We get little half-sheets of paper for teacher perfect attendance. I used to post mine on the wall. I almost framed them. I think someone donated a free lunch(pizza, no doubt) but it is for students and teachers.
yay.
New York State Department of Corrections does. And probably some other NY State agencies.
So I should get disciplined for needing my paycheck? Not everyone has paid sick days, and if they do, not everyone has enough.
Like when my boss suggested I take off until my cough cleared up but for some reason wasn’t willing to pay me for 3 months of sick leave.
I’m home with H1N1 right now (As confirmed by my doc). For all those doubting how wide spread H1N1 really is, check out the CDC website for an explanation.
H1N1 is not really any worse than the regular flu; however, because of the way this particular strain evolved/mutated, very few people under the age of 60 have any natural immunity to it, while almost everyone has some natural immuity to “normal” strains of the flu. Thus, H1N1 is highly contagious, and it makes perfect sense that lots of people are coming down with it.
Apparently from the posts here there is still more disinformation than real info and no one seems to know for sure what’s the truth.
So, here’s my personal experience: My wife tested positive for H1N1 last week. So far, none of the rest of us has it. We are keeping a close watch on the one with Asthma.
I’ve never had a flu shot and I’m an old fart now… we all have to go some day…
I’d say it’s 100% likely this graph is 50-50 accurate…
Sorry to hear. My 9 year-old had it and no one else got it in our family. No vaccines, either. She did get nauseous because of the meds but is better. Even commented that people should not freak out because it was “nothing”.
Hope all goes well.
probably there are a lot of infected, but more people die for other kind of disease (kids with diarrhea in third world countries, hepatitis, malnutrition that is not a disease but a lot of people is dying) than for this one
LOL! This graph is great.
Just keep washing your hands multiple times each day, and if you’re sick, for g*d’s sake — don’t go to work or school!
That’s hilarious. You agree with the graph that there’s not a problem, but you’re imploring people to take precautions to limit the problem.
here’s what i love. people that are more in danger from h1n1 like asthma sufferers are told to get vaccinated, but then when i was reading about my school giving out the nasal version for free for students, i read that people with conditions like asthma shouldnt get it. um, what? so i should get vaccinated, but i also shouldnt. awesome. >.<
There are two different vaccines. One is a shot, which is like the seasonal flu vaccine: the virus that they put into you is not “live”. The nasal spray vaccine *does* contain a live virus, and so people in high-risk groups – such as those with respiratory problems – should not get it. They should get the injected vaccine.
I have H1N1 right now. It is NOT exactly the same as the seasonal flu (and I’ve had seasonal flu enough times to be very familiar with the symptoms). H1N1 attacks the respiratory system much more quickly than seasonal flu does. People with asthma, lung disease, chronic bronchitis, etc could suffer very serious consequences if they are infected with H1N1. That does not mean that every single person with lung problems who is infected with H1N1 will die a horrible miserable death, but plenty of them will. It causes your lungs to fill up with fluid and it drowns you. Tell me that’s something to laugh about…go ahead, tell me.
That said, the hundreds of graphs about media hype surrounding the swine flu were old about two months ago. Move on, please.
‘Nother Guest = knowledge win.
Thank God for people who know their microbio.
We gotta stick together in these mad mad times, Atalanta.
All credit to you guys – my degree is in viral studies and immunology and I cannot ever bring myself to argue with anti-vaxx nutjobs because it just annoys me SO much
I had the H1N1 a month ago. I still don’t feel good – slight bronchial infection still! Our Dr. at work (we have our own ER – cool, huh?) said that out of 8000 people at work she’s seen a little under 2000 cases. I feel bad for the pregnant women out there. I think I’d be scared to go out!
I hope you get over yours soon, and do better than I am.
The worst part was being nauseated and having to cough.
Drink fluids and rest! Take care!
I just got an email stating that Sacramento has declared a Federal Emergency because of the H1N1. I hope it’s bogus.
In the USA, people with asthma or diabetes cannot get the spray. In most other countries, they can. It’s a matter of litigation, not hard science, since the virus dies at 98 degrees farenheit. As a provider who is WAITING for the H1N1 shot from the CDC so I can vaccinate my asthmatic and diabetic patients, it’s frustrating. I wish the USA wasn’t so up on suing people.
I’ve just been diagnosed with it, and there are about forty people (out of 200) in my dorm that are quarantined because of it. It really depends on whether the person how bad it gets. One kid had to go to the hospital, but most of us are just tired and miserable.
i’m part of the bubble!
and actually, my doctor said that 99% of the flu cases he’s seen so far have been h1n1
The freaking swine flu is really just a strain of flu. More people die of regular influenza virus than h1n1… sooo this thing just made my day
People need to pipe it down about this swine flu business!
Bah, try that again…
[directs you to my comment above explaining why H1N1 *needs* extra attention...]
