Just to let other Canadians know ; A 13 years old healty boy , hockey player , got the H1 N1 and died within a week yesterday . My daughter is 12 going on 13 ...  

Quoted from whizzervic

Just to let other Canadians know ; A 13 years old healty boy , hockey player , got the H1 N1 and died within a week yesterday . My daughter is 12 going on 13 ...  

It's sad that this happened, who knows what factors may have contributed to exacerbating the H1N1 reaction in this particular loss, but its also sad that his clinic doctor wasn't able to acertain anything unusual was happening (that's the scarey part).  

But it's also sad that all the 1000's of people that die every year from seasonal flu don't get such a public memorial either.  I suppose it's not surprising, but its amazing to read of the differing reactions (and rising panic) to the pandemic from different communities across Canada.  It's been going around since about April, but the rise in sickness is exponential, so it is reaching regional proportions and spreading.

Toronto schools are experiencing something like 10% absenteeism now (and its getting mentioned on the radio), and panic is setting in.  We had over 40% absenteeism (smaller community though), not even a blip - they just did extra cleaning in the schools.  Some people calling for quarantines and closures....keeping their kids home, the response is all over the place and it's caused by not having a clear provincial or national voice.

Not everyone is going to get the shot, so the pandemic will run its course and almost everyone will get sick, some will die, life will go on, and we will cross our fingers and hope that the virus doesn't turn even more ugly next time around.

So I suggest: wash your hands and your kids hands a lot (water and soap), cough into your shoulder (we've always taught our kids to "give it the shoulder" instead of using a hand), use disposable kleenex, stay home if you are sick, keep your distance from someone who appears sick, get the flu shots, don't spread rumours, and if you are sick, monitor your illness closely and rest.

I remember telling my Mom, when I was 15 or 16, that I had gut pain really bad.  She dismissed it as me faking it to get out of school. Finally, writhing in pain I told I would drive myself to emergency if she or my Dad wouldn't (who called an ambulance in those days!).  My appendix burst on the operating table - so I got lucky.  So I'd also say "listen to your kids" and take their temperatures regularly if they don't seem like themselves.

Quoted from jonny_eh

BTW, the mercury in vaccines is ethyl-mercury, not methyl-mercury (the harmful kind that is in thermometers). The ethyl-mercury is metabolized by the body and expelled, it is also in amounts lower than is found in a tuna sandwich. It has also been conclusively shown that mercury does not cause autism. Some people thought it did because vaccines are given around the same time that the first symptoms of autism appear, but it turned out to be a coincidence.

The conclusion that mercury does not cause autism is specifically not shown conclusively in the paper that that blog entry refers to. Sorry to be pedantic, but it is a real bug up my a** when people alter the conclusions drawn ... to either side ... on this issue. There was that big court case in the US, but it was a specific case with specific circumstances, yet the anti-vaccine folks misrepresented what the judgement actually meant.

I have two kids with Autism, have participated in a number of environmental, biological, chemical and genetic studies and endured countless biomedical conferences and lectures.

To be fair, the evidence concerning mercury was more substantial than a coincidence in timing -- it would have to be since many nations vaccinate at vastly different times yet see the emergence of symptoms at similar times. Having said that, every study that I have ever seen indicates support for the various theories (there are more than one) regarding vaccination and Autism has been flawed and discredited. There are, OTOH, many valid studies that do not indicate  a linkage.

Some kids with Autism do have trouble excreting heavy metals and do respond well to treatment for heavy metal poisoning. Some kids with Autism respond well to the removal of dairy from their diet (one of mine responded very well). Some kids respond well to the removal of gluten. And so on and so on, which is why you get different, very vocal, groups of people who get excited about the specific treatments that are working for them. Hell, there was even an apparently statistically valid study that indicated a linkage between RAINFALL and Autism.

I don't believe for a second that vaccinations had anything to do with my kids' Autism, so, in essence, I agree with johnny_eh but felt like being a bit pedantic this monring.

... I will have some Purell on hand at the meeting Friday for all those who panic about it. Technically, we all put our hands in the same area on the machines...

Quoted from websherpa

It's sad that this happened, who knows what factors may have contributed to exacerbating the H1N1 reaction in this particular loss, but its also sad that his clinic doctor wasn't able to acertain anything unusual was happening (that's the scarey part).  

But it's also sad that all the 1000's of people that die every year from seasonal flu don't get such a public memorial either.  I suppose it's not surprising, but its amazing to read of the differing reactions (and rising panic) to the pandemic from different communities across Canada.  It's been going around since about April, but the rise in sickness is exponential, so it is reaching regional proportions and spreading.

The seasonal flue practically never kills young healthy people, usually only the elderly or infants. Despite that though, this death is still a rarity. The really sad thing though is that the family had been intending to get vaccinated once the vaccine was available.

Quoted from CheffoJeffo

The conclusion that mercury does not cause autism is specifically not shown conclusively in the paper that that blog entry refers to.

Neither I nor the author said it did, it's just the latest piece of evidence in the big pile of evidence that vaccines and mercury do not cause autism.

