What is the Swine Flu? We know that it spreads among people easily and is affecting younger people disproportionately. We also know that a number of people, many with underlying health conditions, have died from this virus.
This virus was originally referred to as “swine flu” because laboratory testing showed that many of the genes in this new virus were very similar to influenza viruses that normally occur in pigs in North America. But further study has shown that this new virus is very different from what normally circulates in North American pigs. It has two genes from flu viruses that normally circulate in pigs in Europe and Asia and avian genes and human genes. Scientists call this a “quadruple reassortant” virus.
With a swine flu vaccine expected to be ready in October, the debate over mass vaccination of children has been rapidly growing. The panic which occurred over the swine flu might soon be even more dangerous than the virus itself. The infected persons are shunned as if they have the plague. We are bombarded with new information about