Love it ~
I’ve worked in a pharmacy for quite a while now, and nearly everyone who’s come in with H1N1 actually just has normal flu. Yet they still have all the notes and stuff saying it’s H1N1 so that they can get off work/get the Tamiflu/etc.
Makes me laugh at work when the other Pharmacist tells it to them straight and they ask if we can pretend they’ve got it, just so they can have some time off.
this graph represents australia better as barely anyone got sick n died here. Its old news for us now
Nah, I doubt any of the infections are swine flu. It’s probably just Gangrene, or maybe it’s just septicemic. There really isn’t anything to worry about.
Kind of not true… Someone came to school with H1N1, and now I have it and 40% of the student body has it, along with parents and teachers. -___-
Actually, a lot of people DO have swine flu right now. What the media is overcovering is the death risk.
Everyone I know who has had it just said it was like a normal flu for them. Passed on its own.
Granted I don’t want to get it because I can’t afford to miss 2 weeks of work (flu of any sort normally takes me out for about that long), but aside from that I’m not worried.
This graph made me lol… but after reading some of these comments I seriously wanted to bang my head on the desk.
Here’s some basic facts;
H1N1 is highly contagious, but so is the normal seasonal flu. H1N1 has killed a decent amount of people this year, but only about 1/10 (give or take) of that of a normal seasonal flu. Just like the normal flu H1N1 also tends to kill people whom; have compromised or weak immune systems (do to many things including age), do not eat correctly and/or keep them selves hydrated during the illness, do not take medications to help with the symptoms and people who have a pre-existing conditions (like asthma) that H1N1 would seriously effect.
From what I have seen from my 2 friends that TESTED positive for H1N1, was that it’s a pretty weak flu and they both recovered in less than 5 days.
If you simply compare H1N1 to previous FLU season records it’s a pretty lame strain of flu barely pumping out 1/10 (give or take) of the numbers a normal seasonal flu does… yes the numbers are there. Try comparing them to, oh say, 2008 or 2007’s flu season numbers and you’ll see what some of these comments are talking about.
Finally, yes, WAY too much hype, but hype is a mater of perception. It may be an issue in your small corner of the world, but the over all numbers are still pretty lame when it comes to “pandemic flu seasons”.
Media fear mongering win?
Keep in mind that while this is not killing a lot of people, it’s infecting thousands at a time. As I said earlier, this makes it much more likely for a “bad” mutation to occur and make it as deadly as the Spanish Influenza (killed 500 million people in 6 months, also an H1N1 with a similar infection rate so far). There are also 3 times as many people now as there were in 1918 – if this strain gets deadly, things can get very bad very fast. Our hospitals simply don’t have the capacity to deal with thousands of new patients every day that need respirators. Plus, it’s killing a lot of *young* people (via cytokine storms) which is virtually unheard of in a regular seasonal strain.
So no, they’re not identical and H1N1 is certainly more of a threat. I’m just sorry that people see it as fear-mongering. It’s a liability issue, basically. If things go south, the government and health authority can honestly claim to have done their best. So, personally, I’m pleased to see a lot of media coverage.
Never once did I say they were identical nor did I say that H1N1 wasn’t dangerous. I am only focusing on current statistical data which are based off of known comparisons. (Like the ones I have listed above.) The graph is comparing the known statistical data of the normal flu to the H1N1 virus. Yes it’s a little exaggerated, but it’s accurate in the sense that all know data on the H1N1 virus is currently banking only about 1/10 that of a normal flu statistics.
Also, why would the media be liable for a virus outbreak that they didn’t predict? The media is supposed to report on CURRENT events not predict that which hasn’t happened yet. If they are told to report on precautions for the virus then that’s why they report on it, because the precautions are current. It’s not their prediction. You can love the media all you want but they are in no way liable if H1N1 mutates and goes nuts.
Honestly your comprehension and logic skills fail. I understand where you are coming from, but it’s an argument that’s not even related to the original statement.
I’d read over the last 2 major parts of my previous post again with 2 key elements I’d like to point out; “Try comparing them to, oh say, 2008 or 2007’s flu season numbers” and “hype is a mater of perception”.
Okay, I give, it looks like a small logic fail. What I meant to imply is that the government and health authorities are pushing for lots of coverage in the media to make as many people aware as possible in order to prevent as many infections as possible. And the government does have a lot of advertisements independent of the press as well, at least in Canada.
Of course, it looks like a lot of hoopla, I get that. The stats simply don’t support the fact that there could be danger imminent.
Exactly, I wasn’t disagreeing with what you were saying. It “can” become a major threat. I just personally have yet to see a reason for all the “OMGZ RUN!” on the american media about it.
Thus one of the reasons I canceled my cable TV years ago. (go hulu!) lol
Bah, stupid internet…
So danger imminent, blah blah blah… And legally, they government certainly isn’t liable if H1N1 gets nasty. But say it did. And the people felt uninformed. Naturally, you blame authority figures in the medical community for not informing and thus protecting you. That’s what I meant when I said “liable” – so I use my adjectives rather loosely. So sue me.
