by Krystal Nguyen

Created on: June 08, 2009

I think the biggest problem with this swine flu epidemic is that people are forgetting that it is like any other influenza that we have. This one is just more publicized because of the massive amounts of death in Mexico. Mexico is a country with very little medicine and not enough jobs to support the citizens. They can not afford healthy food and the medical needs go without care.

China is a country that is severely over populated. The more people you have living that close together the faster the virus is going to spread. Plain and simple. That is why it spreads faster in schools and at work, the close contact of people lets it leap from one person to the next. Simple practices such as washing your hands with hot water and soap, sanitizing things that everyone comes into contact with like computers, phones, and door handles will slow its spread and stop it.

In America our food is monitored and the second two people get sick they begin to check the foods they ate. Tamiflu is readily available and has been successful so far in curing us of the Swine Flu. I am sure that the pig farms are rigorously testing their meat for safety. If they didn't they would have billions in lawsuits and I'm sure that's the last thing they want in this bad economy.

The majority of deaths in America occur to people with major underlying health issues, the sick, old, and infants. All people with already comprised immune systems. The same people that the regular flu affects every year and no one freaks out over it.

So, as you already guessed, I will not be giving up my delicious pork over the possibility of 1 out of a million that my pork is contaminated. If you are really that worried about the swine flu you should purchase a plastic bubble and tons of hand sanitizer.

You are all carrying around hand sanitizer like crazy yet there are more illnesses that sanitizer does not kill, like Rotovirus. It's like a false sense of security. In fact it is worse because you are killing all bacteria even the ones we all need on a daily basis.

So while I won't give up pork, and don't plan on traveling to Mexico I think my chances of catching the Swine flu are small.

I follow common sense principles, sanitize things that others touch. Wash my hands. I don't stick my hand in my mouth, like chewing fingernails, because I would then ingest the virus, and avoid people that are coughing and sick. I also properly cook all my meat and don't eat anything but well done.

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