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Did you know that the Bird Flu only affects Vietnamese people, yeah it’s the new SARS. That is clearly false information. There have been human cases of the bird flu in Cambodia, Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam. However, it is a fact that the most outbreaks are in Vietnam with 91 infected and 41 dead. There are birds infected in Greece, Russia, Belgium, Hanoi, Korean and Japan.  Bird flu scientifically known as Avian Influenza affects domestic birds. The most affected by it are chickens. The flu is very contagious worldwide, among birds even though it’s carried in the bird’s intestines. People become infected with the virus by coming in contact with the bird’s saliva, nasal mucus, and digestive waste. Health authorities have ordered 1.3 million chickens be killed in Romania. The symptoms of the virus in humans start out as the regular flu. It then elevates to an eye infection, pneumonia, and severe respiratory disease. The largest risk is if the bird flu can mutate and take the form of the regular flu. If this happens it can spread between humans like the common flu. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and WHO (World Health Organization) are trying to track the virus down to prevent this. The first human case of the bird flu was in 1997. It killed a three-year old boy; the first chicken affected was in 1961. The Avian flu is spreading fast and highly deadly. 60 out of 117 infected have died. There have only been human cases in Europe. President Bush met with vaccine makers on October 7 and asked for them to speed up development. There is also a threat in Canada but it seems to be handled and under control. Tami flu the vaccine for the bird flu is very scarce. Only those affected by the virus can purchase the anti-flu drug. German scientist plan to make another vaccine by the end of this year. A lot of countries don’t know how to make the medicine so it’s slow process. Taiwan has recently announced that they will make their own Tami flu to increase treatment in Asia since they are the worse hit.Ways to avoid Avian Influenza are making sure all poultry is thoroughly cooked. Wear protective supplies if handling poultry and any other bird that may be infected. If you think that you may be infected with the virus, contact your doctor immediately and throw away all poultry that you have.
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