But you have a very valid point. And honestly, I hope that the stats stay this way. A nice mild flu virus, no more no less. [crosses fingers]
If the media attention scares people into getting vaccinated I’m all for it.
No one is taking this seriously which is why ANYone is dying.
Thanks for being an ignoramus…
Ha! I own you all. I already got it. This epidemic really is a joke. [evil laughter]
It’s a pandemic.
Whatever, it’s the same basic concept anyway…
[cough cough]
To all the teachers on here noticing the high absentee levels in their classes… (1.) I don’t think that school attendance is the standard by which you should measure the level of infection for the adult population as well and (2.) How many cases of flu are actually H1N1 and NOT Influenza A?. For the teacher who asked if the kids were faking a fever, Influenza A comes with a fever also. And The flu is not the only thing that comes with a fever, I believe Strep Throat also does along with other types of infections. (I’m not a doctor, this is just from personal experiences with illnesses)
From what I hear, Influenza A is most fatal to the very young and elderly while H1N1 is more dangerous to teenagers and adults because their increased metabolic rate makes H1N1 a more aggressive and virulant strain.
And as for the media….it lends itself to the spread of fear of a particular thing… Everyone likes to be informed, especially when health threats or other issues that affect society at large are happening. In the case of this flu issue going on, the news media is striking fear into people which can create a ‘herd mentality’ and cause a stampede. The stock market is another good example of this ‘herd mentality’ that causes people to respond by what is told in the news.
It seems like alot of people have forgotten that ‘The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself’
Do you think that the news media has never made a particular news topic a bigger deal than it actually is? Or the news has never failed to report on something that was very important, or it was trivialized? Like alot of things, the media can be used for good and for bad.
I’m not running with the herd on this one because I think that it is being blown way out of proportion and the lack of accurate data and confirmed facts makes me wonder “why?”
H1N1 has become a polarizing issue for the public because people don’t want to get sick and die and others don’t want to get freaked out over nothing…and the news media helps increase the polarization.
Some would call me foolish and I’m not taking this as serious as I should. If I was thinking like the people who say that, I would probably say the same thing…
I could go on but I don’t want to write a book about it…
hooray! someone that speaks with logic and reason. About friggin time. XD
I had H1N1 it sucks ass. Everyone on my campus has had it probably it spreads like wildfire.
i have it now…..it sucks. i have a bad cough, a recurring fever, and the body aches are pretty bad. it’s a lot like the seasonal flu, but it happens a lot faster.
just like the others who have posted here that have had it, i must say: take care of yourself, and don’t spread it!
The media sells it – and you live the role!
It’s more common than you think, but people are dying by the bulldozer load from it. They just get flu like symptoms, and call in sick to work. Or, if they’re paranoid, very young, or very old, they come to the ER and 2/3 of that group gets admitted to the hospital. The paranoid ones just get told to go home, rest, get fluids, etc. It’s not as big of a deal as CNN makes it out to be.
Just last week a little girl I know died from H1N1. What are the chances it’ll happen to you? Slim, very slim – but then again it’s just one of those things that’ll never happen to you. Well, it does, so be aware of it.
The green circle should be a little bigger and put a tiny dot in the middle to represent deaths. XD
For the record, H1N1 is not that bad. I’m getting over it, and the worse part was the bronchitis that accompanied it.
The regular flu is much, much worse.
Dude, Swine Flu may spread fast, but only a little faster than the regular flu, and has the same symptoms as the regular flu, if not milder. 6000 deaths worldwide isn’t amazing, especially if most of them are in the US. I think I got it, and hell, wasn’t bad at all.
I had it. You don’t “think” you had it. You know. That’s like when girls say “I think I’ve had an orgasm” If you “think” you had it… then you didn’t.
104 temp for four days, plus puking, coughing for another 2 weeks, body so sore you can’t move… yeah.. you’d know.
Actually 30% of our 200 employees at my workplace (myself and my husband included) got H1N1. It’s been horrible. There have also been two deaths of small children that I know. The seriousness of it just depends on whether or not you happen to be in an area where it’s making it’s way through. It hit us BAD but now it’s dying out in our community and moving on.
Oh no! One thousand people in America have died from H1N1! D:!!! We should totally ignore the 36,000 people who die each year from the regular flu because those deaths just aren’t as important as this WORLDWIDE PANDEMIC!!1!1
I’ve had H1N1. It was just like the regular flu. It sucked and I stayed home for a week. But it wasn’t like death was knocking on my door. Let’s think about other people who suffer from much more serious diseases.
The flu of 1918 was probably just a regular flu season but very contagious. My thinking is that people were dying from Aspirin over dose, it was the number one med given to patients, Also explains why it was mainly in the America’s where aspirin was easily and readily available…..
If you had the H1N1 and survived…Then Congrat’s because you will forever be immune!! Can’t say that about herd immunity can you??
yup.
nicely done. : )