by Phylis Cox

Created on: May 01, 2009

Knowing there is no Swine Flu vaccination, it's a relief to know that making the vaccine will not take six months as previously thought. Because of genetic engineering progress, scientists can produce the vaccine in 10 to12 weeks, which is still frightening since the flu can spread so quickly. In the meantime, people remain glued to the TV, hoping for good news that the virus is contained. Although the average person has no control over the availability of vaccine, everyone plays a part in taking measures to help prevent the spread of Swine Flu. Good hygiene practices can help prevent a pandemic.

Wash your hands often. Many times we pick up germs from surfaces and then touch our noses or our mouth. Washing our hands help prevent spreading the germs to others by shaking hands or by touching objects in shared environments. By washing our hands routinely, we prevent spreading germs picked up from infected surfaces.

Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth. Although keeping our hands clean will help, we need to guard against providing germs an easy route to our bodies through eyes, nose, and mouth. Kleenex can provide a barrier between your hands and your eyes, nose, and mouth.

Avoid contact with people who are ill, and also keep your distance from people when you are sick. Stay home if you aren't feeling well. Keep children home when they are ill.

Cover your mouth and nose with a napkin when you sneeze or cough. The napkin will help prevent germs from being spread into the air for others to breathe.

Get plenty of rest, eat nutritiously, and be active in order to keep your immune system healthy.

Although following these guidelines is no guarantee that the flu won't attack our bodies, by doing so, we certainly can help prevent flu from spreading to pandemic levels. In fact, the previous suggestions hold nothing new. They are merely good hygiene practices that we have heard about all our lives. Still, even though nothing is new on the list of suggestions, the list should serve as a reminder that we are not helpless when it comes to protecting our bodies and preventing the spread of illness. We can take charge of maintaining our health all year round, not just when we have a pandemic scare, and we certainly have a responsibility to do what we can to help prevent an international crisis.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20090429/hl_time /08599189462500

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