SWINE FLU THREAD

[Graham1441]

I`m a delivery driver and deliver to schools, there is now a case of swine flu at one of the schools i go to.
My wife works in a school and there is a case in a school only half a mile away so if they have any younger brothers or sisters they would go to my wifes school.
I feel like im between a rock and a rock. If i dont get it at work i`ll get it at home.I`m worried,HELP.
Graham1441

[Spiral]

Chill!

Use tissues, wash your hands, eat well. We have just been issued with alcohol hand gel at work - you could get that too.

If you have symptoms see your GP asap!

For most people this isn't a serious illness. I hope to get it out of the way sooner rather than later.

[phoenix]

As Spiral says, try not to worry.

If you do become unwell dont visit your doctors, phone

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Pandemic-flu/Pages/QA.aspx#Whatshould

[hanadr]

My swine flu worry is my toddler granddaughter. Most of the primary schools round here have cases and my daughter is a primary teacher. The baby has breathing problems and a persistent , possibly asthmatic, cough treated by inhaler. She's at far more risk that I am.

[humph]

I am not worried, I always turn down the yearly vaccine and won't be taking up the swine flu vaccine when it comes out.

Swine flu is less harmful than the seasonal flu at the moment, the number of fatalities per people with the virus is lower. The only problem is every death is on the news, it is being blown totally out of proportion.

If it mutates, now that could be a different matter.

[Administrator]

We've posted a guide to Swine Flu and it's relation to diabetes here: http://www.diabetes.co.uk/swine-flu-and-diabetes.html.

The media aren't helping anything at the moment!

[chocoholic]

I think the flu has spread so far and wide now, that avoiding it will be tricky. Okay, I won't be booking a holiday to Mexico right now but other than that, I don't really see what we can do to avoid it. I'm a great believer in fate, so believe 'what will be will be'.
I notice as diabetics we'll be given priority for the vaccine but I won't be having the jab. As it is still being worked on right now, I don't see how they can possibly know just how safe the vaccine is, long-term.Without that assurance, I'll take my chances and go without the jab. It is down to personal choice, of course. There will be those who feel as I do and those who prefer to have the vaccination. Whatever choice you folks make, let's pull together on this one, and keep those positive vibes on the forum. The media will hype it up and frighten folk but there's an old saying........'Don't let the b****rs grind you down!' I don't intend to.

[Spiral]

There is swine flu in my son's school, my babysitter's school, a colleague in a team I have regualr contact with has swine flu, one of our service users has swine flu. We can't avoid it.

What you need to have is a contingency plan. Stock your larder and freezer up. Make sure you have stocks of regular medication and paracetamol for temperatur eif you come down with anything. I try to make sure that I have things like ice lollys in the fridge if I have a sore throat and temperature, and lots of icecubes.

I have also been chatting to a couple of friends and we will be swine flu buddies - that means we will make sure that each other is okay gets whatever is needed if they are laid up with the flu. I hope to get it out of the way sooner rather than later.

I think that as diabetics we may need to pay more attention to the impact of dehyrdration, especially if the swine flu comes with the trots. Bernstien gives a recipe for a rehydration fluid in his book - I have the ingerdients in my cupboard all are available in the supermarket.

Chill. Don't panic. "Normal" flu kills people. The media is making this so much worse than it needs to be.

[ChocFish]

Vulnerable people die of 'ordinary' flu too and we hardly ever hear about them, and its right, the media is making things worse, almost everyone around me is worrying about swine flu.

We cannot avoid it but we can help ourselves by supporting our immune system, by keeping blood glucose levels as close to non-diabetic levels as possible, eating lots of healthy, fresh food, I mean mainly vegetables and protein, drink plenty of water, tea (white/green/herbal or fruit - hot or cold)to flush out germs and toxins, consume only good fats, keep calm and relaxed, exercise and be good to yourself - all these will help to keep you healthy and if you are unfortunate enough to catch swine flu or any other illness it will give you the best possible chance of fighting back against any nasty invaders!

Love to all, hope you all stay healthy

Karen

[The Governor]

Could someone explain to me why Diabetics are more at risk? Is it because their blood sugar is generally higher than a normal persons, or are we generally at risk regardless of how good our control is?

My main worry is my youngest daughter as she is only four, I'm giving serious thought to donating my vaccine to her when it is offered to me... by the time the vaccine hits in around December most people will have had it anyway... once it's in schools the jig is up really as kids just can't exercise proper hygiene because they don't understand how.

[Spiral]

My understanding is that diabetics with poor control are at main risk - those are the people who may have cardiac problems and kidney function problems. Illness stresses the system and even diabetics with good control will have unexpected readings when they are ill.

I remember reading a case study in the Bernstein book about a woman with T1 who ended up in kideny failure when she had an infection. This is not a condition to treat lightly and I am a hopeless patient, as I'm sure my long suffering GP will tell you

I have realsied that the difference diabetes has made to me is that I will accept antibiotics much sooner - I tend to refuse them because of the IBS and thrush that inevitably follow in the weeks after a course finishes. I will also accept the anti-virals if offered. But like humph, I'm not convinced about the vaccine.

I don't think that the doctor would give your vaccine to your daughter if you refuse it. Medication is based on medical need not swaps. If your daughter needed a medical intervention, then that would be offered in its own right. In many cases the drug licences for children are different - I don't know how this would affect the flu vaccine tho...

[sugarless sue]

From NHS choices,

I have diabetes. Am I at more at risk from swine flu?

You are no more likely to catch swine flu than anyone else. However, if you do catch it, your blood glucose may increase and your diabetes treatment may need to be adjusted accordingly.
What should I do if my blood glucose increases?

If you find your blood glucose has increased, or you develop thirst and are urinating more, call your GP. If you are on insulin and testing your own blood glucose, you may be advised to do this more often so you can adjust your dose according to the results. If you start to vomit or become increasingly unwell, call your GP as soon as possible.

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Pandemic-f ... #Diabetes1

[inwales]

A good stimulus to get your BG under control!

[Spiral]

A good stimulus to get your BG under control!

Indeed, but my gut feeling is that having good control simply buys you some time to get yourself sorted as your readings will probably go haywire if you are ill. But this is true for any illness, not just swine flu.

I think the pandemic swine flu is a focus and the media is adding to the general panic. So far this is a relatively mild illness, not plague People die of ordinary flu every year. However, if the attention given to swine flu makes a few diabetics think again about how they manage their condition and resolve to bring their sugar readings under better control, it won't all be bad However, I think blind panic may be what affects the majority of people

[willogs]

I keep worrying too as I am also pregnant, the media makes me panic more though.