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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009

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Climate Skeptics:
Hacked Emails
Prove We're Right

Scientist talks about adding a 'trick' to graph

Nov 21, 09 10:37 AM CST
College Threatens to Fail Students for Obesity

Twenty-five seniors must prove they've lost weight to graduate

Nov 21, 09 11:25 AM CST
Fla. Man to Smoke
115,000th Joint

Feat earns him world record for cannabis consumption

Nov 20, 09 10:32 AM CST
Hadron Collider
Restarts Briefly

After 14 months of repairs, proton beams circulate

Nov 20, 09 6:06 PM CST
Peru Gang Accused
of Killing to Harvest Fat

Cosmetics firms said to pay $60K/gallon; experts skeptical

Nov 19, 09 10:00 PM CST
40% Bare Is
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But too much flesh smacks of infidelity

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The Tuna on Your Plate May Be Endangered

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This Bud's for You:
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the Grade

Marijuana mist, croissants on tap in 1st legal establishment

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cheers

Alcohol Good
for Men's Hearts

Daily drinking reduces disease risk by more than a third, says study

Nov 19, 09 10:59 AM CST
PALEONTOLOGISTS SAY

100M Years Ago, Africa
Was Crocodile Central

3 new species unearthed from Sahara include DogCroc

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h1n1 outbreak

Swine Flu Mutation Worries Norway Scientists

CDC official says it's no cause for alarm

Nov 20, 09 1:37 PM CST
Calif. Buffalo Go on
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Soccer Stars' Fave New Cure: Horse Placenta Massage

It's injected into injured area, then massaged

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|NEXT STORY »

H1N1 OUTBREAK

Vaccine Scarier Than Swine Flu: Poll

Concern high and building, but 60+% don't plan to get a shot

By Harry Kimball| Posted Oct 22, 09 2:05 PM CDT|

(Newser) – Americans are spooked by the growing threat of swine flu but even warier of the vaccine. Half of respondents in a recent Washington Post poll are a “great deal” or “somewhat” worried they or a family member will catch H1N1, up from 39% in August. But more than 60% say they won't get a shot, and just 52% of parents plan to inoculate their kids, even though children are particularly vulnerable to the virus.

Complicating matters is the low supply of the vaccine in some locations. "I'm worried that the virus is getting ahead of the public health system's capacity to respond to it," Sen. Joe Lieberman said at a hearing yesterday. "There will be enough vaccine for every American who wants to be vaccinated," HHS secretary Kathleen Sebelius responded.

[Images (2)]

[Quotes (1)]

A girl receives the swine flu vaccine. (AP Photo)

A nurse prepares the injectable version of the swine flu vaccine. (AP Photo)

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There will be enough vaccine for every American who wants to be vaccinated. It is imminent. We hope that's the case. - HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius

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11.20.09

The Health-Care Wars Have Just Begun

11.19.09

Sarah Palin Deserves Some More Attention

18 comments

VIEWING:

jamerican
Oct 22, 09 2:08 PM CDT

Our great government is incompetent as usual. The swine flu has already gone through most of the community and there are no vacines in this area for shots. By the time it gets here most of the damage will have been done. And you idiots want our big stupid incompetent corrupt government to manage your health care? Reply

-11

IN RESPONSE:

newsfreak55
Oct 22, 09 2:17 PM CDT

Without government intervention there would be no vaccine in the first place. If you knew the first thing about vaccine production, you would know that it takes months, under ideal circumstances to produce the vaccine. And that's AFTER the strain has been identified and a vaccine developed. Google "1918 flu pandemic" and see what damage is possible by a flu. 50 million dead.

+10

IN RESPONSE:

davjc09
Oct 22, 09 2:31 PM CDT

@newsfreak55: You are right about most things in your post. However, to compare H1N1 to the 1918 flu (which I very well realize is H1N1, though of a different type) is somewhat dubious. I think most of the scare came from media over-sensationalizing this strand. The 2009 H1N1 has proved to more contagious than the normal seasonal flu, but not exactly more dangerous than the common flu. Most deaths, as I have heard, have come from complications with secondary respiratory infections.

IN RESPONSE:

d3wd
Oct 22, 09 5:00 PM CDT

The 1976 swine flu vaccine killed more people than the swine flu itself did. http://healthandsurvival.com/2009/04/26/swine-flu-vaccine-of-1976-more-harm-than-good/ "More than 500 people are thought to have developed Guillain-Barre syndrome after receiving the vaccine and 25 died. No one completely understands what causes Guillain-Barre in certain people, but the condition can develop after a bout with infection or following surgery or vaccination. The federal government paid millions in damages to people who developed the condition or their families. However, the pandemic, which some experts estimated at the time could infect 50 million to 60 million Americans, never unfolded. Only about 200 cases of swine flu and one death were ultimately reported in the U.S., the CDC said."

