Exactly when CDC communications are being cut off, bird flu takes a concerning turn

This may feel familiar: it now appears bird flu can be spread by the wind, and just-released reports indicate several veterinarians caught bird flu, which may be more widespread than we thought.

Egg prices aren’t going down soon; bird flu (H1N1) is now in the Midwest. When it spreads to commercial poultry farms, the only way to stop it is ‘culling,’ our polite word for killing the birds that provide our eggs. The VP of Eggs Unlimited says it could be the worst outbreak ever.

A report delayed when CDC stats went dark emerged today that indicates a larger spread of the disease in both cattle and humans. The more the disease spreads, the greater the risk of a mutation that could cause human-to-human spread or a far worse infection in humans than we’ve so far seen. While the risk to people so far is low, a new mutation recently found in cattle in Nevada is thought to help the virus copy itself in mammals — including humans — more easily. Testing of cattle is voluntarily, and as of January, only 28 states are conducting testing, although they represent about 2/3 of cattle producers.

In more new findings, scientists are now also concerned that a new variant of H1N1 can be spread in dust from bird droppings, moving Bloomberg to issue this warning: “Bird flu is a big threat The US needs to start acting like it.”

I previously posted extensively on symptoms of bird flu (including what looks like simple pink eye) and how to protect yourself. Now’s a good time to review that.

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