From the article:

Quoted Text

Of course, this one study cannot disprove a link between vaccines and autism. But this adds to the growing body of evidence for a lack of a correlation. All studies looking at exposure to thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative in some vaccines, and autism or other neurological disorders has shown no correlation. And most significantly, when thimerosal was removed from the vaccine schedule in the US (it now remains only in some optional vaccines) there was no corresponding change in the rate of autism diagnoses. (See here for a thorough review of relevant studies.)

Instead of pointing to a blog post about the latest study, I should have pointed again to this Wired article.

Quoted from jonny_eh

Neither I nor the author said it did, it's just the latest piece of evidence in the big pile of evidence that vaccines and mercury do not cause autism.

Quoted from jonny_eh

It has also been conclusively shown that mercury does not cause autism.

Sorry ... perhaps I misinterpreted ...  

Quoted from CheffoJeffo

Sorry ... perhaps I misinterpreted ...  

It's just an innocent hyperlink!  

Just to add to the whole thing, here is my perspective:

1918... Spanish flu... considered to be a pandemic... millions dead.

2005... Avian flu... advertized at the time as a huge pandemic. It was all over the news. They were talking about quarantines and massive vaccinations, which never happened.  Total casualties resulting: 59

I do not want to minimize this latest strain, not by a long shot. BUT... we do live in a society where our sources of information are pure garbage. CNN, Foxnews... all propaganda. They will sell their souls for ratings, so they will milk this for all it is worth. And when this dies down, they will most probably go back to terorism or the economy, depicting doomsday scenarios as they always do.

So unfortunately, in this age of disinformation, it is truly hard to get the truth, so people tend to either panic massively or merely ignore everything, which in both cases has more severe consequences than the flu itself.

Take the panicking mass for instance. Pharmaceutical companies LOVE these guys because they will spend BILLIONS on overpreventing. These people live on fear. And the formula is so simple... scrae the mess out of people on the news, and they run to the closest drug store.

As for the others, they just get so sick and tired of all the contradicting bullshit that they just ignore it. this also causes the problem that if there is a pandemic, they are negligent to themselves and others.

Now... that dirty word... PANDEMIC!!! RUN TO THE HILLS!!!!! WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE!!!




To quote Yosemite Sam : WHEN I SAY WHOA..... AH MEAN... WHOA!

Has anyone checked the definition of what a pandemic is? Let me enlighten you:

A pandemic (from Greek πᾶν pan "all" + δῆμος demos "people") is an epidemic of infectious disease that is spreading through human populations across a large region; for instance a continent, or even worldwide.

Hmm... any mention of death? Nope. Pandemic merely means that the disease, REGARDLESS OF IT'S INTENSITY, is not limited to a certain territory, such as malaria, which is predominant in Africa but not much at all in North-America. Right now, the panicky crowd think that a pandenic is like the bubonic plague. NOT TRUE. A pandemic CAN be something like the bubonic plague, but can also be a runny nose and a slight fever.

Now... let's focus on the disease at hand, and not the spread of it. A-H1N1 is a flu... to be taken seriously? OF COURSE... but it is still a flu. You will not bleed internally. You will not mess your brains out. But you will feel like crap, cough up mucus, leak like a bad faucet from the nose and pop a few Tylenols.

"but Sparky...people are dying of this!!! Look at that 13-year-old in Mississauga..."

Of course... but THOUSANDS die of the regular flu every year... most generally young children and elderly people...  OH WAIT!!! HEY!!! That is exactly the SAME demographic at risk as for the A-H1N1 flu!!! Wow... coincidence?

Nevertheless... H1N1 is the same composition as the Spanish flu of 1918. Luckily, our means of protection are better today. People are generally cleaner than in those days. Medical means are better. But education is key.

Wash your hands, avoid exposure when possible, take care of yourself and take multi-vitamins to keep your immune system strong.


... maybe I should change my name to Dr.Sparky... oh... wait ... scratch that... that's already taken.

Quoted from Sparky

... maybe I should change my name to Dr.Sparky... oh... wait ... scratch that... that's already taken.

I thought Dr. Sparky was your alter-ego  

Quoted from Sparky

Now... let's focus on the disease at hand, and not the spread of it. A-H1N1 is a flu... to be taken seriously? OF COURSE... but it is still a flu. You will not bleed internally. You will not mess your brains out. But you will feel like crap, cough up mucus, leak like a bad faucet from the nose and pop a few Tylenols.

"but Sparky...people are dying of this!!! Look at that 13-year-old in Mississauga..."

Of course... but THOUSANDS die of the regular flu every year... most generally young children and elderly people...  OH WAIT!!! HEY!!! That is exactly the SAME demographic at risk as for the A-H1N1 flu!!! Wow... coincidence?

Nevertheless... H1N1 is the same composition as the Spanish flu of 1918. Luckily, our means of protection are better today. People are generally cleaner than in those days. Medical means are better. But education is key.

The at risk demographic for H1N1 is not the same as the seasonal flu.

H1N1 is affecting pregnant women and young healthy people a lot more than the seasonal flu normally does.

I agree that no one should PANIC (no one here is), but at the same time, people shouldn't be downplaying its seriousness. Wash your hands, cough on your sleeve, stay at home if sick, and get the vaccine when you can.

-Dr. Jon