(NaturalNews) The World Health Organization has revised its pandemic alert scale this week, right in the midst of a swine flu outbreak. Under the new criteria, a
Phase 4 rating indicates human-to-human spread of a virus, a
Phase 5 rating indicates human-to-human spread of the virus into at least two countries in one region, and a
Phase 6 rating indicates a global pandemic with widespread outbreaks.
Interestingly, the WHO is quite aware that swine flu has now spread to Mexico, the
United States and Canada, as is evidenced by this statement on their website:
The Committee considered available data on confirmed outbreaks of A/H1N1 swine influenza in the United States of America, Mexico, and Canada. The Committee also considered reports of possible spread to additional countries... (
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/statements/2009/h1n1_20090427/en/index.html)
... and yet, amazingly,
the WHO has not yet raised the
swine flu alert level to the phase for which it clearly qualifies (Phase 5). After all, hasn't this swine flu
virus already achieved "human-to-human spread into at least two countries in one region?" (Mexico, the U.S. and
Canada, by my counting, would qualify as
three countries in one region.)
So why is the
WHO not following its own well-defined guidelines for categorizing viral outbreaks?
It seems that the decision makers at the WHO, along with Mexico's
health authorities, are working hard to make swine
flu appear less dangerous than it really is. Infections are spreading by the day, with new countries found to be infected on a daily basis. The death toll in Mexico City is rising quickly, and the virus is cropping of simultaneously in cities and nations around the globe (a highly unusual spread pattern, historically speaking). Is this not enough to warrant a Phase 5 declaration?
Interestingly, at the same time, the U.S. Dept. of Homeland security has done essentially nothing to restrict air travel from Mexico or to screen arriving passengers for swine flu infections. Sure, they claim to be running a "passive
screening" program now, but that only amounts to "DHS personnel on the lookout for sniffles." It's hardly a robust screening program like the ones set up in the airports of Asian nations.
Given the behavior of Swine Flu so far, the response of world
health authorities to this
outbreak seems suspiciously apathetic. I've studied all the major
pandemic outbreaks since 1918, and I've never read about a new, highly-contagious influenza virus appearing almost overnight in eight different countries. That fact alone should be alarming to anyone familiar with infectious disease agents.
Sure, the fatality rate in the U.S. may seem low right now, but it was probably low in Mexico City early on, too. The
deaths might start to kick in
a week or two later than the original carrier infections. So the fact that the U.S. has so far escaped any swine flu deaths (officially, anyway) may only be a matter of timing, not a measure of actual danger posed by the virus.
With
infection numbers rising fast -- over 100 students in a single New York City school are now confirmed with the infection -- the U.S. is bound to start seeing more severe swine flu cases emerge.
About the author: Mike Adams is an award-winning journalist and holistic nutritionist with a passion for teaching people how to improve their health He has authored and published thousands of articles, interviews, consumers guides, and books on topics like health and the environment, impacting the lives of millions of readers around the world who are experiencing phenomenal health benefits from reading his articles. Adams is an honest, independent journalist and accepts no money or commissions on the third-party products he writes about or the companies he promotes. In mid 2010, Adams produced NaturalNews.TV, a natural health video sharing website offering user-generated videos on nutrition, green living, fitness and more. He also founded an environmentally-friendly online retailer called BetterLifeGoods.com that uses retail profits to help support consumer advocacy programs. He's also a noted pioneer in the email marketing software industry, having been the first to launch an HTML email newsletter technology that has grown to become a standard in the industry. Adams is currently the executive director of the Consumer Wellness Center, a 501(c)3 non-profit, and regularly pursues cycling, nature photography, Capoeira and Pilates. He's also author of numerous health books published by Truth Publishing and is the creator of several consumer-oriented grassroots campaigns, including the Spam. Don't Buy It! campaign, and the free downloadable Honest Food Guide. He also created the free reference sites HerbReference.com and HealingFoodReference.com. Adams believes in free speech, free access to nutritional supplements and the ending of corporate control over medicines, genes and seeds. Known as the 'Health Ranger,' Adams' personal health statistics and mission statements are located at www.HealthRanger.org
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Tuesday, April 28, 2009
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