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Understanding The Bird Flu

You may have heard a lot about the Bird Flu through your news media. Everyone is talking about it because there is the potential that millions of people could become infected with the Avian Influenza and many of them (more than half) may die from it.

With that said, you should also know that the Bird Flu is not an immediate threat to the human population because it has not yet been found to have mutated into a virus that can be easily spread from human to human. It can only be spread from one bird to the next and from bird to human. But, just what is the Bird Flu and where did it come from?

Many people are wondering the same thing. The Bird Flu or H5N1 as it is technically called is a subtype of Influenza A. There are many strains of influenza circulating the world each year. The most common is that of the Annual Flu. This is the common flu that goes around each year that you dread getting. Did you know that the Annual Flu kills an estimated 36,000 people per year? It does and it is very important for you to realize that any virus, including the Annual Flu can be lethal especially when it is not taken care of.

The Bird Flu is a deadly strain of the influenza virus. Like all viruses, it can easily mutate into something new and different with each passing day. In many cases, one strain of virus can mutate several times in the same season. That is what makes it so difficult to stop the spread of these viruses. They simply can not come up with a medication fast enough to stop it.

In birds, the Bird Flu can be passed through saliva, nasal secretions, and through feces. Birds that are infected with the Bird Flu can and usually spread it other birds very rapidly. In birds, the virus has a 100% mortality rate. The only way to stop the spread of the virus in birds is to kill off any infected birds. Other birds that have possibly come in contact with them need to be killed as well. The problem with this is however is that some of the infected birds are migrating birds. This means that they may take it with them and pass it on to other birds in distant areas.

The Bird Flu has the possibility of mutating into a virus that can be passed from one human to the next, even though this has not happened as of yet on a large scale basis. If this happens, those that come into contact with it will face a mortality of more than 50% if not more. Countries around the world are watching the Avian Flu very closely and working to control the risk of it spreading. Experts are very concerned that the Bird Flu will mutate into a virus that can be passed from human to human in the next few years if not sooner.