-2

IN RESPONSE:

Trevor_Rapp
Oct 30, 09 5:58 PM CDT

@d3wd - You know that your 'source' is a blog, right? And that they have a disclaimer telling you that 'the information on this blog does not constitute medical advice'?

| 0 minutes ago

ultramarine13
Oct 22, 09 2:37 PM CDT

My stepfather is a doctor, and we were talking about the potential scenarios that could take place with H1N1. The biggest danger is that this strain could mutate yet again, into something for which there is no vaccine and no one is immune. At that point, it could (and probably would) be easily and spread globally by today's rapid international travel. That could be devastating; according to WHO numbers on Wikipedia, H1N1 has a lethality rate of about 1.2%. If that goes up as the virus mutates, we could conceivably match the 50 to 100 million killed in 1918/1919. This is a major potential threat people. Although there are potential side effects, these are far greater dangers posed by the virus itself. My stepdad, by the way, has already had his shot, and I'm planning on getting mine as soon as it's available. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

Jayster999
Oct 22, 09 2:41 PM CDT

When you bring up the 1918 flu pandemic, I don't think you take into account some major differences. We now have over-the-counter medications that are superior to anything they had in those days for alleviating symptoms. There are medications that will reduce the duration of illness if taken properly. We also have anti-viral medications for serious cases, and extremely good hospital care if it comes to it. In 1918, there was no such concept as "sick leave." If you were sick you probably went to work sick, no matter the weather or working conditions. It is highly unlikely that the 1918 flu would have the same impact today. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

davjc09
Oct 22, 09 2:51 PM CDT

@Jayster: I applaud your well-reasoned ideology-free arguement. If I could thumbs up you 10 times, I would.

IN RESPONSE:

newsfreak55
Oct 22, 09 3:08 PM CDT

@Jayster999: That's not entirely correct. What we're seeing with H1N1 is a very sudden onset that can be lethal before treatment can be given in some cases. In that respect, the 1918 flu was very similar. People woke up with it and were dead by the afternoon. Then and now there was an overreaction by the antibodies trying to fight of the infection causing the immune system to attack the lungs. The flu didn't kill them, per se, their own immune systems did.

IN RESPONSE:

ultramarine13
Oct 22, 09 3:41 PM CDT

Another concern I have with your argument, Jayster, as well reasoned and even as it is, is that yes, we do have medication that treats the symptoms very well. However, that only masks what you feel, it doesn't actually cure you. Said medications work for cold and the seasonal flu because they, by and large, aren't lethal, and because they alleviate discomfort, allowing you to rest and your body to recover. The H1N1 strain is different from the seasonal flu, remember, and doesn't react the same way, if at all, to current vaccines and treatments. And there is one factor you haven't considered; air travel. During the 1918/1919 outbreak, people couldn't and didn't travel long distances quickly. Now we can. What this means is that, unlike before, someone could have H1N1 and not realize it, and by the time it's caught in him, he could have traveled through several large airports, spread it to a few other people, who in turn go through several more international airports each, each infecting a few more people, etc. With air travel, the diseases we get sick with travel with us across international boundaries in a matter of hours. The only real way to prevent this is to get vaccinated. So, although your argument does hold water, it is not entirely correct. That said, I like this new Jayster. Thumbs up from me.

| 0 minutes ago

JoeQ
Oct 22, 09 2:43 PM CDT

Fear mongering works! On the bright side, if H1N1 mutates and spreads then the audience share for right wing talk radio will drop and there will be more social security for the rest of us. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

davjc09
Oct 22, 09 2:55 PM CDT

This strand has a very low mutation rate. And the region of the virus from which vaccines are made are pretty well-conserved. This type of H1N1 shouldn't be a huge threat. A whole different flu strand (avian flu for instance), however, is completely possible.

IN RESPONSE:

newsfreak55
Oct 22, 09 3:16 PM CDT

@davjc09: We should all be very thankful for the fact you mentioned - this strand does have a low mutation rate. That's one reason they were able to develop the vaccine as quickly as they did. Since it's in part an avian flu, it doesn't grow particularly well in the chicken eggs used to produce it.

IN RESPONSE:

JoeQ
Oct 22, 09 3:22 PM CDT

It is kind of surprising that we have not already had a big pandemic. The population of the earth has doubled in my lifetime; people are packed into tighter proximity. The speed and the amount of international travel has greatly increased, and there are all sorts of places in the world where there are squalid slums greater than a million people. Seems like most of these diseases come from people cohabiting with domestic animals. Its only a matter of time until something virulent sweeps the world. Meanwhile our medical establishment has not gotten a whole lot faster at identifying outbreaks or manufacturing and distributing vaccines. We will probably need one serious plague before governments take on the responsibility of setting up a decent medical response system for diseases.

IN RESPONSE:

d3wd
Oct 22, 09 11:16 PM CDT

@JoeQ Agreed. Fear mongering does work. That's why so many people are willing to take these vaccines.

-1

| 0 minutes ago

newsfreak55
Oct 22, 09 3:06 PM CDT

@davjc09: I wasn't trying to imply that the current H1N1 was on the same level as the 1918 flu, only that we shouldn't take the any new strain of flu lightly. That said, there are similarities in the current strain and the 1918 strain, among them the propensity to kill infants and younger people, unlike most seasonal flu bugs. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

davjc09
Oct 22, 09 3:28 PM CDT

Point taken. Thanks for the clarification. I am with you that we don't need to take things lightly. The media, however, overblows most of these new strains. And it gives the Beck types just enough truth to spin an anti-vaccine movement.

| 0 minutes ago

DeniseVB
Oct 23, 09 3:35 PM CDT

Nothing to add here except I've never had a flu shot in my life, and don't intend to start now. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

View all 18 comments »

Health and Human Services • Congressional hearings • public health • children • Joe Lieberman • Inoculation • vaccination • vaccine • Kathleen Sebelius • pandemic • swine flu • H1N1 virus

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Vaccine Scarier Than Swine Flu: Poll